Increased voters turnout at the 2019 EP elections
Ulm,
6-7 May
2019
Ulm plays an important and active role in the history of the Danube Region Strategy. Citizens are well aware of the importance of the river and the connective role it plays in the history of cooperation among nations along the Danube.
The event was planned in the middle of the EP election campaign and our aim in Ulm was to raise awareness and encourage people to participate. The main attraction was the building of a huge Europe flower arrangement in the middle of the main square, right in front of the cathedral. Fortunately we had quite a number of young volunteers to assist us and put in place the more than 8,000 pots of flowers. Thanks to our German partner, Danube Connects everything was well prepared and designed in advance.
During the event, which was also linked to Europe Day we also run an info stand and talked to locals about the importance of cooperation and what regions (and macro-regions) can add to a renewed European Union. People could also “vote” with our water ballott system on what the EU should spend more money on. The “winner” was by far environment and climate change issues. A popular feature of our stand was the Feel Good Danube Card with messages on the Danube.
We also had a visit from Mr Martin Bendel, Mayor of Ulm
During our stay in Ulm, our group visited the Danube Office where we agreed to continue our cooperation and have a joint event at the International Danube Festival to be held in Ulm in 2020…
…. and the Europe Direct Info Centre where we have discussed what civil society can do to tackle Euroscepticism.
End if you wonder what happened with the 8,000 pots, do not worry, at the end of the day they were all distributed to locals and delivered to care homes in Ulm.
The event in the local news: https://www.ulm-news.de/weblog/ulm-news/view/dt/3/article/69314/R-auml-tsel-_Puzzel-_Informationen_-_Gro-szlig-es_Interesse_beim_Aktionstag_Europa.html
More on the EP 2019 elections: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/election-results-2019/en
And here is our project leaflet for Ulm and please do not forget to watch our short video on how we made the flower arrangement.
