The Participatory Constitutionalism in the European Union

25/08/2026

Thank you for great discussions in Bratislava! 🇸🇰

As part of the "Participatory Constitutionalism in the European Union" project, experts and researchers gathered at Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave in Slovakia to discuss the first "A" version of the Social Embeddedness of Constitutions Index (SEC Index).

The draft of the SEC Index had been prepared by experts from the Uniwersytet Jagielloński, reflecting the national case studies presented also at the Constitutional Experts’ Forum in Milan (NAD - Osservatorio su Nuovi Autoritarismi e Democrazie) in July 2026 and some of the interviews in the participating countries.

The workshop provided valuable feedback on methodology, terminology, operationalisation, and practical implementation of the SEC Index. The conclusions from Bratislava will contribute to the development of the next phase of the project, which will be the "B" version of the SEC Index, as a key dimension of democratic development in Europe.

👏 Thank you to all participants for your critical reflections, and commitment to the project. We would like to extend special thanks to Prof. Lucia Mokra and Dr. Jakub Szabó for hosting the workshop.

This event was organized as part of the PARTICON-EU project, funded by the European Union 🇪🇺.

17/07/2026

Yesterday, the Forum of Constitutional Experts was held at the University of Milan, as the second stage of our PARTICON-EU project. 🇮🇹📚

The forum brought together leading constitutional law and political scholars from across Europe to discuss contemporary developments in public participation and its role within constitutional systems. 🌍⚖️

During the event, we presented and discussed national case study reports on public participation and associated practices in Slovakia 🇸🇰, Italy 🇮🇹, Poland 🇵🇱, Hungary 🇭🇺, the Czech Republic 🇨🇿, and France 🇫🇷. These discussions provided a comparative perspective on how participatory mechanisms are implemented within different legal systems and how they shape citizens’ civic engagement.

The reports make a valuable contribution to the SEC index, which will be developed in future stages of the PARTICON-EU project.

🤝 Thank you to all speakers and participants for the inspiring presentations, insightful discussions, and excellent academic exchange. We would like to express our special thanks to Prof. Angela di Gregorio, Prof. Caterina Filippini, Prof. Arianna Angeli and Dr Mirko Della Malva from University of Milan, NAD - Osservatorio su Nuovi Autoritarismi e Democrazie for hosting the forum.

This event was organized as part of the PARTICON-EU project, funded by the European Union 🇪🇺.

⚖️📖🌍

28/06/2026

Constitutional Expert's Forum in Milan – 16 July 2026 🇮🇹🎓

On 16 July 2026, the University of Milan will host the Constitutional Expert's Forum "Participatory Democracy and Constitutional Legal Systems: The Cases of Italy, France, Germany, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.” The event will bring together leading scholars from across Europe to analyse contemporary trends in public participation within constitutional systems. 🧩🇪🇺

The forum will consist of two sessions. The first will focus on a comparative analysis of participatory democracy, whilst the second session will feature national reports on public participation and associated practices in 🇸🇰 Slovakia, 🇮🇹 Italy, 🇵🇱 Poland, 🇭🇺 Hungary, 🇨🇿 the Czech Republic and 🇫🇷 France. The forum will provide a rich comparative perspective on how participatory practices are embedded in diverse constitutional traditions and current political realities.

✅ To attend the forum, please fill in the form (link in the comment below).

ℹ️ This event is a part of the PARTICON-EU project, funded by the European Union. 🇪🇺

06/05/2026

W kwietniu, prof. Agnieszka Hess wraz z doktorantką Anną Kulmą, wzięły udział w konferencji „Rooted in Society: Constitutionalism as a Foundation for Democratic Resilience in the EU”.

👉 Konferencja inaugurowała projekt PARTICON-EU (The Participatory Constitutionalism in the European Union). W ramach tej inicjatywy, pracownicy naszego Instytutu, działający w Obserwatorium Dialogu Obywatelskiego UJ i UMK, wspierają pracę nad innowacyjnym narzędziem badawczym – Indeksem Społecznego Zakorzenienia Konstytucji (Indeks SEC).

👉 Podczas wydarzenia mgr Anna Kulma wygłosiła referat "Engaging Young People in the Media Age: Lessons from Civic Education Projects".

👉 Konferencja zgromadziła naukowców, przedstawicieli organizacji pozarządowych, doktorantów, studentów i społeczników z Francji, Włoch, Czech, Słowacji, Węgier, Bułgarii, Gruzji, Ukrainy i Polski. Przedmiotem rozważań były refleksje nad tym, jak ramy konstytucyjne, zaangażowanie obywatelskie i praktyki partycypacyjne przyczyniają się do budowania silniejszego porządku demokratycznego.

Dziękujemy za zaproszenie i gratulujemy organizatorom inicjatywy.

30/04/2026

On 11 April 2026, an international academic conference „Rooted in Society: Constitutionalism as a Foundation for Democratic Resilience in the EU” was held at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow. The conference was organised by the Centre for Interdisciplinary Constitutional Studies, as the inauguration of the project “Participatory Constitutionalism in the European Union” (PARTICON-EU) co- funded by the European Union under the CERV programme.

The conference brought together scholars, NGO representatives, PhD candidates, students and other citizens from France, Italy, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Georgia, Ukraine, and Poland interested in the evolving role of constitutionalism in strengthening democratic resilience across the European Union. The meeting provided an opportunity for both renowned scholars and early-career researchers to exchange ideas on how constitutional frameworks, civic engagement, and participatory practices contribute to a more robust democratic order. Following the Centre’s commitment to interdisciplinary research, the conference featured presentations by scholars from the fields of law, sociology, philosophy, and political science. The conference was organised into five thematic panels: three led by scholars and two led by students and PhD candidates.

We invite you to check out the post-conference materials on our website: https://particon-eu.project.uj.edu.pl/

fot. A. Madej, J. Adamowski, M. Krzemiński, M. Florczak-Wątor.

16/02/2026