ESDN Vienna Workshop (28-29 May)

The ESDN Workshop will took place in Vienna on 28-29 May! The title of the workshop was “Building a Resilient Europe: Sustainable Development and Culture in focus”. It was organized by the ESDN in cooperation withs the Austrian Federal Ministry for Agriculture and Forestry, Climate and Environmental Protection, Regions and Water Management and the Austrian Federal Chancellery. 

Europe’s resilience in the face of global challenges depends on the synergy between sustainable development, democratic values, and collective security. This workshop delved into how cultural diversity, innovative sustainability practices, and robust democratic institutions can fortify Europe’s ability to navigate crises and foster long-term stability and security. By exploring the interplay between culture, environmental stewardship, social cohesion, and security, we aimed to identify actionable strategies that empower communities, strengthen governance, and build a more resilient and united Europe.

The agenda and discussion paper can be found here 

11^th ESDN Peer Learning Platform (22-23 April in Brussels)

In this Peer Learning Platform, we began to work on formulating a joint narrative on sustainable development going into the future. To facilitate our thoughts and planning about the future, we conducted a short workshop within the Platform on foresight and how we think about the future as it relates to sustainable development. It is our hope that we can take these skills and apply them over the next 12-18 months and work towards formulating a narrative for sustainable development in Europe heading towards, and beyond, 2030.

We had engaging keynotes and discussions as we collectively talked about sustainable development in Europe over the next years and beyond 2030. We had keynotes and an idea generating exercise with the JRC, as well as good practice examples from European countries updating their sustainable development strategies and action plans that are looking towards the future beyond 2030.

2^nd ESDN Young Civil Servants Workshop (18-19 March in Luxembourg)

The ESDN’s 2^nd Young Civil Servants Workshop took place in Luxembourg on the 18^th and 19^th of March 2026.  The title of the workshop was “Bringing Sustainable Development and the SDGs further in Public Administrations: Empowering Young Civil Servants”. This Workshop iwas organized in cooperation with the Luxembourgish Ministry for the Environment, Climate, and Biodiversity.

The ESDN recognizes that given the complex geopolitical challenges taking place, and the rapid approach of 2030, the need to push for increased attention on sustainable development, the 2030 Agenda, and the SDGs has never been greater. One way in which we can do that is to ensure that the next generation of civil servants meet with one another to exchange on good practices they are involved with within their public administration. With this Workshop, we brought together inspiring examples of governments continuing to take actions for sustainability and the SDGs and pair that with concrete examples of young civil servants affecting change and impact within their government. We had an intense two days of keynotes, panel discussions and exchange spaces, which brought together around 35 civil servants from 12 European countries.

The agenda, discussion paper, and presentations can be found here. An ESDN Policy Note will be made available in a few weeks and will be uploaded here.