Ninni Norra selected as Finland’s citizen representative to Future of Europe conference

The purpose of the conference is to hear the views of citizens on the future challenges and opportunities of the EU. The conference focuses on the perspectives of young people, and therefore the Prime Minister’s Office requested the Finnish National Youth Council Allianssi to appoint a citizen representative to the plenary session. Ninni Norra, who is 20 years old and from Helsinki, was selected as representative.

Norra has served in the local council of the European Youth Parliament both as chairperson and representative in Finland and abroad. She currently holds a position of trust in the Allianssi’s international youth policy group. As part of this group, Norra has participated in the European Youth Conference and the EU Youth Dialogue.

“The Future of Europe conference is not only an excellent opportunity to bring our ideas to the attention of decision-makers, but also to consider the EU policies we want to pursue in the future. To me as a citizen representative, it is important to raise interest in the debate about the EU, because every decision made in the Union has an impact on our everyday lives, indirectly at least. If we develop our cooperation when times are stable, we will also be able to cope with setbacks better,” Norra says.

The first plenary session of the Conference on the Future of Europe will be held in Strasbourg and partly via remote connections on 18–19 June 2021. Minister for European Affairs Tytti Tuppurainen will represent the Finnish Government. In addition, another minister will participate in the conference based on the themes under discussion.

“When we discuss the future of Europe, it is important that the voice of young Europeans – the voice of the future – is heard strongly. We have wanted to emphasise this when we decided on a citizen representative. I wish Ninni Norra every success in this important task,” Tuppurainen said.

The aim is for civil society to participate actively in the conference and to organise various events. Information on conference events will be collected on the Commission’s multilingual digital platform. Citizens can also use the digital platform to share their thoughts and submit their proposals. 

The conference launch event took place on Europe Day, 9 May, in Strasbourg. Due to the pandemic, it was held partially online. The conference is expected to present its conclusions by spring 2022. The European Parliament, the Council of the EU and the European Commission are all committed to listening to Europeans and to following up on the conclusions reached, within their spheres of competence and within the framework of EU Treaties.

Inquiries: Topi Juga, Specialist for EU Affairs, Prime Minister’s Office, tel. +358 295 160 459 
Ninni Norra, Citizen representative of Conference on the Future of Europe, tel. +358 40 353 1321