Influencing Europe through BOND
Influencing a giant like the European Union is possible, and coordinated pressure on relevant European institutions in all member states and in Brussels is key to success.
Find out how you can influence Europe on the issues that matter to you through BOND network in the UK and in Europe.
- In the UK
BOND working groups, project groups, and networks
BOND events - In Europe
CONCORD joint analysis and insider lobbying
Global Call to Action against Poverty - public campaigning
Other issue based campaigning networks in Europe
In the UK
Two BOND Working Groups have a specific focus on EU institutions:
- BOND European Policy Group provides joint analysis of EU policy developments and coordinates advocacy initiatives targeting the EU
- BOND EC Funding Group provides information sharing on technical EC funding issues and joint analysis and influencing of EC funding environment
Other BOND working groups and UK networks target European institutions on specific issues. Project groups can be set up on specific initiatives. Some examples of active BOND working groups, project groups and UK networks are:
- Africa-EU Strategy Project Group
- BOND European Neighbourhood Working Group
- BOND Latin America and Caribbean Working Group
- UK Food Group
- Development Education Association
BOND advocacy team offers support to BOND working groups and members to analyse how the EU affects the issues they are working on and to plan collective influencing of European institutions.
BOND events
At key influencing times BOND organises events for you to be informed and input into collective advocacy targeting the European Union.
BOND EU Events 2008-09
Theme |
Date |
Influencing opportunity |
EU aid quantity and quality |
6 May 2008 |
May GAERC reviewing aid quantity commitments and EU position to High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness |
Lisbon Treaty |
7 July 2008 |
Implementation of the EU Reform Treaty with implications for development |
EU-Africa Strategy |
December 2008 |
Review of the implementation of the Africa-EU Strategy and Action Plan, one year after the Lisbon Summit |
EU Budget review |
February 2009 |
Mid-term review of EU Budget, with implications for the role of the EU in the world |
Contact Irene, BOND Advocacy Administrator, to know more.
In Europe
CONCORD - joint analysis and insider lobbying
BOND is the UK national platform to CONCORD, the European confederation of relief and development NGOs consisting of 20 NGO national platform and 22 international networks representing over 1600 NGOs. CONCORD represents the development community within the EU Civil Society Contact Group, which brings together eight large rights and value based NGO sectors - environment, social, development, human rights, lifelong learning, public health, culture and women.
Participation in CONCORD is strategic for BOND and its members in order to access information, share best practice across Europe and be able to speak with one strong voice in Brussels .
BOND inputs into CONCORD work through two elected delegates. The BOND delegates to CONCORD, Beth Marshall -WWF Government and Aid Agencies Officer- and Jake Bharier -Skillshare International Strategic Adviser-, were elected at the BOND EU Assembly on 25 April 2007. As a delegate, Jake was elected to the Board of CONCORD in 2004, and is currently the Treasurer.
As a member of BOND you are also a member of CONCORD . The diagram below shows the correspondence between some of CONCORD working groups and BOND groups/UK networks.
Global Call to Action against Poverty in Europe - public campaigning
The Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP) is the largest ever anti-poverty civil society campaigning alliance. Active in 100 countries under the white band symbol, GCAP calls for:
- Public accountability, just governance and the fulfilment of human rights
- Trade justice
- Increasing the quantity and quality of aid and financing for development
- Debt cancellation
- Gender equality and women's rights
- A solution to climate change
In Europe, GCAP is active in 31 EU and non EU countries (from Portugal to Russia ); national coalitions coordinate at the European level under a regional strategic framework 2008-2010.
BOND is campaigning with GCAP in Europe together with environment, social and human rights groups from across the region. The next pan European public campaign moment will be the launch of the third CONCORD Aid Watch report, targeting European Development ministers meeting on 26-27 May to discuss their more and better aid commitments.
Future plans include joint campaigning in the lead up to the elections of the European Parliament in June 2009, the biggest transnational election in history and coordinated European campaigning ahead of the G8 Summit in Italy in July 2009. Subscribe to the GCAP Europe mailing list or contact Glen Tarman at BOND to know more.
Other issue based campaigning networks in Europe
- Alter EU - Lobbying Transparency & Ethics Regulation
- Seattle2Brussels - Trade Justice
- European Trade Union Congress - decent work
- Eurodad - debt cancellation
- Climate Action Network - Climate change
- European Youth Forum - Youth and development