Conny Reuter — Global Progressive Networker
Conny is German. He left his home town Altena/Westfalia for studying languages (French and Spanish) and Sciences of Education at the universities of Bonn, Cologne and Toulouse/France. During his university studies, Conny has been activist in progressive youth and students associations.
Conny has a long track record in working with NGO networks, in coordinating European and international projects. He became a specialist in the social dimension of European policies, non-formal and informal training and education, intercultural learning, promotion of European public affairs.
Between 1985 and 1998, Conny worked for the French League of Education in Paris as responsible for European cooperation. Between 1996 and 1998 he was the European delegate of the French Youth Council (CNAJEP) which he represented in the European Youth Forum (YEF) and the European Committee of National Youth Councils (CENYC). Although German, in this period he was also appointed by the French government as member of the board of the Franco-German Youth Office (OFAJ/DFJW).
From 1998 to 2006 he was director of the department of youth, school and town twinning exchanges at the Franco-German Youth Office (OFAJ/DFJW) in Paris and Berlin. In Berlin he coordinated the European Youth event “10 years without the wall” in 1999 in Berlin as well as Franco-German Youth Parliament at 50 years of Elysée Treaty in 2003 including the closing conference with President Jacques Chirac and Chancellor Gerhard Schröder.
From October 2006 to December 2019, Conny was Secretary General of the European and international NGO network SOLIDAR based in Brussels gathering more than 60 national NGOs from Europe. SOLIDAR worked on 3 pillars: Social Europe, International Cooperation and Solidarity, Education and Lifelong Learning.
Between 2008 and 2013 he was President of the EUROPEAN SOCIAL PLATFORM, the network of more than 40 European social NGOs. In this capacity he led the Social Platform delegations in several informal European summits of the ministers of Employment and Social Affairs (EPSCO) under the respective European Presidencies.
From May 2013 to December 2019 Conny was Co-President of the Liaison Group of the European Economic and Social Committee – EESC, the group of the European Civil Society organisations. He was also responsible for the organisation of the yearly EESC Civil Society Days.
He was also co-founder of Social Services Europe and Civil Society Europe. He also served during long years as board member of the International Federation of Worker‘s Educational Association (IFWEA).
From January 2020 to September 2023 Conny served as Global Coordinator of the Progressive Alliance, global cooperation network of 120 social-democratic, socialists and progressive parties worldwide where he initiated and coordinated thematical conferences on all continents i.e. renewed inclusive multilaterism, resilient domocracies and Peace & Security.
