An Unconventional ‘EU Summit’ hosted by Network of European Foundations

Network of European Foundations (NEF) takes on a challenge of our times by facilitating the rapprochement of those ideas and people who believe that European integration is too good to fail—but who might not have noticed, or even met each other, quite yet. There will be no speeches and no panel discussions.

Network of European Foundations (NEF) takes on a challenge of our times by facilitating the rapprochement of those ideas and people who believe that European integration is too good to fail—but who might not have noticed, or even met each other, quite yet. There will be no speeches and no panel discussions.

NEF invites opinion-shapers within the political world of the EU together with innovators from the realms of the sciences and technology, architecture and design, culture and the performing arts, modern-day political mobilization and bottom-up articulation. This “EU Summit” will be unconventional in design. The desired outcome is a set of priorities for the EU—while the delegates themselves will decide on how to carry which item forward.

The journey to these priorities will be a stimulating, interdisciplinary expedition to our common and desired future. It will be facilitated by Angela Wilkinson, a renown futures expert currently at the University of Oxford. 

NEF is proud to invite these Delegates to a stunning venue in the heart of Europe, at the Austrian-Czech border (transfer from Vienna airport). Stift Altenburg is a monastery north-west of Vienna with one of Europe’s finest monastic libraries. The hosts, Benedictine monks, enjoy appreciation for their efforts towards global intercultural and inter-religious dialogue. Recently, architectural achievements got Stift Altenburg shortlisted for the Mies van der Rohe Award.

ENoLL Chair, Jarmo Eskelinen was invited by the NEF as one of 50 carefully scouted Delegates as a particularly interesting and relevant voice on the future of Europe.

NEF acts as an operational platform to develop projects/initiatives between foundations and other types of organised philanthropy and other funding initiatives by corporate and public entities; and to develop programmes related to Europe and the role of Europe on the global stage. NEF operates as a broker, an intermediary that supports the development and launch of transnational partnerships/joint-ventures, engaging foundations and, where appropriate, other partners. Currently, 13 European foundations form the NEF core. 

The unconventional EU Summit is hosted by ERSTE Foundation (Austria), European Cultural Foundation (The Netherlands), Bernard Van Leer Foundation (The Netherlands), King Baudouin Foundation (Belgium), Charles Stewart Mott Foundation (USA-UK branch), Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian (Portugal), Fondation de France (France), Robert  Bosch Stiftung (Germany), Körber Stiftung (Germany), Compagnia di San Paolo (Italy),  Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust (Great Britain), Institusjonen Fritt Ord (Norway) and the European Foundation Center (as Observer Member).