On April 16-18, 2024, Phoenix partners gathered in Tartu, Estonia.
The Phoenix Horizon project aims to study, enrich, and test participatory and deliberative practices to improve the European Green Deal pathway and build a better, greener future for all.
This first event brought together not only Phoenix partners, but also representatives from the various Phoenix’s Territorial Commissions for Co-Design (TCCDs, bodies composed of citizens, stakeholders and local representatives).
This three-day conference, which was led by The Good Lobby representatives Maarten de Groot and Gabriele Sorce, aimed to systematise knowledge about what deliberative approaches work best in different contexts, within Europe. In this regard, members of the various TCCDs met and discussed together their various experiences, comparing and contrasting their experiences within the various Phoenix pilots.
A Magical Location for conversations on the European Green Deal
The conference was held at Tartu Loodusmaja (Nature House), where nature meets children and people of all ages and lets them engage with plants and animals. Surely a magic location for a conversation about compensation and incentives for the European Green Deal’s transition pathway.
Day 1: from getting to know each other to TCCDs in Conversation
On day 1, The Good Lobby kicked off the conference with a ‘getting to know each other’ activity, which featured humorous statements and games for all participants. Following this icebreaker, a brief introduction to the various TCCDs was provided, after which all participants were split into three groups in a fishbowl setting. TCCD representatives were the central figure of the activity: they were called to introduce themselves and share key points and challenges from their pilot experiences, while Phoenix partners provided questions and inputs.
In the afternoon, The Good Lobby held the ‘Phoenix Fair’, where partners created stands explaining their specific roles and responsibilities in the project. The fair was a nice moment of interaction between all participants. Day 1 closed with a satellite event of the European Bauhaus festival, where participants learned about experiences of the intersection between art and science.
Day 2: Tangram, Evaluation, Compensation and Incentives
The second day of the conference featured important activities related to the Phoenix project. The first session was a deep reflection on the Phoenix Tangram¹ and the participatory practices developed in each pilot. After that, TCCD representatives were involved in a SWOT analysis of their pilots, while Phoenix partners held a meeting on how to concretely move from the co-design to implementing the results obtained in the Phoenix pilots.
After the lunch break, all participants were divided into groups to discuss an important part of the Phoenix project: compensation and incentives for the European Green Deal pathway. There, all participants were asked to review the Phoenix theory of change hypothesis based on the results obtained thus far. The day concluded with an interactive evaluation organised by The Good Lobby, where TCCD representatives had the chance to express their thoughts on the conference and their involvement in the Phoenix project.
Day 3: Debrief and Phoenix Assembly
The last day was exclusively dedicated to the Phoenix partners. The first session, led by The Good Lobby, was a reflection on the two previous days of inter-pilot debate, where partners expressed their thoughts about the various results and outputs given by TCCD representatives. After this session, various presentations on the different Phoenix Working Packages were held, where partners were called to evaluate and advise on the different parts of the project.
In the afternoon, Phoenix members conducted a general assembly, where both the state of the project and its short and long term objectives were discussed. The assembly served as a platform for members to exchange valuable insights and experiences. Various strategies for overcoming challenges were explored, fostering a spirit of collaboration and mutual support among attendees.
This space provided an opportunity for participants to voice their perspectives and contribute to shaping the direction of the project moving forward. As the official culmination of the conference, it symbolised the collective dedication and commitment of Phoenix members to advancing their shared mission.
Phoenix: the way ahead
Energised by fruitful discussions and strengthened connections, Phoenix partners left the assembly with a renewed sense of purpose and unity, poised to tackle the project’s next stages with determination. The inter-pilot debate, which will be the backbone of the Phoenix final Brussels conference in 2025, will continue in October 2024 in Hungary. There, Phoenix partners and TCCD representatives will once again gather to formulate 20 proposals on incentives and compensation for the European Green Deal pathways, which will be a chapter of the Phoenix final report.
The Good Lobby will be busy organising the next round of the inter-pilot debate, making sure that the Project’s results will translate into concrete proposals to enhance the Green Deal transition.
¹ The PHOENIX Tangram refers to a system of methodologies and tools that, when combined and aggregated based on specific context-related aspects, results in new, customised participatory and deliberative practices that PHOENIX calls ‘Enriched Democratic Innovations’