Common historical memory, culture and dialogue, cooperation, democracy at grass-roots level: in these fields of community integration, the Commission has selected 12 projects of "civic participation", which today it is going to award with the "Golden Stars of Active European citizenship", during a ceremony in Brussels. The occasion will also supply an opportunity for opening the 2008 Forum "Europe for citizens", which will go on until tomorrow. The Forum is "an opportunity to debate the issues connected with both political and social participation and the importance of the latest within the European Union". Europe for citizens is also a programme financed by the European Union, which mobilizes hundreds of thousands of citizens every year "in the context of over 1,200 exchanges, with the participation of almost four thousand towns" in the Continent. "The participants meet said Commissioner Jan Figel’ to debate how the European common values influence citizens’ everyday life". The Forum is opened by Jan Figel’ himself, commissioner for education and culture, by Jean-Pierre Jouyet, French secretary of State, by Marek Mora, vice prime minister of the Czech Republic, and by Hannu Takkula, member of the European parliament and president of the jury of the Golden Star Award.
