Public debate “Youth Mental Health in Serbia: Is Society Ready to Recognize and Respond to the Crisis?”
Centre Dialogue – Social Forum The Center for Democracy Foundation, in cooperation with the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, organized a debate on June 3, 2025, titled “Youth Mental Health in Serbia: Is Society Ready to Recognize and Respond to the Crisis?”. The discussion featured: Aleksandra Parojčić, Institute of Mental Health of Serbia; Stanislava Vučković, UNICEF; Sara Dojčinović, Psychosocial Innovation Network (PIN); Milica Borjanić, National Youth Council of Serbia (KOMS); Snežana Mrvić, CEZAM; Mara Ognjenović, software engineer and influencer; Snežana Simić, retired professor of social medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade; Dobrila Marković, OPENS; Nataša Đereg, CEKOR; Aleksandar Popović, SKGO, among others. The debate was moderated by journalist Ivana Stojanović. The event addressed…
Meeting regarding the future of EU integrations
The National Convention on the European Union (NCEU) attended the meeting organized by the Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, which was also attended by members of the Committee on European Integration and representatives of the international community. Despite the standing decision of the NCEU’s Program Council to suspend communication with political actors in processes that have lost inclusiveness and transformative potential, we chose to attend this meeting out of concern for the public interest and Serbia’s European future. Our aim was to once again underscore the critical need for Serbia’s European integration process to move beyond…
Youth and the 2030 Agenda public debate
“SDGs for All” Platform The Center for Democracy Foundation and the Ana and Vlade Divac Foundation organized a public debate titled “Youth and the 2030 Agenda” on May 28, 2025, in Belgrade, within the Social Pillar of the “SDGs for All” Platform. The debate was co-financed by the European Union, within the “Regional Youth Dialogue for Europe (RYDE)” project. The public debate was held as part of the advisory activities of the Expert Thematic Groups – “Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Women and Girls” and “Poverty Reduction,” within the “SDGs for All” Platform. At the panel discussion titled “Youth and Sustainable Development: A Dialogue on the Opportunities Awaiting the…
Attacks on Civil Society – Resistance to Reforms and Serbia’s European Path
The National Convention on the European Union strongly condemns the renewed campaign against civil society organizations, including members of the NCEU, spearheaded by the pro-government tabloid Informer. In this campaign, organizations and individuals are being labeled as “foreign agents” and alleged organizers of “future violent actions” merely for participating in the international POINT conference held in Sarajevo. We are particularly alarmed by the call for the Security Intelligence Agency (BIA) to become involved in this campaign. We demand that BIA urgently and unambiguously clarify its position and any potential involvement. Silence in this case further undermines public trust in institutions…
Development of Collective Bargaining in the Care, Administration, and Waste Management Sectors in Central and Eastern European Countries
CEECAW Project The Center for Democracy Foundation organized a workshop and roundtable discussion on May 22, 2025, in Belgrade, as part of the project “Challenges of Organizing and Collective Bargaining in the Care, Administration, and Waste Management Sectors in Central and Eastern European (CEE) Countries” (CEECAW). The workshop topics on strengthening collective bargaining in the care, public administration, and waste management sectors included increasing the coverage of collective bargaining in EU countries, as well as the challenges and potential pathways for collective bargaining in Central and Eastern European countries. Participants included: Barbara Surdykowska (Institute of Public Affairs, IPA, Poland); Dr. Thorstein Müller (European Trade Union Institute…
CDF: The Citizens of Serbia Share European Values of Democracy and Rule of Law
The Center for Democracy Foundation extends its congratulations to all the citizens of Serbia on Europe Day! This year marks 75 years since the Schuman Declaration, which paved the way for the political integration of Europe and laid the foundations for today’s European Union, a community based on the values of democracy, rule of law, and economic prosperity. Twenty-five years ago, Serbia chose the European path with the goal of becoming a full member. Our progress in EU integration has been extremely slow, reforms unconvincing, and in key areas Serbia is regressing. Twenty years ago, we believed that the rules and…
Student and Civic Protests Have Shown That Serbian Citizens Share European Values of Democracy and Rule of Law
Nataša Vučković for NIN “Student and civic protests have shown that the citizens of Serbia share European values of democracy and the rule of law, and that the principles of separation of powers, accountable government, and good governance are well rooted in Serbian society. I consider this a very important argument in any discussion about our citizens’ interest in Serbia’s European future”, stated Nataša Vučković, Secretary General of the Center for Democracy Foundation, in an interview with NIN. In a conversation on the topic of young people’s trust in institutions, Vučković emphasized that students rightly focused the most on the judiciary. “The…
Two-thirds of the way to achieving the 2030 Agenda
“SDGs for All” Platform September this year will mark ten years since the adoption of the UN global development agenda – Agenda 2030, to which Serbia has committed by signing the UN resolution “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”. Five years before the expiration of this ambitious global plan, the country faces numerous challenges despite slight progress, it was concluded at the fourth annual conference of the “SDGs for All” entitled “A Decade of the 2030 Agenda in Serbia: Progress, Achievements and Perspectives”. In addition to the tenth anniversary of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda in Serbia, the conference also…
Annual Conference: “Is There Decent Work for the Citizens of Serbia? Between Reality and Possibilities”
“Labor Rights and Decent Work in Socio-Economic Reforms in Serbia – Black and White” On April 16, 2025, Center for Democracy Foundation, with the support of the Olof Palme International Center, organized the annual conference titled “Is There Decent Work for the Citizens of Serbia? Between Reality and Possibilities”. At the conference, held within the project “Labor Rights and Decent Work in Socio-Economic Reforms in Serbia – Black and White” the annual Report on the State of Labor Rights in the Republic of Serbia for 2024 was presented, along with the study “Main Problems of Labor Legislation in Serbia”. Participants in the discussion included: Brankica Janković, Commissioner…
Vučković at JCC Meeting in Brussels: Serbian Citizens Have Shown Commitment to European Values through Protests
EU-Serbia Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) Nataša Vučković, CDF’s Secretary General, participated at the EU-Serbia Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) meeting held on 7 April 2025 at the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) in Brussels. The meeting focused on the current state of Serbia’s EU accession negotiations, the ongoing protests in Serbia, and possible solutions to the country’s political crisis. Vučković emphasised that the protests in Serbia demonstrate the public’s commitment to European values, including democracy, the rule of law, human rights, accountable institutions, the fight against corruption, the separation of powers, freedom of expression, and media freedom. “The student protests…
Public debate: Single and Independent – Local Policies Supporting Parents Raising Children Alone
SDGs for All Platform On 1 April 2025, the Centre for Democracy Foundation organised a public debate entitled Single and Independent – Local Policies Supporting Parents Raising Children Alone, as part of the Social Pillar of the Sustainable Development for All Platform. The discussion focused on the improvement of local policies aimed at enhancing the position of single parents and single-parent families, as well as on measures and solutions that would contribute to the development of more inclusive policies and services at the local level. Participants in the debate included: Lidija Kuzmanov, Researcher; Dragan Stanojević, Institute for Sociological Research; Gordana…
NKEU sent a letter to EC officials regarding the inclusion of the „Jadar“ project in the list of EU strategic projects
Program Council of the National Convention on European Union Your Excellencies, We address you as a coalition of civil society organizations strongly committed to Serbia’s European future, to express our deep concern about the potential consequences of including the Jadar project on the list of strategic projects of the European Union under the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA). As you are aware, Serbian citizens’ trust in the European Union has been seriously eroded for quite some time. Recent public opinion research has, for the first time, shown that the number of citizens opposing EU membership now exceeds those in favor. This decline in trust is primarily the…
