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
Protecting Civic Space in Extractives Governance: Towards Enhanced EITI Engagement on Civic Space
This brief was produced by Transparency International as part of the EU SEE project, and features case studies from EU SEE partners in Colombia (Foro Nacional por Colombia), Papua New Guinea (Transparency International Papua New Guinea) and Republic of the Congo (RPDH). Read the full report here: Protecting civic space in extractives governance:… – Transparency.org…
The Challenges for Civil Society in Latin America in the Trump Era
This article was published as part of the EU SEE by European Partnership for Democracy, available originally on the European Democracy Hub Civil society across Latin America is under growing strain. While this is a global trend, the region has come under particular pressure following shifts in US foreign policy under the Trump administration. Even…
Podcast: Freedom of Expression, Accountability and Self Censorship in Indonesia
In this episode, EU SEE and our wonderful host Clarisse are joined by Rinto Leonardo Siahaan from the International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development, or INFID, a leading civil society organisation working on human rights, democracy and development in Indonesia. In recent months, Indonesia has experienced a wave of attacks against civil society and human…
Back in the closet – EU SEE data reveals how governments are reversing freedoms for LGBTQ+ groups globally
By Clarisse Sih and Bibbi Abruzzini, Forus, EU SEE consortium partner What happens when people cannot safely speak, participate or challenge power? For LGBTQ+ activists and civil society organisations, this is often the reality. An organisation may be legally registered and able to operate on paper, yet still be pushed out of public life if…
Overview of Alerts July 2026
July 2026 was characterised by a continued tightening of the regulatory and political environment for civil society. The trends observed by the EU SEE include the further use of regulatory measures as an instrument to contract civil society activities, the expansion of surveillance and securitization, pressures on freedom of association, freedom of expression, and the…
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