The Lisbon Council

The Lisbon Council for Economic Competitiveness and Social Renewal, commonly known as The Lisbon Council, is a Brussels-based think tank and policy network established in 2003 in Belgium as a non-profit, non-partisan association. It describes itself as a "think tank for the 21st century," dedicated to making a positive contribution through cutting-edge research and by engaging political leaders and the public at large in a constructive exchange about the economic and social challenges of the 21st century. The organisation's work spans a broad policy agenda, including artificial intelligence for science, digital government, scaling up Europe's innovation ecosystem, skills and education, and collaboration across sectors. Its website highlights initiatives such as the Evidence Hub on Social Media Bans for Kids, an open platform collecting data, research and policy insights on social media bans for teenagers, and the Forum blog series, which has featured topics such as privacy-enhancing technologies, Europe's international digital strategy, AI for scientific discovery, and defending democracy. The Lisbon Council operates as a network of concerned citizens, top economists, public officials, NGO leaders, business strategists and leading-edge thinkers who contribute their energy, brainpower and commitment to addressing the economic and social challenges the organisation identifies. Its activities include solution-oriented seminars, thought-provoking publications, media commentary and public advocacy. It has convened high-level roundtables and summits, such as the 2019 Transatlantic High-Level Summit on competition in the digital age, organised together with the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI), and a High-Level Roundtable on "The Web Young People Want: Building a Digital Future on Agency, not Anxiety," which brought decision-makers together with young people. As part of its commitment to sustainability and the environment, The Lisbon Council offsets all of its travel and operational emissions and furnishes its Brussels office with MBDC-certified technology. It is certified as a "climate-neutral organisation." The organisation is led by a secretariat and fellows, with Paul Hofheinz serving as Co-Founder, and a governing body that includes members such as Élisabeth Grosdhomme Lulin. Its team comprises senior project managers, research associates, communication managers, and senior fellows covering areas such as digital government. The Lisbon Council is registered as an asbl (association sans but lucratif) under Belgian law, reflecting its non-profit status. It does not have publicly listed shares and operates independently, without a parent company or commercial owner. Its funding and partnerships are not detailed in the available evidence, but its activities are oriented toward European Union policy circles and transatlantic dialogue.

The Lisbon Council for Economic Competitiveness and Social Renewal was established in 2003 in Belgium as a non-profit, non-partisan association. It was founded as a think tank and policy network in response to the organisation's observation that Europe was transitioning from an industrial phase to a network/knowledge global economy, while simultaneously undergoing a significant demographic shift with an ageing and declining population. The Council's founders sought to define and emphasise a strategy to address the current and future challenges arising from these fundamental developments in Europe. From its base in Brussels, The Lisbon Council has built a network of concerned citizens, top economists, public officials, NGO leaders, business strategists and leading-edge thinkers who contribute their energy, brainpower and commitment to solving the economic and social challenges the organisation identifies. Its activities include solution-oriented seminars, thought-provoking publications, media commentary and public advocacy. Over the years, The Lisbon Council has convened high-level events and published research on a wide range of policy topics. In January 2019, together with the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI), a Washington DC-based think tank, it convened the 2019 Transatlantic High-Level Summit on competition in the digital age. In May 2019, it published a highlight on ethics in machine-learning and artificial-intelligence decision making. In January 2020, it published research on the public-data opportunity, authored by Francesco Mureddu and David Osimo. In October 2020, as the European Commission led by President Ursula von der Leyen moved to deliver legislation, The Lisbon Council launched an Evidence Hub. In April 2021, after three years and more than 50 background papers, the Council teamed up with partners on The Co-Creation Compass. More recently, The Lisbon Council has focused on digital policy issues affecting young people. It launched the Evidence Hub on Social Media Bans for Kids, an open platform collecting data, research and policy insights on social media bans for teenagers. It also convened a High-Level Roundtable on "The Web Young People Want: Building a Digital Future on Agency, not Anxiety," a flipped-format event that gave decision-makers the opportunity to engage directly with young people. Participants included youth ambassadors and members of the Youth Advisory Board to President von der Leyen, alongside high-level experts from the European Commission, the upcoming Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Permanent Representation of Germany to the European Union, and YouTube. The organisation is committed to sustainability and the environment. In an effort to keep its CO2 footprint as small as possible, The Lisbon Council offsets all of its travel and operational emissions and furnishes its Brussels office with MBDC-certified technology. It is certified as a "climate-neutral organisation." The Council is led by a secretariat and fellows, with Paul Hofheinz serving as Co-Founder, and a governing body that includes Élisabeth Grosdhomme Lulin. Its team comprises senior project managers, research associates, communication managers, and senior fellows covering areas such as digital government.

• 2021

  After three years and more than 50 background papers, The Lisbon Council teams up with partners on The Co-Creation Compass.

• 2020

  The Lisbon Council publishes research on the public-data opportunity by Francesco Mureddu and David Osimo.

• 2020

  The Lisbon Council launches an Evidence Hub as the European Commission moves to deliver legislation.

• 2019

  Together with the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI), The Lisbon Council convenes the 2019 Transatlantic High-Level Summit on competition in the digital age.

• 2019

  The Lisbon Council publishes a highlight on ethics in machine-learning and artificial-intelligence decision making.

• 2003

  The Lisbon Council for Economic Competitiveness and Social Renewal is established in Belgium as a non-profit, non-partisan association.

• The Lisbon Council launches the Evidence Hub on Social Media Bans for Kids, an open platform collecting data, research and policy insights on social media bans for teenagers.

• The Lisbon Council convenes the High-Level Roundtable on 'The Web Young People Want: Building a Digital Future on Agency, not Anxiety.'

Non-profit, non-partisan think tank and policy network focused on economic competitiveness and social renewal in 21st-century Europe.

• Evidence Hub on Social Media Bans for Kids

  An open platform collecting data, research and policy insights on social media bans for teenagers.

• The Forum blog series

  A blog series featuring topics such as privacy-enhancing technologies, Europe's international digital strategy, AI for scientific discovery, and defending democracy.

• The Co-Creation Compass

  A project developed after three years and more than 50 background papers, in partnership with other organisations.

1. 1The Lisbon Council - think tank for the 21st centurylisboncouncil.net
2. 2About uslisboncouncil.net
3. 3The Web Young People Want - The Lisbon Councillisboncouncil.net
4. 4The Lisbon Councilwikidata.org
5. 5The Lisbon Councilnl.wikipedia.org