European Policy Centre


The European Policy Centre is a Brussels-based not-for-profit think tank on European Union affairs, founded in 1997.

Activities

Under the guidance of Herman Van Rompuy, the EPC’s Chief Executive is Fabian Zuleeg, a German economist. Its Director of Studies is Janis A. Emmanouilidis, a German-Greek political scientist and economist. The EPC's 21 analysts come from a range of backgrounds. They carry out research and analysis, organise expert meetings and events with the main stakeholders concerned with EU and global affairs and produce policy analysis online and in print. The EPC also works with 18 senior advisers and 12 academic fellows.
The EPC's policy work is organised under five main programmes:
Past speakers include Margaret Chan, Director-General of the World Health Organization; Jacques Delors, former President of the European Commission; Mario Draghi, President of the European Central Bank; Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission; Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund; Martin Schulz, President of the European Parliament; Salil Shetty, Secretary General of Amnesty International; Donald Tusk, President of the European Council; as well as numerous high-ranking ministers and officials from a wide range of EU and non-EU countries.

Funding

The EPC’s funding comes from a number of sources, including its strategic partners: the King Baudouin Foundation, based in Belgium, :de:Stiftung Mercator|Stiftung Mercator, based in Germany, and Adessium Foundation, based in the Netherlands. It also comes from membership fees, and grants from the EU and other organisations. Details of these are published on its website.

Governance

is President of the European Policy Centre and chairs its Advisory Council, which includes many prominent EU figures: Joaquin Almunia, Maria Joào Rodrigues, Lord Kerr of Kinlochard, Danuta Hübner, Janez Potočnik, André Sapir, Wolfgang Schüssel, Rita Süssmuth, and Jacek Saryusz-Wolski.
The EPC’s General Assembly is chaired by Fabio Colasanti, former Director-General for Information Society and Media. The Governing Board is chaired by Paul Skytte Christoffersen, former Ambassador of Denmark to Belgium, former Permanent Representative to the European Union.
Former Presidents of the European Policy Centre include Peter Sutherland and Philippe Maystadt. Former Chairs of the Governing Board include Hywel Ceri Jones, founder of the Erasmus Programme; Antonio Vitorino, former European Commissioner; and Meglena Kuneva, former European Commissioner.

Membership

The EPC has a membership of around 350 organisations, which spans the spectrum of stakeholders, from diplomatic embassies to companies, non-governmental organisations, and regional and local authorities. Members actively contribute to events, workshops, task forces and roundtables.