The Rural Hub hosted a debate on EU Citizenship and the 2024 European Parliament Elections on Tuesday 3rd October 2023 in The Cavan Crystal Hotel.
The event began with a warm welcome to the participants, followed by an introduction to the Easy EU Project, and the objectives and aims of the project. The participants actively engaged in an intriguing debate discussing topics such as:
1. What is Europe? The Countries, key values, and Culture.
2. Participants also entered into a discussion on the rights and responsibilities of EU Citizens, and their means of participation in EU Democracy, whether that be by means of consultation or elections.
3. The final topic to be debated by participants on the day was Active citizenship and policy participation at the local, National, and EU levels.
Participants in attendance included members of the Women of Breffni, these women are a group of senior citizens who meet regularly to discuss community topics and voluntarily assist with community projects on a regular basis. The politics students from Breifne College in Cavan also attended the event. The participants were a mix of Males and Females from various countries and cultures providing us with a very interesting and engaging debate. It was particularly interesting to witness the intergenerational opinions and debates. All of the participants agreed that being a member state was beneficial to both our local community and Ireland as a whole. The participants really enjoyed the contribution from MEP (Member of Parliament) Maria Walsh, the students embraced the opportunity to have their questions answered by an active MEP.
This event on EU citizenship and the 2024 European Parliament Elections successfully brought together 37 participants at the Cavan Crystal Hotel. The agenda encompassed a guest speaker session, and live debates on essential topics, and concluded with a Q&A and open discussion segment. This comprehensive agenda facilitated in-depth exploration and fruitful exchanges of ideas throughout the day.
