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„Great political projects have to be accompanied with dreams that spur them up." - these were the words Henryka Bochniarz, President PKPP Lewiatan, started the first session of the European Forum for New Ideas with, entitled "Europe, identity, solidarity."

The Community, helpless towards challenges of the variable world, deprived of the leadership, is barely capable of managing of current crises and attempts ineffectively to prove its value to the Europeans. The crisis in the Euro zone realised Europe the level of interdependence of the Member States and, simultaneously, lack of confidence among them. The significance of the European project often comes down to an anonymous „Brussels", which, in the case of emergency, may be easily charged with liability for current troubles. An ageing Europe isolates itself from the rest of the world, deluding itself that it may ignore transformation occurring all around. It does not remark that at the same time it is becoming increasingly dependent of this world. In the times, when traditional Community leaders stepped back, the European leadership has been extensively spread out. A forgotten slogan of the European „unity in diversity" needs to be refreshed. Such a diagnosis was a reference point of our first EFNI session named „Europe, identity, solidarity".

During the discussion, Danuta Hübner - MEP, former EU Commissioner for the Regional Development, persuaded that Europe is still the project that has not been accomplished and the current crisis is a chance to implement reforms. In order to achieve this goal, it is necessary to strengthen the vitality of the European Project. Yet, if Europe lacks legal boundaries to carry out transformations, it has to be driven with a strong political motivation for changes. However, professor Hübner highlighted that European leaders are fully aware that Europe has to continue with the political unity. And it would be a considerable mistake to use the crisis as an alibi to lock itself up. On the other hand, it is observed a growing demand for the social contract in Europe due to the demographic changes. The debate on the European identity was one of the major issues having been discussed.

Henri Malosse - Chairman of the Employer's Group of the European Social and Economic Committee said that we are facing up a political crisis as we lack leadership, vision and trust. „We have built up a common market, but where the common Europe is? We have to get people united. Today, we have no European identity. Where is the common Europe? We have forgotten about it. We have to get united to be stronger." - Malosse underlined. Moreover, he mentioned that the European idea is fading away and thus it is necessary to, e.g. alter mentality of the European administration.

Professor Aleksander Smolar, President of the Management Board of Stefan Batory Foundation kicked off with the thesis that 1989 was the beginning of the crisis Europe has not overcome by far. He also emphasized that the European solidarity disappears and therefore richer states are not willing to pay for the poorer counterparts. It is proved in the expected disintegration of Belgium, the UK, Spain.
In addition, professor Smolar noticed that the EU drawback is ageing of its citizens and the solution is immigration. Yet, Europe fears otherness since the European thinking is grounded on assimilation. And, after all, from India, China or Africa perspective we are just the Europeans.

An identity deficit was also raised by professor Magdalena Środa. She ventured a statement that „Working on identity is more needed than enlargement of the Euro zone. Education is of top priority." The panellist also stressed that Europe was built up on the production ground, not on a family-based ground. Now it is going to an end. According to her, the problem is rooted in basing the European identity upon the hostility towards strangers.

Jürgen Thumann, President of the European Business Confederation BUSINESSEUROPE, appealed not to talk about the crisis: „We are not in crisis and should not repeat this word and misuse it. Europe does not suffer from the crisis, I even doubt whether the world suffers from the crisis". However, in Thumann's opinion, we have a wide scope of challenges to be faced up. Each day we struggle competitive challenges. Only solidarity might allow us to uphold current lifestyle. In addition, the panellist remarked that many Europeans do not identify with EU welfare, 150 000 graduates leaves their homeland annually and merely 20% of them comes back. Therefore, EU competitiveness has to be still the case to be cared for.