Sign the CEF Declaration - Europe's digital future is in your hands

It is vital for the future of digital projects in Europe that you show your support for the Connecting Europe Facility. You can do that online by signing the Declaration here.

So what is the CEF? It provides the funding stream that enables the work of the Europeana ecosystem. The CEF is a proposal by the European Commission to invest around 9.2 billion Euros in the provision of high-speed broadband and digital public services to 45 million households across Europe. This allocation of funds provides for the services outlined by The Digital Agenda for Europe, and this includes Europeana. This is part of the 50 billion Euro budget allocated to improving Europe's transport, energy and digital networks.

Why do we need to support it? Because the budget of CEF is under threat. Member States want a substantial reduction of the overall EU budget. All the savings must be found in the new programmes like CEF since the long-standing Structural Funds and Agriculture Fund have strong support among groups of Member States, so they will be spared. If the CEF budget is reduced substantially (up to 30% or more) there will be no money available for the work the Europeana Network is doing.

Make your voice heard by signing here. Note that any individual may sign, so encourage all in your associations/institutions to sign the Declaration as soon as possible. No registration is required - it only takes a minute!

You can also comment or follow the conversation on Twitter using #CEFDigital.