ESC: GrassROOTS: Supporting grassroots organizations

The European Roma Grassroots Organisations Network (ERGO) is registered as a foundation under Dutch law, with its secretariat based in Brussels. The network is composed of almost 30 Roma and pro-Roma civil society organisations in the EU and the Western Balkans who work together to bridge the realities of Roma people on the ground with the EU system, as well as learning from each other’s experiences. Vision: Through civic mobilization from local to European level, Roma achieve equal citizenship and participate in all spheres of life in all European societies without facing discrimination as individuals or as community and enjoy the same opportunities as others. Mission: ERGO Network mobilizes and connects organisations and individuals who share a set of core values to create the courage, capacity and approaches to: - Combat inequality, stigmatization and discrimination; - Strengthen Roma civil society participation in decision-making at local, national and European level; - Commit governments and European institutions to effective social inclusion and anti-discrimination policies for Roma. Values: - ERGO Network champions adherence to democratic values of pluralism, tolerance, dialogue and equality. - ERGO Network emphasises equality of rights, including the right to dignity and opportunity to define one’s own identity. - ERGO Network’s guiding principle is that Roma themselves must take an active role to accomplish equal citizenship, recognising the fact that this is a shared responsibility of Roma communities and majority populations. - ERGO Network promotes a culture of emancipation and active participation in the public domain – as individuals and collectively. We resist paternalism and tokenism and encourage critical reflection and an investigative attitude. All member organisations subscribe to these values and adhere to high standards of transparency and accountability. Members are expected to maintain a culture of openness and service to the people, so that the network as a whole can maintain the credibility of its actions and positions. Objectives: - To advocate for effective social inclusion policies and recognition of equal citizenship for Roma by governments, EU institutions, international organisations and the private sector. - To offer European Union institutions the direct link to Roma grassroots organisations in order to provide the necessary voice, opinion and experience of the grassroots level. - To empower Roma activists to combat antigypsyism in their communities and stand up for their rights, with a focus on Roma youth. - To offer members an effective platform for exchange and provision of information on relevant political and policy developments. In our vision, ERGO ultimately sees Roma taking ownership over the framing of their public image and pro-actively tackling stereotypes and discrimination. We see Roma citizens influencing policies for Roma inclusion and pro-actively advocating for better, more suitable inclusion and poverty reduction policies, thereby taking ownership of the process of change. It is our mission to address the unacceptable levels of deprivation of Roma towards the European institutions and national and local authorities and to point out that resources intended to ensure European growth, competitiveness, employment and social equality as agreed in the Europe 2020 Strategy are not being used to meet the needs of this group of people. ERGO Network has unique experience on Roma issues on local, regional, national and European level and functions as a centre of expertise on social inclusion of Roma, as well as on combatting antigypsyism and promoting active citizenship and equal participation of Roma. At European level, ERGO Network expresses its members’ concerns and aims to bridge the gap between day-to-day reality of Roma communities and EU policymaking. It provides expertise to policy makers to design and implement more effective approaches to Roma inclusion as part of mainstream policies. ERGO Network furthermore develops tools and activities to empower Roma in the local democratic process. ERGO provides tools and support for stirring debate on crucial Roma issues through online and offline platforms to share and discuss with their Roma and non-Roma peers by way of campaigns, social media and networking.