SSH CENTRE: Shaping an inclusive and sustainable Europe together 

👈 Click on download here to read our report “Citizen-led recommendations for the Horizon Europe Missions on sustainability”!

What are the SSH CENTRE and the EU Missions? 

At Debating Europe, we are working to redesign the roles and responsibilities of citizens, governments, and businesses to create a fairer and more inclusive society. This effort is part of a broader vision for a Renewed Social Contract—a future where policymaking reflects citizens’ real needs.  

To engage citizens on climate policies, we joined the EU co-funded SSH CENTRE project (Social Sciences and Humanities for Climate, Energy aNd Transport Research Excellence), which addresses the challenge of accelerating the EU’s transition to carbon neutrality by engaging directly with stakeholders across research, policy, and business to strengthen social innovation, transdisciplinary policy advice, and inclusive engagement across Europe. 

In the context of this project, in 2022-2024 we engaged 160 young citizens across the EU and associated countries to gather insights on key challenges shaping Europe’s future, and in particular on the following EU Missions:  

🔹 100 Climate neutral and smart cities by 2030 – which aims to support cities in accelerating their green and digital transformation. 
🔹 Adaptation to climate change – which focuses on supporting EU regions, cities and local authorities in their efforts to build resilience against the impacts of climate change. 
🔹 Restore our ocean and waters – which aims to protect and restore the health of our ocean and waters through research and innovation, citizen engagement and blue investments.  
🔹 A soil deal for Europe – which plans to establish 100 living labs and lead the transition towards healthy soils by 2030. 

The Horizon Europe Missions were created in 2021 as a specific instrument to address main societal challenges with tangible results by 2030, in a format committed to engaging citizens in their activities and processes.  

Beyond the key topics of these Missions, we also explored views on how to better involve citizens in decision-making and create long lasting and impactful changes! 

The project consists of four key phases, designed to turn citizen voices into concrete recommendations. 

How Does It Work? 

💬 PHASE 1 – ONLINE GROUP DISCUSSIONS 

Online Group Discussions – September 2023 to April 2024 
Between September 2023 and April 2024, Debating Europe conducted online group discussions with 160 citizens from 25 different nationalities, on the four sustainability-related Horizon Europe Missions. 

The focus groups sought participant input on, for example: the EU’s work regarding the specific Mission they were discussing; what they would like their local government to take action on; and how they thought citizens should be engaged in the work of the Missions. 

Participants joined an 1H online group discussion on the topic of their choice, and exchanged ideas with other citizens from all over Europe.  

Debating Europe collected their insights and focused on some major trends to organise follow-up online panel discussions with policymakers and experts.  

▶️ PHASE 2 – ONLINE PANEL DISCUSSIONS  

4 Citizen-focused Panel Discussions 

Following the focus groups, Debating Europe organised four online policy panels (one per mission). These panels involved citizens from our discussions, exchanging with senior policy leaders to reflect on the emerging findings and recommendations from the focus groups.  

1. Easy move: Smoother Journeys, Better Cities, Happier Citizens: focusing on the EU mission on Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, our esteemed speakers Valentin Lungenstrass, Deputy-Mayor of Lyon, France, Philipp Rode, Executive Director & Associate Professor, LSE and Ivo Petrov, Citizen and part of Debating Europe’s Community, dive into the future of mobility to make our cities smarter, cleaner, and more livable. Watch the full discussion here. 

2. EU’s Road to Fair Climate Adaptation: Citizen Voices and Local Impact: exploring innovative approaches to climate justice, Sofia Hedén, Deputy-Mayor of Malmö, Sweden, Marine Cornelis, Founder of Next Energy Consumer & Energ’Ethic and Micol Sagal Ambroso, Citizen and part of the Debating Europe’s Community, discuss ways to ensure a resilient and fair future for communities across Europe. Watch the full discussion here. 

3. Voices for Healthy Oceans and Waters: A Citizen-Focused Dialogue: focusing on exploring innovative ways to safeguards oceans and water resources, Andreea Strachinescu, Head of Unit Maritime Innovation, Marine Knowledge and Investments (DG MARE) at the European Commision, Lefteris Arapakis, Co-Founder & Director of Enaleia and EYL40, Samira Ben Ali and Alba Hernandez, Citizens and part of Debating Europe’s Community addressed the role of the private sector, how to scale and adapt local practices to successfully managed maritime resources and efficiently involve citizens. Watch the full discussion here. 

4. Healthy Soils, Sustainable Future: A Citizen Focused Dialogue: exploring the critical role of soil ecosystems, Ion Codescu, Head of Unit, Land Use & Management (DG ENV) at the European Commission, Anna Jørgensen, General Manager of Cortes de Cima and EYL40, Gregorio Vichi and Niilo Syväoja, Citizens, and part of Debating Europe’s Community delved into innovative strategies that soil communities, such as farmers and wine makers, can adopt to tackle soil pollution, restore degraded lands, and ensure long-term resilience. Watch the full discussion here. 

📝 PHASE 3 – Citizens recommendations 

After a thorough analysis of the citizens’ insights collected during the focus groups, as well as key messages collected in our panel discussions, Debating Europe drafted the “Citizen-led recommendations for the Horizon Europe Missions on sustainability”. This report addresses the need for a more sustained consideration of citizen perspectives in the EU Missions, by showcasing the views of the 160 citizens from 25 different nationalities who joined our focus groups. For each of the four sustainability-related Horizon Europe Missions, we provide topic-specific recommendations that directly build on the citizens’ dialogue during the focus groups. 

In addition, this report also provides some crosscutting recommendations to EU Missions more generally in terms of how citizen engagement (e.g. methods, considerations) may be strengthened.  

👉 Click on download on the left side of this page to read the recommendations!  👈

💬 PHASE 4 – Final round of group discussion 

Before the final project event organised by Friends of Europe in January 2026 (date TBC), Debating Europe will conduct a final round of online group discussions with 40 citizens from the EU, in the autumn 2025. The aim of these discussions will be to collect the impressions of participants on the final SSH CENTRE project recommendations to ensure they reflect citizens’ perspectives.  

🔔 Want to take part? 
Online group discussions coming in the autumn! If you’re 18+, from an EU Member States or an Associated country, and can speak English, join one of our online group discussion! Each session lasts 1H, and includes a maximum of 10 participants. The discussions are moderated, and do not require any preparation.  

More information coming soon. Stay tuned!  

Interested in supporting us and joining future group discussions? The more, the merrier! Contact us at info@debatingeurope.eu – we look forward to hearing from you!  

The SSH CENTRE project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101069529 and from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) under the UK government’s Horizon Europe funding guarantee [grant No 10038991].