Over the past few weeks, United Citizens of Europe took an important step beyond the digital world. Between February 28 and March 14, we organized three in-person meetups in Naples, Lecce, and Milan, bringing together members of our growing European community.
For six years, United Citizens of Europe has mostly existed online — through articles, podcasts, conversations on social media, and collaborations with people across Europe. But while digital platforms can spark ideas and discussions, something different happens when people finally meet in person (preferably with a glass of wine or a spritz nearby).
These meetups were intentionally informal. No panels, no microphones, no rigid agendas. Just people sitting around a table, exchanging ideas about Europe, careers abroad, politics, and life in different countries. The result was a series of conversations that not only confirmed the interest around United Citizens of Europe, but also helped clarify what the project should become next. Participation across the three cities was encouraging. Most participants were people who had already been following the project from afar — readers, listeners, and supporters who knew United Citizens of Europe through its online presence but had never met other members of the community in person.
The meetups allowed us to turn that digital interest into something tangible: a real European community.
Naples: From Collective to Official Association
Our first meetup took place in Naples on February 28, and it quickly turned into more than just a gathering.
One of the main topics that emerged during the discussion was how United Citizens of Europe has evolved since its beginnings in 2020. At the start, the project’s primary goal was to create a digital platform for European dialogue, a space where citizens, experts, and policymakers could discuss European issues and share perspectives across borders. This is still the case but six years later, it has become clear that something else is needed alongside the digital dimension: a real, offline community.
Participants highlighted a growing group of Europeans who often fall outside traditional political conversations which are young professionals, expats, digital nomads, and internationally mobile individuals who live and work in different European countries. Many of them want to remain engaged with European politics, contribute ideas to their home countries, and stay connected to the cities where they currently live. But they are also looking for something simpler and more human, spaces where they can meet like-minded people, exchange ideas, and build social connections in new cities.
The Naples meetup also marked a historic milestone for the project as United Citizens of Europe officially signed its association statute, formally establishing itself as an Associazione di Promozione Sociale (APS) in Italy.
After six years as a pan-European collective, the project now has a legal structure that will allow it to expand its activities, build partnerships, and develop projects across Europe. Naturally, the moment was celebrated in the most European way possible: with a toast.
Lecce: Launching the United Citizens of Europe Ambassadors Network
One week later, on March 7, the second meetup took place in Lecce, where the conversation focused on how United Citizens of Europe could grow without losing its community-driven spirit. Again, the atmosphere remained informal and relaxed. One of the most valuable ideas that emerged from the Lecce meetup was the creation of the United Citizens of Europe Ambassadors Network.
The idea is simple but powerful: build a network of local “ambassadors” across European cities who represent the project in their communities. These ambassadors can help organize meetups, contribute ideas and content, connect local communities with the broader European conversation, and ensure that the project remains present across borders. Following this discussion, a call for ambassadors was published on LinkedIn on March 9, and the response has been very encouraging. Requests to join the network continue to arrive from people interested in helping expand the initiative in their cities.
The Ambassadors Network allows United Citizens of Europe to grow organically and decentralised, while staying true to our founding idea, which is that UCoE is a European project built by citizens and for citizens.
Milan: Supporting a Mobile Generation of Europeans
The third meetup took place in Milan on March 14, bringing together participants from different professional and international backgrounds. While earlier discussions had focused on the mission and governance of the project, the Milan meetup brought a new (and very Milanese) perspective: how United Citizens of Europe can support the everyday realities of internationally mobile Europeans.
Participants shared similar experiences of moving between countries, working remotely, adapting to new cities, and trying to build social networks from scratch. One concrete proposal that emerged from the discussion was the idea of creating partnerships with hostels, co-living spaces, and co-working hubs across Europe.
The goal would be to establish a network of trusted and affordable places where members of United Citizens of Europe — particularly digital nomads and remote workers — can work, stay, and connect with others. Another important outcome of the Milan meetup was the recognition that United Citizens of Europe should increasingly act as a social infrastructure for internationally mobile Europeans. European integration does not only happen through institutions, policies, and treaties but through Europeans socializing. Often, it begins with simple moments such as meeting people, sharing experiences, exchanging perspectives, and building friendships across cultures. And sometimes, it also involves another round of spritz.
A Pan-European Community Taking Shape
Taken together, the meetups in Naples, Lecce and Milan mark the beginning of a new phase for United Citizens of Europe. What started as a university project to create a digital platform for European dialogue is now evolving into a pan-European community and movement that connects people across borders both online and offline.
The project aims to bring together young professionals, expats, digital nomads, students, and internationally mobile Europeans who want to stay engaged with the political and social future of Europe while building meaningful connections in the cities where they live.
From the official founding of the association in Napoli, to the launch of the Ambassadors Network in Lecce, and the practical proposals emerging in Milan, these gatherings helped define the next stage of the project. Because Europe is not only built through institutions, but it is built through people who connect across our borders.
Join the United Citizens of Europe Community
United Citizens of Europe is an open and growing pan-European network.
If you are an expat, digital nomad, young professional, student or internationally minded European who wants to stay connected to European politics, meet like-minded people, and help build a stronger European community, you are welcome to join. We are currently expanding the United Citizens of Europe Ambassadors Network, and we are already thinking about the next cities where meetups should take place.
Where should the next United Citizens of Europe meetup happen?
If you would like to help organize a meetup in your city (or just join the community) reach out to us and be part of the conversation so that the future of Europe is not only discussed in institutions.