Civil Society Organisations role and adaptation in the Multi-level Governance EU's System during COVID-19

Abstract: This thesis examined how Covid-19 affected the role of CSOs in the MLG EU’s system and how these CSOs adapted to the new challenges that appeared during the crisis to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on civil society in the EU. Moreover, it also used two case studies, Barcelona and Stockholm, that by focusing on the role of their CSOs during Covid-19 helped understand better how was the role of CSOs in the MLG EU’s system and allowed to give some normative recommendations on what lessons can be taken to the EU from CSOs of these two case studies, to improve the EU action across the different levels of governance when another crisis occurs. The method of analysis used in this research is thematic literature review because it allowed me to have a thematic combination of sources that were used to come up with a current summary of empirical and theoretical findings of the CSOs role and adaptation in the MLG EU’s system and from the two case studies, Barcelona and Stockholm. The analysis concludes that CSOs during the pandemic suffered a reduction of their civic space, but they were considered essential actors in the MLG EU’s system with a more relevant role than before Covid-19 because they showed their importance in reducing the social gap during the pandemic when the EU and EUMS could not handle society's needs alone. Moreover, CSOs showed how they can be very resilient when a crisis such as Covid-19 hit, they could adapt rapidly their vital services by switching their activities to digital mode among other initiatives to meet these challenges. It also showed, with the academic normative discussion on the EU and the two case studies, that the EU need to include CSOs, especially CSOs at the local level, in the participation for the agenda-setting as their knowledge and important role can contribute to making a more effective EU action plan for the different levels of governance when another crisis occurs helping reduce the lack of coordination that the EU experienced during Covid-19.