Europe Has No Face. Can It Find One?
Connecting EU institutions with its citizens: An exercise of deep re-Branding.
Europe is an idea. A project. A machine of treaties and policies. It has borders but no face, rules but no pulse.
The European Union was built to prevent war, to weave economies together so tightly that tearing them apart would be unthinkable. It worked. For a while.
But survival alone is not enough. Right now, Europe, to many of its citizens, feels like an empty shell. People walk its streets, carry its passports, use its currency—but do they experience it? Do they know what it means to be European?
I’m reflecting on Europe in this article, because branding isn’t just for corporations. It’s for countries, cultures, continents. It’s about meaning. And right now, Europe is struggling to define its own.
What if future-proof branding wasn’t just about logos and slogans and symbols—what if it was actually about participation?
The Void of Belonging
Here’s the problem: People don’t connect with systems. They connect with experiences, with stories, with people, with something tangible.
And yet, the EU still speaks to many only in languages of bureaucracy. In economic forecasts. In legal frameworks. It is perceived as telling people what they can and cannot do, but rarely lets them experience why they should care.
A brand in this context is an experience people care about, an idea they want to belong to and a process they want to participate in.
So what is the European experience?
Is it a story of peace? Of innovation? Of cultural achievements? Of living, breathing people creating their life stories? Of cooperation and support and togetherness? Of learning from each other? Of living a good life in harmony with one another?
Or just a fragile balance between collapsing democracies, rising nationalism, and corporate interests?
If Europe wants to be more than a transaction, it needs to start shaping itself as an immersive, lived experience—not just a set of policies.
And that means not just rebranding the EU’s outer shell, but rethinking democracy itself.
Democracy as an Experience
One of the EU’s biggest branding issues is that it’s perceived as distant—a technocratic entity, making decisions far removed from everyday life.
But what if Europe didn’t just serve its citizens - what if it included them?
Nicolas Berggruen’s ideas around Renovating Democracy challenge us to rethink governance in a world where traditional representation is failing. The EU, more than any other political entity, has an opportunity to redefine and vastly improve democracy itself.
Practical Steps for a More Experiential Democracy:
A Digital Citizens’ Assembly
A pan-European participatory platform where citizens can propose, debate, and vote on initiatives.
AI-assisted moderation to prevent manipulation and ensure diverse representation.
Direct influence on policymaking, turning citizens into co-creators of the European project.
Europe-Wide Referenda on Key Issues
Major EU-wide policies (climate action, digital rights, labor laws) should go beyond the European Parliament and be directly voted on by citizens.
National differences should be respected, but participation should be encouraged across borders.
Local-Global Hybrid Governance
A networked democracy where city councils and regional governments work with Brussels through a decentralized, responsive system.
Strengthening EU-funded local projects so people experience the benefits where they live—not just in distant capitals.
EU as a Learning Institution
A European Civic Education Platform to teach citizens not just about voting, but about actively shaping policies.
AI-driven simulations where people can model economic and political decisions—and see their real-world impact.
When people are part of the decision-making process, they experience democracy—not just observe it from afar.
Building an EU People Can Experience
The EU isn’t short on impact. But impact alone is not enough—it must be visible, experiential, and emotionally engaging.
Practical steps to turn the EU into an experience:
A Unified Digital Platform for EU Identity
A multilingual app that provides interactive content about European history, culture, and democratic engagement.
Features like real-time translations, travel recommendations, and a European Citizen Passport with exclusive cultural and economic benefits.
Europe Day as a Flagship Celebration
Expand May 9 (Europe Day) into a major festival, integrating music, art, and business expos across all member states.
Use AR/VR installations in major cities to create immersive experiences of European history and future visions.
Erasmus for All – Not Just Students
Expand the Erasmus program beyond universities to include workers, freelancers, and artists.
Establish cross-border mentorship programs where professionals in different industries collaborate across Europe.
Cultural Soft Power on the Global Stage
Invest in European storytelling through film, literature, and digital media to create a recognizable "European narrative."
Establish an EU-backed streaming platform showcasing European cinema, documentaries, and cultural content.
A Stronger Visual and Sensory Identity
Strengthen the EU brand with recognizable design elements—a modernized visual identity that appears on passports, infrastructure, and digital platforms.
Develop a distinct European soundscape—music, sonic branding, and even ambient sound elements in airports and train stations that reinforce the EU identity.
Soft Power: Owning the European Experience
The U.S. has Hollywood. South Korea has K-pop. Japan has anime.
What does Europe have? A thousand cultures, a million stories, but no collective stage.
Soft power isn’t just about entertainment. It’s about shaping perception. About exporting values. About making the world experience Europe without needing to set foot in it.
How Europe Can Expand Its Soft Power:
A European Creative Fund – Grants for film, gaming, and media projects that promote European values globally.
A Digital EU Museum – An interactive archive of European art, science, and philosophy accessible worldwide.
Revamping European Public Broadcasting – A stronger, unified approach to cultural storytelling across borders.
Right now, European culture is fragmented. It’s time to connect the dots.
The Balance Between Unity and Diversity
One of the biggest tensions in EU branding is balancing unity with national specificities. Many Europeans take pride in their country first—so any EU branding effort must feel like an enhancement, not a replacement.
A Strategy for Unity Without Erasure:
Localized EU Branding: Instead of a one-size-fits-all approach, EU messaging should be tailored to each country’s cultural tendencies.
Cross-Border Collaborations: Foster city partnerships where artists, musicians, and entrepreneurs from different nations collaborate on public projects.
EU as an Enabler, Not a Controller: Frame European identity as a supportive force that enhances national heritage.
Europe is often misperceived as suppressing national identities—it needs instead to be experienced as the thread that binds them together and gives the diversity an overarching common meaning.
The Time is Now
We are living in an age of fractured identities. Of rising walls, both physical and ideological. If the EU wants to matter, it has to fight for meaning.
Not just through policy and regulation.
Through experience. Participation. Story. Culture. Connection.
The EU/Europe brand needs to crafted as a lived reality.
Europe needs to make people experience it again.
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Niels Koschoreck