In April 2026, RIE’s Advisory Board deliberated on Europe’s opportunity to become the architect of the digital civilization
“No to autocrats. No to a world of empires”.
“Common understanding of human rights and dignity”.
“Strategic authonomy and new strategic partnerships”.
Against a backdrop of geopolitical instability and technological acceleration, the Advisory Board of Re-Imagine Europa (RIE) convened in Brussels with a clear ambition: not simply to diagnose Europe’s challenges, but to build a new narrative for Europe’s global leadership in the digital age.
At the heart of the discussion was a shared recognition that Europe has too often defined itself reactively, caught between nostalgia for a fading global order and a pervasive pessimism about the future. Neither, participants argued, offers a viable way forward. Instead, Europe must articulate a more assertive sense of purpose, grounded in its own values and capacities.
Maria João Rodrigues, chair of the advisory board, captured this shift succinctly: “We must be proud of our capacity as a civilization to build democracy at all levels. To those who think they can reorganize the world through military technology and economic power alone, we must say we do not accept this.” Her intervention set the tone for a broader rethinking of Europe not merely as a regulatory actor, but as a political and civilizational force capable of shaping global norms.
Central to this reorientation is the need to move beyond imitation. For decades, Europe’s technological ambitions have been measured against the model of Silicon Valley, with its emphasis on scale and speed. Yet this framework sits uneasily alongside Europe’s economic and social contract. Rather than chasing a model that reflects other’s priorities, RIE’s board argued for a distinctly European approach: one that places human agency at the center of technological development.