Demographic and family policy discourses and practices in Europe
Date: 17 November 2025, Berlin
The full documentation of the event can be found here:
Report_Europ_Expert-meeting_Demografy_171125
The Association of German Family Organisations (AGF) was delighted to organise its annual European Expert Meeting on Demographic and family policy discourses and practices in Europe on 17 November in Berlin. We discussed the challenges for societies in Europe that come with demographic change and its consequences.
Against the backdrop of very pluralistic family realities in Europe we particularly focused on the current state of demographic development in Europe and the corresponding discourse to it regarding family and demographic policies as well as their implications. We will now write a report on the meeting and hope to publish it soon. Ca. 35 experts from different European countries gathered together and contributed to a lively discussion.
Key findings from the conference show that demographic change cannot be viewed in isolation as a question of birth rates, but is closely linked to social inequalities, living conditions and political framework decisions. It became particularly clear that the gap between the desire to have children and the actual size of families in many European countries is attributable to structural barriers – such as uncertain employment prospects, a lack of affordable housing or inadequate childcare infrastructure. Successful policy approaches therefore rely less on short-term financial incentives and more on a reliable set of framework conditions. At the same time, it was emphasised that demographic discourse in Europe is sometimes characterised by exclusionary or instrumentalising narratives. This was contrasted with the need for an inclusive, positive vision that recognises the diversity of families and supports the decision to have children without imposing normative constraints.
Download of the report
Report_Europ_Expert-meeting_Demografy_171125
If you are interested in a printed version, please contact Simone Nagel:
info@ag-familie.de
Pictures of the Meeting
Contact for further information:
Holger Adolph, adolph@ag-familie.de, telephone: 030/2902825-72
Agenda
10.00h Arrival
10.30h Welcome: Sven Iversen, Geschäftsführer der AGF
10:40h Setting the scene:
- Demographic change in Europe. Between declining birth rates, rising social inequality and the need for political action
Nicole Hiekel, Max-Planck-Institut für Demografische Forschung (MPIDR) - Converging patterns of demographic policies and demographic discourse in Europe?
Anna Rotkirch, Population Research Institute, Family Federation of Finland
11:30 Questions and discussion
12.10h The European Union and its strategy for dealing with demographic change
- Marco La Marca, Member of Cabinet of Ms. Dubravka Šuica – Commissioner for the Mediterranean and for Demography, EU Commission)
Questions and discussion
13.00h – 14:00h Lunch break
14.00h Family policy and demographic policies and their implications in EU countries
Inputs:
- Italy: Manuela Stranges
- Germany: Susanne Schultz
- Lithuania: Lijana Gvaldaitė
- France: Jérôme Gourod
16:15h Outlook: Shaping demographic change in a family-friendly and inclusive way
- Andreas Edel, Population Europe, Berlin
17.00h End