The EU began as a purely economic union but has grown into a political and social project covering many policy areas - including climate, environment, health, justice, equality, and human rights.
Today, the EU is firmly committed to promoting and protecting human rights, democracy, freedom, equality, and the rule of law worldwide. This includes protecting the rights of minorities and ensuring that everyone in Europe can live free from discrimination.
The European Pillar of Social Rights sets out key commitments, such as:
The EU tackles these issues through the targeted initiatives such as:
All of these build on the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which prohibits discrimination on any ground, including race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, disability, and ethnic or social origin.
The European Democracy Action Plan is designed to empower EU citizens and build more resilient democracies across the EU by:
How will it impact Irish civil society organisations?
Funding is available to support civic engagement, political participation, and trust in democracy, particularly through:
The Gender Equality Strategy presents policy objectives designed to promote a gender-equal Europe. The primary objectives of the Strategy include:
How will it impact Irish civil society organisations?
Funding is available for projects that raise awareness and address violence against women and girls:
The LGBTIQ Equality Strategy is designed to promote inclusivity and acceptance in the EU and to enable people to be open regarding sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics. It is focused on ensuring the safety of LGBTIQ people and on ensuring that European society is LGBTIQ inclusive.
How will it impact Irish civil society organisations?
The European Commission financially supports civil society organisations in ending discrimination and promoting LGBTIQ rights.
Organisations can benefit by applying for the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme (CERV). An annual call for proposals is aimed at fighting discrimination against LGBTIQ people and promoting LGBTIQ equality.
The Anti-Racism Action Plan aims to tackle racism and racial discrimination through:
How will it impact Irish civil society organisations?
The EU aims for a strong partnership with civil society actors and equality bodies to promote social inclusion, fundamental rights and equality from the policy design to the implementation.
Funding opportunities exist for projects that:
EU Charter of Fundamental Rights
Decisions that are made at the EU level can have a big impact on our daily lives. At The Wheel we believe that citizens’ active participation in society is vital so they can play a part in influencing the decisions that affect them.
Here’s how you can connect with the EU:
Together.eu is an online community of pan-European active citizens interested in learning from each other and finding common ground on EU issues. Created by the European Parliament during the 2019 European elections, together.eu encourages everybody to participate in democracy through events and activities.
Together.eu connects people both locally and across Europe to meet, share knowledge, and learn new skills. The community has brought together more than 350,000 people who actively advocate the importance of voting, democracy and civic engagement. Today, together.eu stands as a vibrant, interconnected and growing community dedicated to advancing European democracy.
Check out the latest events organised by the European Parliament and the together.eu community, happening online and across Europe, by joining together.eu.
Following the European elections in June 2024, 14 MEPs representing Ireland's three constituencies, Dublin, South and Midlands-North-West, took their seats in the European Parliament on 16 July 2024 for Parliament's 10th term.
Due to demographic changes, Ireland gained one additional MEP, bringing the number of MEPs elected in 2024 to 14. The additional seat was allocated to the Midlands-North-West constituency. Going forward, the constituencies of Ireland South and Midlands-North-West will have five seats each, and the Dublin constituency will have four seats.
Who are your MEPs and how can you contact them? We have gathered the information for you!
Through involvement in EU-funded projects, you’ll deliver on current EU policy and programme goals while helping to shape future policy.
Learn more about the various EU funding programmes and the projects they support.
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