Mind the Gap: Bringing Progressive Movements and Parties together

Social democratic political parties in Europe are increasingly challenged in their role as actors and engines of economic and societal change. Globalisation, the rise of populism and nationalism, the increasing influence of multinationals and financial markets on the decision-making process and political fragmentation have all contributed to an image of mainstream political parties as rigid, old and unable to effectively relate to or represent the voices and interests of citizens. The goal of this manual is to offer social democratic parties and party members tools to discuss different challenges within their parties and to (re)connect with social movements. The overall objective is to bridge the gap between citizens and political parties, so that social democratic parties can work with citizens to improve the world we live in. We used the examples and input that was given by more than 300 participants from 14 countries in the series of seminars and trainings in 2016-2017. This manual is a result of yet another successful multi-annual cooperation between Foundation for European Progressive Studies (FEPS), the progressive European think tank and the FMS. The author is Anne Graumans et al.