VaccinAction tour calendar
After Belgium, Hungary, Spain, Finland, Poland, Japan, Romania, Italy, the “VaccinAction tour calendar 2024-2025” will arrive in Austria in July, where the director of Active Citizenship Network will be speaking at a public policy event on vaccination. Read more.

Living with an ostomy: from invisible struggles to visible change
Powerful voices of patients, caregivers and MEPs shedding light on the often overlooked reality. Watch the video interviews by journalist Mariam Zaidi, featuring the artistic photography of Zoran Popovici, from the event organized by Cittadinanzattiva-Active Citizenship Network and the Italian Federation of Incontinent and Stomised Associations (FAIS), which took place on 26 March 2025 at the EU Parliament.
 

MEP Letizia Moratti at the EU Parliament event for the recognition of the rights of people with ostomy (Brussels, 26 March 2025)

Steering Group on Prevention of Respiratory Infections
Active Citizenship Network (ACN) welcomes the transition of the Steering Group on Influenza Vaccination to its new identity as the Steering Group on Prevention of Respiratory Infections.
This evolution marks an important step forward in addressing the wider burden of respiratory diseases, highlighting the critical role of prevention through immunisation. The new name reflects a broader focus, emphasising the need for sustained policy dialogue, scientific collaboration and increased public awareness.
Bringing together 11 organisations representing healthcare professionals, scientists, academics, civil society organisations, and industry, the Steering Group on Prevention of Respiratory Infections aims to increase the uptake of respiratory infection vaccinations in Europe.
ACN is proud to support this mission by actively participating in the group's ongoing initiatives through the involvement of its Director.
Let's continue the conversation around adult immunisation and respiratory health.
To know more, click here and here.

Have your say in the PROPHET public consultation: contribute to shaping a more personalised prevention in Europe!
Active Citizenship Network – Cittadinanzattiva, as a partner of the EU-funded PROPHET project, is pleased to invite you to take part in the ongoing public consultation, open from 26 June to 16 July 2025. This initiative supports our broader goal of helping define and implement personalised prevention approaches in EU health systems. We believe that effective personalised prevention strategies are only possible if citizens, healthcare professionals, and policymakers are fully aware of their potential and equipped with the knowledge and tools to co-design and implement them. All materials and the consultation form are available on this page. We strongly recommend you start by reading this factsheet, which summarises the purpose of the consultation and the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA).

European Consumer Union general assembly
The recent general assembly of the European Consumer Union (ECU), during which the new leadership was elected, offered an opportunity to discuss critical consumer issues at the European level. This was made possible also thanks to the participation of Italian MEPs Pierfrancesco Maran and Denis Nesci.
On that occasion, the outgoing ECU Secretary General and Director of Active Citizenship Network was appointed as a new ECU Board Member. Read more.

Cittadinanzattiva confirmed its place in the Board of the Italian Council of the European Movement for the next three years.
The Head of EU Affairs at Cittadinanzattiva and Director of the Active Citizenship Network has been confirmed for a third mandate in the Board of the Italian Council of the European Movement (CIME). Founded in 1948, CIME is an expression of all democratic forces in Italy committed to achieving European unity. Read more (IT)

The European health data space cannot stand without a solid foundation of patient rights protection
The digital transformation of health systems is an essential strategy for addressing the evolving health challenges faced in Europe. However, the entire European Health Data Space (EHDS) framework cannot be realised without a solid foundation rooted in the protection of patients' rights. For this reason, we applaud the Polish institutions for including the topic of patients' rights in the Programme of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Read the article written as a follow-up to the 19th European Patients’ Rights Day, which has just been published in the international peer-reviewed “Journal of Medical and Clinical Studies”.

European Health Data Space: more rights, more control, more equity
The new regulation on the European Health Data Space (EHDS) strengthens citizens’ digital rights. Fulvia Raffaelli, Head of the 'Digital Health' Unit at the European Commission, explained what the changes mean in terms of access to, control of, and use of health data across Europe. Our media partner TrendSanità has just published a follow-up article to the 19th European Patients’ Rights Day, written with the contribution of Active Citizenship Network. Read more (IT – EN versions).

Fulvia Raffaelli on the occasion of the 19thEuropean Patients’ Rights Day
at the EU Parliament (Brussels, 15 May 2025)

The successful story of the MEPs Interest Group “European Patients' Rights & Cross-Border Healthcare
Civil society, patient organisations and Members of the European Parliament working together to strengthen the protection of patients' rights at the European level: this is the message and main objective of the political initiative that has become a model for fostering other thematic interest groups within the European Parliament.
Promoted and coordinated by the Italian NGO Cittadinanzattiva through its EU branch, Active Citizenship Network, the MEPs Interest Group “European Patients’ Rights & Cross-Border Healthcare” is now at its third mandate and is one of the most significant examples of civil society engagement in European health policy. It has also been examined within academic settings as a real case study.
Read the article, written as a follow-up to the 19th European Patients’ Rights Day, which has just been published in the international peer-reviewed “Annals of Public Health & Epidemiology”.

19th European Patients' Rights Day: video contents
Watch video interviews with the main speakers at the European Patients' Rights Day 2025, and a video interview with Johanna Blom, Professor of Paediatric Psychobiology and Behavioural Neuroscience at the University of Modena, and IHI FACILITATE Coordinator.
Click here to watch the full video recording of the conference.

24 June 2025 I linking adult immunization and chronic disease management to advance healthy aging in europe
The Director of Active Citizenship Network has been invited by the Global Coalition on Aging (GCOA)  to participate in the expert working session alongside European and international experts in chronic diseases, adult vaccination, public health policy, and healthy ageing. The event aims to identify a core set of recommendations to improve adult vaccine uptake among people with NCDs, and to provide information on EU- and national-level actions on integrated prevention strategies for healthy ageing. Read more.

25 June 2025 I Missed our FACILITATE project webinar? Catch up now!
On 25 June, nearly 200 people from 35 countries joined the webinar, organized by ACN, “Let’s FACILITATE: Return of Individual Participant Data (RoIPD) by Design – Where Do We Stand?”. The session featured insightful discussions from diverse stakeholders, including patients, researchers, regulators, and industry experts—all focused on how to make the return of individual participant data a reality in clinical trials. Watch the full recording here: [https://youtu.be/JMtZebSXjS0]. Stay engaged with us and follow updates via #FACILITATEproject.

11 September 2025: Shaping trust in bio-based products innovation: digital tools for reliable certification
How can we build trust in bio-based innovation? Join us for the final BioReCer Stakeholder Meeting - click here for free registration. The webinar is scheduled for 11 September 2025, from 14:00 to 16:00 CEST.
This online event will present the results of the EU-funded BioReCer project (of which Cittadinanzattiva is a partner), as well as providing a live demonstration of the BIT Tool, a digital solution designed to support transparent and reliable certification schemes in the bioeconomy.
The session will also include an interactive roundtable with various stakeholders to validate the tool and gather feedback. If you work in the bio-based sector as a certifier, innovator, policymaker or consumer advocate, this is your opportunity to help shape the future of sustainable, trustworthy certification. Read more.