European Economic and Social Committee

We reiterate our call for the development of a comprehensive food policy in the EU. All actors across the food supply chain have a key role to play to ensure the sustainability of our daily plates - from farmers to processors, retailers and food workers! Check out our work on food sustainability → europa.eu/!CD3vYM #Agrifood #Food

Harnessing the potential of digitalisation and artificial intelligence to modernise health systems is key.    We welcome the EU Council's adoption of the European Health Data Space as a crucial step in this process.     This decision aligns with some of the pillars mentioned in our call for an EU flagship initiative for health based on universality, quality and accessibility, adopted a few months ago.     We call for its swift implementation to improve patient outcomes and innovation in health research.    Read more about our own-initiative opinion → europa.eu/!mWPd4F    #HealthUnion #EHDS 

The EESC Employers' Group has launched its new priorities‼️   ➡️ Check them out in all 24 EU languages: europa.eu/!cCByfh

The future of the Mediterranean depends on its young people! At our January plenary, we adopted the first-ever opinion shaped with input from eight youth representatives from across the region. As stressed by Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica during the debate, youth engagement in the policy-making process is essential for the region’s progress and security. We are eager to build a peaceful and thriving Mediterranean by allowing youth perspectives to shape our policies and ensuring their voices are heard. 🙌 Read more 👉 europa.eu/!HXp3xc #YouthEngagement #EESCPlenary 

Transparency and respect for privacy must guide every step of EU's digital transformation journey. 🛡️    As we celebrate the European Data Protection Day, we recognise the fundamental role of data protection in fostering trust, ensuring privacy and promoting fairness in a digital age. Here is why we recommend to:  ✔️ acknowledge the challenges in cross-border social security coordination, and the need for certain documents to be in physical form;  ✔️ develop a comprehensive action plan to digitalise social security coordination with a bottom-up approach;  ✔️ emphasise that digital identification should be an option, not a requirement, until suitable alternatives are established that respect the relevant data protection standards.    Read more: europa.eu/!4wJvTk    #DataProtectionDay EDPS - European Data Protection Supervisor EU Digital & Tech 

Today and every day, #WeRemember the victims of one of the darkest chapters in human history. On this #HolocaustRemembranceDay, 80 years after the end of the Second World War, we honour the memory of the six million Jews and countless others persecuted under the Nazi regime. We must eradicate any form of hatred and stand united against hate speech, antisemitism, and intolerance. Together with #EUCivilSociety, we reaffirm our commitment to justice, equality, and peace. Our work: europa.eu/!rvQPcN United Nations

A sustainable future must leave no one behind! 💚 What better day than International Day of Clean Energy to highlight our contributions towards ensuring a fair and just transition for all. In recent years, we:  ✔️ contributed to the Just Transition Work Programme directly influencing the positions of EU countries and the European Commission;  ✔️ proposed the creation of the Just Transition Observatory to ensure accountability and enhance coordination;  ✔️ issued recommendations that were included in the Council of the European Union’s mid-term review of the 8th Environment Action Programme urging the European Commission to mainstream just transition into EU policies. Read more details here →  europa.eu/!DTQGyx #JustTransition #CleanEnergy #EESCstories  

Our first #EESCPlenary of 2025 is over! Here is the recap:    Our members debated:  🗣️ AI at work with Roxana Minzatu, European Commission Executive Vice-President  for Social Rights and Skills, Katarzyna Nowakowska, Polish Deputy-Minister of Family, Labour and Social Policy, and Janine Berg from International Labour Organization;  🗣️ the EU’s Southern Neighbourhood with Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica, Princess Rym Ali, President of the Anna Lindh Foundation, youth adviser Eliane R. El Haber from UNESCO IESALC, and Nasser Kamel from Union for the Mediterranean;  🗣️ sustainable and just transition with European Commission's Humberto Rosa, Professor Hans Bruyninckx, and Pegah Moulana from Youth and Environment Europe (YEE),  among others.    They voted on opinions about AI at work, competitiveness, EU strategy for the Arctic, the euro area economic policy, and many more.    More here: europa.eu/!97ThDy    #EUCivilSociety 

Our future is deeply linked with the stability and prosperity of the Mediterranean region.    We support the European Commission's New Pact for the Mediterranean presented by Commissioner Dubravka Šuica, which prioritises investment, stability and migration.    In our plenary debate, we addressed how unemployment, job insecurity and safety concerns marginalise youth, excluding them from key decision-making. To address these issues, we recommend to:   🔹 include youth representatives in every youth-focused legal activity and involve young people in all stages of the policy-making process;  🔹 call on the European Commission to develop a Youth Charter, while also establish a youth-focused consultative mechanisms;  🔹 to fully implement the key International Labour Organization's Conventions on social dialogue.    Read more: europa.eu/!VmfJCd    #EESCPlenary #Youth #Mediterranean Union for the Mediterranean Anna Lindh Foundation

Together, we can shape artificial intelligence for dignity and opportunity.    As the unregulated use of #AI poses risks to society, we must make it trustworthy. Especially in the world of work as our President Oliver Röpke, the European Commission Executive Vice-President for Social Rights and Skills, Roxana Minzatu, and our members highlighted at our #EESCPlenary.    Through the adoption of our opinion, we call for:  📣 human control in all human-machine interactions;  📣 social dialogue and worker involvement as key tools to protect their rights.    See more recommendations → europa.eu/!fx6GXB    #ArtificialIntelligence