Supporting
an enabling environment
for civil society
The EU System for an Enabling Environment for Civil Society (EU SEE) is a consortium of international civil society organisations and network members in 86 countries. The partnership implements an Early Warning and Monitoring Mechanism to document changes and shed light on critical trends in the enabling environment for civil society.
Early Warning and Monitoring Mechanism
The EU SEE consortium assesses these events to trigger alerts indicating significant changes to the enabling environment. The Enabling Environment Snapshots capture the current – downward or upward – trend of the enabling environment for civil society and provide a quick overview of significant events that have occurred over the past four months.
The Early Warning and Monitoring Mechanism focuses on events that impact the enabling environment for civil society in 86 participating countries.
Alerts: types and definitions
Context to Watch
Indicates a context where the status quo is uncertain or under turbulence, with outcomes still unclear and needing to be kept under observation for further developments.
Crisis Alert
Highlights the outbreak and turning points in crises relating to structural issues that have a (potential) significant impact on all EE principles. Aimed at enabling civil society to respond to threats in crisis contexts or take advantage of opportunities to resolve the crisis
Deterioration Alert
Refers to situations that have already occurred and significantly negatively impacted the state of the EE for civil society. Aims to inform and raise awareness about these events.
Early Warning Alert
Highlights situations expected to have a medium to high negative impact on the EE for civil society. Offers a timely alert to influence outcomes and potentially prevent further restrictions or contractions of the EE.
Improvement Alert
Refers to situations that have already occurred and positively affected the state of the EE for civil society. The purpose is to acknowledge and highlight the improvements.
Opportunity Alert
Identifies situations expected to have a medium to high positive impact on the EE for civil society. Presents opportunities to actively support positive outcomes and strengthen the EE.
Latest alerts
Latest resources
News and views
Overview of Alerts January 2026
The start of the year has been marked by heightened political volatility, regional insecurity, and a sharp contraction of civic and democratic space across regions. Positive developments such as the court‑ordered releases of detained activists in Tunisia and funding protections for cultural institutions in India were overshadowed by intensified reprisals against civil society, renewed attacks…
Election-related violence: a shrinking space for democracy and civil society
By Clarisse Sih and Bibbi Abruzzini, Forus, EU SEE consortium partners With major elections approaching across multiple regions in 2026, election-related violence remains a critical threat to democratic participation and the enabling environment worldwide. Beyond election day itself, violence before, during and after electoral processes continues to erode trust in institutions, silence dissenting voices and…
Podcast: Thailand – Lèse-Majesté and the Future of Freedom of Expression
Thailand is rapidly approaching new elections and a constitutional referendum on 8 February, following the recent dissolution of the Parliament by Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul on December 11th, the consequences of which include the lapse of the Amnesty Bill, among other things. In this episode we talk to our network member in Thailand to discuss…
Overview of Alerts December
In recent months, EU SEE has observed a stark rise in election related violence and repression in recent months. From internet shutdowns, the arresting of activists, the arresting of opposition politicians and their family members, and military coups. This violence has created a chilling effect on democracy.
Podcast: Algérie – Naviguer dans un espace civique sous pression
Dans cet épisode d’Enabling Space, Voices of Civil Society Resilience, nous parlons avec Zakaria Benlahrech, avocat et directeur de la Fondation pour la promotion des droits en Algérie. Il nous parle des défis auxquels la société civile algérienne est confrontée, entre répression croissante, lois restrictives et contrôle des financements étrangers.
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