Annual Meeting of Transform! Europe – Stockholm, June 15th 2008 On June 15th the Network transform! europe gathered in its annual general assembly in Stockholm. The assembly took place after a two-day seminar entitled "The Social and Welfare State – Prospects and Perspectives…." The seminar was part of the Network’s project "European Social Model and
Annual Meeting of Transform! Europe – Stockholm, June 15th 2008
On June 15th the Network transform! europe gathered in its annual general assembly in Stockholm. The assembly took place after a two-day seminar entitled "The Social and Welfare State – Prospects and Perspectives…." The seminar was part of the Network’s project "European Social Model and Left Actors" co-financed by the European Commission. This seminar offered a space for a rich debate on the current situation of welfare models in different parts of Europe, the ways in which they are being dismantled, as well as on the social and political consequences of this ongoing neoliberal process including resistance and alternatives. The general assembly of transform! europe assessed the seminar as being a productive and fruitful first step into a long term all-European research work.
Following its recognition, in 2007, as the partner foundation by the Party of the European Left, transform! europe decided to carry out research work on topics which concern the European social model and the perspectives of the European political and social Left. The responsibilities undertaken by transform! europe towards the EL does not contradict the fact that, since its establishment, it is an independent actor of the Left in Europe, a feature which it intends to strengthen in the future by different means, including those of enlarging the Network.
In the Stockholm meeting, transform! europe decided to adjust its organisational structure aiming at facilitating the cooperation of all its members in the new period of its enlargement. For this reason, it elected an operating managing board consisting of Ruurik Holm (Left Forum, Finland) who was elected as new legal representative, Elisabeth Gauthier (Espaces Marx, France) and Haris Golemis (Nikos Poulantzas Institute, Greece) which together with the coordinator Walter Baier are commissioned to run the every day organisational work of the network. The assembly expressed its thanks to Michael Brie for the work performed as the first legal representative of transform! europe.
Regarding the work in 2009, transform! europe identified a number of main areas along in which it will organize its activities and research: the continuation of the project on the European Social Model and new social realities in Europe including also the feminist perspective, research on the economic and financial crises in the era of financialised capitalism, participatory democracy, techno-political tools of communication and its impact on today’s politics, economic democracy, and to start a research project on the main strategic challenges of the left parties in Europe. transform! europe will also continue to publish the transform! magazine in different languages. The Network will also co-organize jointly with the European Left the summer university in Paris (July 2008), participate on the International Marx Congress in Portugal (November 2008) and organize seminars in the ESF in Malmö (September 2008) and in the WSF in Belem, (January 2009).
Presently, the network consists of 16 members and observers of 13 European countries.
Members: Rosa Luxemburg Foundation (Germany), Espaces Marx (France), transform.italia, Centre for Marxists Social Studies (Sweden), Nikos Poulantzas Institute (Greece), journal Sozialismus (Germany), Foundation of Marxist Research – FIM (Spain), transform! austria, CUL:TRA (Portugal), Left Forum (Finland) .
Observers: Foundation Copernic (France), Manifesto Group (Norway), Foundation Gabriel Péri (France).
At the Stockholm meeting, following their applications SPED (Czech Republic), transform! luxemburg and the Association Culturelle Joseph Jacquemotte (Belgium) acquired the status of transform! europe observers.