Visibility Watch EU

What is Visibility Watch EU?

Visibility Watch EU (viEUw) is a new campaign advocating for better representation in European debates. We are tired of dull public debates in Brussels, frustrated by the fact that panelists and experts interviewed in the media look the same. 

We are convinced that greater representation and inclusiveness at Brussels events will lead to better policy-making.

The viEUw campaign aims at: 

producing a yearly public research report, monitoring EU events and taking stock of the composition of panels in Brussels.

developing an advocacy campaign demanding and defending inclusive panels and better representation at Brussels events. 

The campaign is:

What’s the plan in 2022? 

This is the first year of the project. We’re starting small, but we aim high(er):

We’re focusing on gender: it’s a huge and ambitious undertaking already. We want to take panels’ analyses beyond what’s been done until now; and look at who is visible on panels, who is invited to speak and how are the speakers’ gender identities acknowledged and respected. We aim to do gender-sensitive and trans-inclusive data collection, and we want to move beyond the gender binary. 

We’re building expertise in data collection: in 2021-22, we are building the first block for inclusive and diverse data collection by diving in gender. In future years we want to build other blocks of expertise and widen the data collection exercise, so as to include other critical aspects of visibility (e.g. racial justice, accessibility to people with disabilities, inclusive and safe space with regards to sexual orientation, etc.). 

We’re building partnerships: to advocate for more representative and more inclusive debates, we need to consider diversity at large, not only gender diversity. And we need to look beyond panel composition; for instance at who is speaking in the media, who is participating in debates and how, who is excluded or treated differently. Because these questions are complex and come in great numbers – and because we are stronger together, one of our priorities is to share the campaign’s ownership and work together tightly with many other organisations.

How can you help?

Is your organisation interested in supporting our work and carrying out activities together?

We’re open for any kind of collaboration and would love to hear your ideas and do some great things together.

Email us at vieuw@brusselsbinder.org to start a conversation.

Do you have expertise in data collection? Are you active in diversity, equality and inclusion?

The ViEUw Allies is an informal group with an advisory and multiplier role, who will be invited to openly contribute, give feedback and engage with the activities.

Get in touch to join the Allies mailing list.

Do you have a few hours to give and are curious about meeting other Brussels professionals?

The tasks are varied and plentiful; we’re looking for help in particular with monitoring EU events, social media and digital communications, and press and public relations.

Write to Pauline to join the team.

You can also support us and engage in other ways:

  • Sign-up to receive the project’s newsletter
  • Write to us to report panels that fail to be inclusive or diverse (an anonymous tool will be available soon)
  • Get in touch with Pauline to write a post on our blog