September is almost over, can you believe it?  Time flies. And a new Commission is ready to take over with an organigram in true Brussels-style.  Unlimited fun and excitement will come to Brussels over the next couple of weeks.  EP hearings are around the corner – always a highlight for friends of  tedious toothless questioning and long winded answers. Brexit of course is a constant source of excitement. What will happen today? Next week? Next month? Nobody seems to know. The suspense is unbearable….

But let’s focus on the important things in life:

Time for another #EUtweetup! We will meet on Thursday, 26 September at PUBLIC HOUSE, Place de Londres, Brussels! We will be there at around 6.30pm – just join us whenever you feel like it.  ( I’ll be there too– so if you want to say hello, do come along!)

Follow the hashtag (#EUTweetUp) on twitter for exact details or any last minute change of venue.

You’re all very welcome! (Even if you are not (yet!) on twitter… 😉

Ease that back to work feeling by getting together with the EU tweeps and chatting about the busy times ahead.

The newly elected European Parliament will gather in Strasbourg for its Plenary Session on Monday, 16 September 2019: a good opportunity to see how the political balance will play out. And don’t forget that the new European Commission is set to take office on 1 November. But before that the nominees will be grilled by Parliamentary committees starting in late September and then face a confirmation vote by MEPs in October.

• Will Ursula von der Leyen manage a 50/50 gender balance?
• Will we continue to see VP’s heading up “project teams”?
• How will the energy and climate files be organised?
• And what was that leaked paper all about?

So many questions to consider and all that before we even think about Brexit and what might be agreed at the October European Council.

When: Wednesday 28 August from 18.30
Where: Outside on the Place de Londres (as long as it’s not raining!)
Follow the hashtag (#EUTweetUp) for exact details or any last minute change of venue.

You’re all very welcome!

We’re tweeting up this evening at a particularly appropriate moment.

Not only is Brussels constantly whispering new names for potential candidates in the race for the #EUtopjobs, but @jasonlknoll is also over visiting us from the States. 

So join us for the last #EUTweetUp before the Summer break.

When? Wednesday 26 June 2019, from 18.00 until late(r)

Where? L’Esperance (Chez Bernard), Place Jourdan, Brussels

All welcome!

Only 100 days before the European elections 🇪🇺 🗳️ start! Are you ready 🏁? Do you know when, where and how? Make sure you have all the information: https://t.co/DfsrX6RhAE pic.twitter.com/9lwf6RvZqy

— European Parliament (@Europarl_EN) February 12, 2019

With less than 100 days to go before the European elections (and still no clarity on Brexit!), let’s meet up and share the latest news on the Spitzenkandidaten, which MEPs hope to stay and who will leave as well as what the final EP is going to look like.

Are anti-EU parties on course to win one-third of seats, as reported by Politico this week, or should we be more optimistic?

And what about female representation? Can we dream of parity in the European Parliament, amongst the Commissioners and for the top EU jobs?

There’s clearly much to talk about…

But let’s also think about what can we, as generally social media savvy, pro EU folks, can do to get the message out that #thistimeImvoting. and that our contacts, friends and family should too.

Come and join us!

Who? Everyone is invited*

What? #EUTweetup Brussels, an informal pub night with no speeches or presentations

When? 20 February, 18.00 onwards

Where? Ginette Bar, Place du Luxembourg 5, 1050 Ixelles

Why? Meet up with the folks behind the Twitter handles and chat about what next for the EU

No need to confirm or pre-register, simply follow the #EUTweetup hashtag for updates and feel free to invite your friends and colleages!

*ideally you will have at least heard of Twitter!

The nights are drawing in. Brussels is going into that intense what-can-we-push-through-the-EP-before-the-elections phase. And Brexit is still going nowhere. And – most important of all – one of the veterans of EU politics blogging and Twitter, Andreas – aka @kosmopolit – is back in Brussels for a visit and for a Tweetup. @jonworth will be putting in an appearance too, once he has been to celebrate the unity of his soon to be adopted country 🇩🇪.

