SOLIDAR & SOLIDAR+

What does it take to move from receiving people who arrive in Europe to ensuring that they can fully belong? That was a central question at our study visit in Asturias, Spain, from 30 September to 2 October.

SOLIDAR members compared migration and inclusion policies across Member States. Preparations for border and asylum procedures outpace investment in housing, education, employment and essential services.

🌍 27.6M people worldwide are in forced labour, producing goods that reach markets everywhere, including the EU. The EU Forced Labour Regulation bans such products from the EU market from Dec 2027.

Final Conference of the EMPASY project: two years of work on emotional literacy & youth participation in mental health across the EU & the MENA region. 📍 European Parliament, Brussels + online 🗓️ Tue 14 Oct, 14:15–17:30 ✍️ Register by 5 Oct: bit.ly/468IUrd

Final Conference of the EMPASY project: two years of work on emotional literacy & youth participation in mental health across the EU & the MENA region. 📍 European Parliament, Brussels + online 🗓️ Tue 14 Oct, 14:15–17:30 ✍️ Register by 5 Oct: bit.ly/468IUrd

93 million Europeans are currently at risk of poverty or social exclusion. The European Commission published its first-ever EU Anti-Poverty Strategy, a plan to eradicate poverty by 2050. 👀 Our new briefing paper critically examines its potential to help eradicate poverty in the EU.

1/2🧵 Last month the Commission published the 2026 Spring Package. The Commission's logic: competitiveness & strategic autonomy lead to social resilience and cohesion. At SOLIDAR, we'd flip it: strengthening social rights & cohesion is what makes the EU more competitive and resilient.💪

🌍 From 15–19 June, partners of the ECODE project gathered in Patras, Greece, for a Transnational Meeting hosted by our member @dafnikek.bsky.social !🇬🇷

We tested 4 training modules on critical digital citizenship for youth workers & civil society covering: 🌱 The environmental footprint of our digital lives 🤝 Inclusion & access in digital spaces 🤖 Artificial intelligence & the risks for society 🏛️ (De)centralisation & the EU's digital policy agenda

🎙️In episode 9 of the ENHANCE Podcast, we explore how learners’ voices can meaningfully shape education policy in the EU.

MEP Marcos Ros Sempere, & Brikena Xhomaqi, Director of the Lifelong Learning Platform discuss how learner input can inform EU education policies, highlight ongoing barriers & reflect on how cooperation between policymakers and civil society can strengthen democratic participation.

📣 The June edition of the SOLIDAR Dispatch is out! 💫 In this edition: ✍🏼 Our edito: “Send them back” is not a migration policy. Read SOLIDAR’s reaction on the Return Regulation. 🌍 ”Social Europe is our target”, a high level conference in Porto calling for stronger implementation of the EPSR.

✊🏻Joint actions: we signed a letter calling decision makers to reject the EU military budget surge. 👉🏻Read the full edition in the link in the comments.

🌍️ Last week, EU leaders met in Brussels to discuss the next long-term EU budget (2028–2034). Negotiations will continue under the Irish Presidency with the aim of reaching an agreement on the MFF by the end of 2027. 1/3🧵

2/3🧵 So far, the signals are worrying. The Commission's proposal prioritises defence, border control and corporate competitiveness while social investment is diluted, the Just Transition Fund and other funds are set to disappear, and civil society risks being squeezed out of the process.

Last Friday, Our Social Affairs Policy Officer, Martina Corti, participated in an input session at the @eesc.bsky.social on the upcoming opinion on fighting housing exclusion and homelessness among children, families and young people. 🏠

📣 The May edition of the SOLIDAR Dispatch is here!💫 In this edition: ✍️ Our edito: ''The next EU budget doesn't add up: SOLIDAR and its members take on the MFF.'' 📖 SOLIDAR'S reaction to the Anti-poverty strategy 👉️ Read the full edition here bit.ly/3RYORDe

The EU Commission published its proposed Council Recommendation on fighting housing exclusion. SOLIDAR contributed to the process and has assessed the text: a welcome but imperfect tool. ✅️ Positive on social economy housing & data collection. ⛔️ Missing: rent caps, market regulation, and more.

We just closed the #ENHANCE project, 4 years of Erasmus+-funded work to strengthen adult learners' voices in education and policy across Europe. Final conference takeaway: participation only counts when learners can see what changes as a result. Not one-off consultations. Structural embedding.

The EU's first anti-poverty strategy is here. But is it enough? Last week the European Commission published its long-awaited anti-poverty strategy, a landmark moment, given that the EU is dramatically off-track on its own target of lifting 15 million people out of poverty by 2030. 🧵 1/3

🧵 2/3 Our reaction? Cautiously critical. ✅ There are genuine positives: a life-cycle approach, intersectionality, focus on quality jobs, access to services, and more. ❌ But the tools don't match the ambition. Every measure announced is soft law. No binding obligations on Member States.