This meeting seeks to move beyond simplified narratives through more nuanced conversations grounded in domestic particularities and broader regional implications, contradictions and tensions on democracy and the rule of law.
The programme will focus especially on freedom of expression and migration as two pressing challenges at the intersection of democracy, human rights and the rule of law in Greece and beyond.
A World Café session on Freedom of Expression as a Cornerstone and Challenge of Democracy will create an interactive space for small-group discussions on democratic participation in the age of AI, the rise of SLAPPs against environmental organisations and the state of media freedom in Greece. Contributions will include Tania Skrapaliori from Homo Digitalis, Iasonas Gousetis from the Hellenic League for Human Rights, and journalist Stavros Malichudis from Solomon.
The panel discussion Crossroads of Justice: Migration, Rule of Law and Democracy in Greece and Beyond will bring together Konstantinos Farmakidis (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki), Eleni Velivasaki (Refugee Support Aegean) and Hubert Bekisz (re:constitution Fellow 2025/2026) to examine how immigration policies, regulation of citizenship and border governance challenge and reshape democratic systems and rule of law frameworks in Greece, while also raising broader questions about Europe’s commitment to human rights and democratic values.
The meeting will also include the public event From Athens to Brussels: Assessing the Rule of Law in Europe, organised together with Transparency International Greece, an advocacy training led by colleagues from Democracy Reporting International and a social and political walk through Athens which connects modern Greek political and social history with contemporary democratic developments.
As the concluding gathering of the 2025/2026 Fellowship year, the meeting aims to foster critical reflection, meaningful exchange and collaborative thinking among the Fellows while also creating an intergenerational space for dialogue with re:constitution Alumni meeting in Athens simultaneously.