DATE: Wednesday 3rd October – from 6pm until 9pm at least (come as and when you want to)
LOCATION: Stoemelings, Place de Londres – table reserved from 1800!
WHERE? Inside, at the far end of London Calling, past the bar! Please check @EUTweetup or #EUTweetup on the day for details

For those of you who have never been to an EU Tweetup before it’s pretty simple. No agenda, no need to sign up, just come along and chat and have a beer with the folks you’ve otherwise previously encountered on Twitter. We’ve been doing it for some years now and it has become a bit of a Brussels tradition. We can assure you these folks are friendlier in real life than they are online. And no, we still do not know who Berlaymonster is.

Short notice EU tweetup in Brussels!

This evening Thursday 30 August there will be a small tweetup in Brussels, for those who are already back from their summer holidays, but who aren’t quite ready for la rentrée.

Start of the new academic year by catching up with the EU twitter geeks and getting in some early networking! Who knows, you might even get to hear the latest gossip on what to expect from Juncker’s State of the Union address or even who is likely to be the next European Commission President.

We’ll be meeting from 18.30 at the Wild Geese pub and restaurant on Avenue Livingstone.

Spot the #EUTweetUp hashtag to find us (if the sun stays out, we may even venture onto the terrace!)

All welcome (especially newbies!)

La Coupe sera européenne ! #WorldCup

— Margaritis Schinas (@MargSchinas) July 6, 2018

We are living in extraordinary times: no matter who wins the World Cup this weekend, the winner will be European!
That in itself is something worth celebrating.

But there are bigger issues at hand.

Together with our friends from VoteBrussels & 1bru1Vote we’re preparing for a REVOLUTION!

Did you know that Brussels has one of the largest democratic deficits in the EU because its 1/3 of non-Belgian residents are disenfranchised at regional level and underrepresented at local level? Fortunately, work is well underway to make sure that changes. In the past few months, the VoteBrussels & the 1bru1Vote campaigns have launched voter registration and citizens’ initiatives in nearly all 19 Brussels communes. To celebrate their volunteers hard work and to chat about ways to improve democracy in Brussels and engage with the bubble, the next #EUTweetUp will take place under the slogan:

“Revolutionise Brussels! This year, your commune, next year, the entire region!”

And as we have been reliably informed that democracy in Belgium started in its parks*, we will be meeting at:
the pop-up bar in Parc Cinquantenaire
on 12 July from 18.30

*In 1830, non-Belgian exiles fought in Parc Royale for Belgian independence and got to vote in the 1st National Congress that passed Europe’s most liberal constitution. In 1893, Belgians marched on Parc Duden to demand universal suffrage, but that took a while in Belgium for women, for young people and for EU citizens.

The European elections are coming (sang to the coca cola theme tune..) and before that we have the big BUDGET post 2020 announcement.

Last #EUBudget debate w/ Fellow Commissioners in weekly meeting before decisive one next week 2 May. That day we will finally discuss + adopt our formal proposal #EUBudget for the future beyond 2020, post #Brexit #FutureofEurope #TeamJunckerEU pic.twitter.com/l5QqeKK3sd

— Günther H. Oettinger (@GOettingerEU) April 25, 2018

Join us >on Thursday 26 April for the EUtweetup to debate what should get more money in the future, how the EU should be preparing for #EP2019 and much more.
You can also meet your Twitter buddies in real life.

We will be in London Calling, Place de Londres between 18.30 and 22.00 (or maybe even later…)
All welcome!

Two forthcoming tweetups in Belgium!

On Monday 5th March there will be a small tweetup in Bruges, where EU Twitter nerds meet @jonworth‘s students who have been learning about online communications. Travel costs to/from Brussels are covered, and we still have a few places available – please just let us know if you would like to come along using the form here.

On Wednesday 7th March in Brussels we’re happy that Michiel Van Hulten (@mvanhulten – well known in the Brussels Bubble Twitter scene!) is welcoming Twitter nerds along to the launch party of his new business venture, BOLDT. All you have to do is register here for free (there’s a pre-event about Brexit too, featuring some excellent Tweeters like @fabianzuleeg and @allierenison), and then come along to WXYZ Bar at aLoft (map) from 1730 onwards – nearest Metro Schuman.