The following specific topics will be discussed:

Mapping civil society as an actor in the EU accession process: Which civil society organisations have particular relevance for, role in and influence upon the efforts of CEECs towards EU accession? WP members would be expected to examine the broad spectrum of civil society organisation, as sketched in the description of Theme 3 – non-business organizations (public interest organizations, social movement organizations, churches, NGOs, and promotional associations) as well as business organizations, industrial lobbies and other economic associations, trade unions, etc.

Interlocutors of civil society in EU accession: Interaction of civil society with major other players in the accession-related multi-level governance environment are of primary importance. Among these interlocutors are: public authorities at national, regional (if relevant) and local level; EU institutions and agencies; business; international and European NGO networks, etc. Special attention will be paid to such specific relationships as: dialogue between levels of government (national-local) placed in and mediated by a civil society format; the role of civil society in public-private partnerships in various sectors (e.g. utilities).

Fields of action of civil society with regard to EU accession: WP members will select to deal with case studies among several broad fields of action of civil society organisations: infrastructure, business and SMEs in particular, social policy, disadvantaged groups, etc. The list of case studies will be finalized after the initiation of our work.

Agenda setting capacities of civil society in the EU accession process: Research under this WP will aim to reach conclusions about the modes of participation of civil society in policy making in the context of the CEECs’ preparation for accession to the EU. Where (in which fields) and how far (in what degree) has civil society acted of mediator and policy taker responding to influences of other driving forces (public authorities, the EU, business, international NGO networks, etc.), and where and how far it has undertaken a more pro-active stance with concrete tangible impact on accession-related outcomes?