Patience, Engagement, Action, Courage, Errors: The Formula that Leads to a Winning European Citizens’ Initiative Campaign

As of February 2025, the European citizens’ initiative “My Voice, My Choice” has successfully gathered over 1 100 000 signatures, exceeding the signature threshold in 18 Member States, more than two months ahead of the deadline! This milestone highlights the campaign’s strategic execution, resilience, and ability to mobilise support and make it noticed across Europe. But what makes an ECI successful? The answer lies in the PEACE Formula behind its campaign:

Patience to build a solid foundation

Engagement to grow the movement

Action to maintain the momentum

Courage to overcome challenges

Errors to learn and improve 

This proven framework helped My Voice, My Choice break through political and bureaucratic barriers to become a movement for change. Here’s how you can apply the PEACE Formula to turn your idea into an impactful ECI campaign.

Launching a European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) is more than just collecting signatures – it’s a test of strategy, resilience, and determination. Since its creation, nearly 120 ECIs were registered (of which 11 are still collecting signatures and 27 were withdrawn) and yet only a dozen have crossed the one-million-signature mark. Why? Because beyond a strong idea, a winning ECI campaign demands patience to navigate bureaucracy, engagement to rally support, action to sustain momentum, courage to push through opposition, and the ability to learn from inevitable errors. My Voice, My Choice, the ECI advocating for safe and accessible abortion across Europe, faced all these challenges head-on. Here’s what it takes to turn an idea into a movement.

Beyond the signatures: Lesson learnt on strategy, struggles, and successes

Advocating for change at the EU level can feel overwhelming. The European Citizens’ Initiative is one of the few participatory democracy tools available, offering citizens the chance to influence legislation – if they can gather one million signatures across at least seven EU countries. But behind every successful ECI lies a story of perseverance, strategic planning, adaptability, and the cultivation of a powerful, widespread movement.

My Voice, My Choice is no exception. What started as a bold vision to secure safe and accessible abortion in Europe quickly turned into an intense, fast-moving campaign and far-reaching movement that required navigating political resistance, mobilising grassroots support and constantly refining our approach. Reaching one million signatures isn’t just about having the right cause – it’s about how you campaign. And to be a great ECI campaigner, you need PEACE: Patience, Engagement, Action, Courage, and Errors.

Patience: Building the foundation

You won’t collect one million signatures in a day. You will barely find the first six people to support your ECI project in a day: give yourself time. You need time to study your topic and develop an idea that is both feasible and aligned with EU areas of competence and scope of action. Researching potential partners in six other EU countries is essential: Where? Why them? How can they support the idea and the work? Understand their strengths and what they can bring to your campaign. This process takes time and effort, and you will face unanswered emails and refusals – that’s part of the process, and you must embrace it. Learn from this initial outreach to strengthen your approach throughout the campaign. Use this first research phase as a testing ground for your campaigning and outreach skills.

Engagement: Expanding the movement 

Reaching one million signatures is no small feat – it’s like filling Wembley Stadium eleven times. To make that happen, you need to be the “pop star” of ECIs: capturing attention, sparking interest, and maintaining engagement to amplify your reach. This means not only rallying those who already support your cause but also strategically expanding beyond your immediate network to bring new voices into the movement. The key to a successful campaign is engaging the movable middle – people who may not have a strong stance on the issue but share underlying values and could be persuaded to take action. It’s easy to mobilise those who are already on board, but the real challenge lies in capturing the attention of those who are indifferent, hesitant, or passively supportive.

My Voice, My Choice saw an initial surge of nearly 100,000 signatures in the first week – our “easy reach.” But the real work began afterwards, when we had to move beyond our core supporters and find ways to connect with new, often unreached audiences. This is where strategic outreach, compelling narratives, and innovative engagement tactics became crucial. We understood that a movement’s strength isn’t solely defined by its loudest voices – it’s also about how many new voices it can bring in. Building these connections required us to break out of our usual circles and think creatively about how we could resonate with different groups. Whether through tailored messaging, collaborations with unlikely allies, or leveraging social media in new ways, every effort was focused on widening the circle of support. This is when the real work begins – when strategies take shape, and the true “action” starts.

Action: Turning momentum into impact

Support for a cause is rarely constant; it comes and goes in waves. This is why a well-structured action plan and dedicated action days, especially those organised locally, are essential. Every country and city you campaign in offers unique local features that can be leveraged for maximum impact. It is important to seize opportunities, whether they are close to or far from your usual outreach. As MVMC’s campaigner Kristina Krajnc pointed out during this ECI Forum Webinar, grassroots mobilisation requires stepping outside traditional activist circles to engage unexpected allies. My Voice, My Choice successfully built a network of over 250 supporting organisations by reaching beyond the usual feminist and reproductive health groups. It attracted unexpected partners such as a climbing association, university groups, other ECI organisers, and even singers and actors. This inclusive approach allowed the campaign to connect with wider audiences, some of whom may not typically engage with the topic. Public events, media engagement, and creative activism were key to maintaining momentum. 

We collected signatures at both feminist and unrelated, apolitical events, like marathons, during sunny days or even in the rain. We made a point to combine political activism with social engagement, which proved to be a highly effective strategy. Actions needed to be dynamic and adaptive: constantly responding to political developments, countering opposition tactics, and keeping the issue in the public eye. How did we manage all of this? With courage! 

Courage: Standing firm through resistance and risk 

Campaigning for an ECI, particularly on a deeply emotional and politically charged topic, often means facing resistance and active opposition. Whether it’s online harassment, smear campaigns, or bureaucratic obstacles, standing firm in the face of adversity is crucial. But courage isn’t just about persistence; it’s about adjusting your strategies, learning from setbacks, and continuing to push forward even when progress feels slow. It also involves taking risks, even when the outcome is uncertain. 

One example:

I had the opportunity to approach an influencer from a country where we were lacking support and hadn’t yet reached the minimum national threshold. I told her I admired her work and that “My Voice, My Choice” would love to collaborate on a post, emphasising the need for support. I left her a pin, and a few days later, she posted an Instagram story featuring the pin along with the link to sign the ECI. This resulted in a surge of signatures from Italy, helping us gather much-needed support in a Member State where we had struggled to convince people to sign. 

Sometimes, organising events, action days, and social media campaigns is key. Other times, it takes a bit of courage and a leap of faith in your campaign.

Errors: Learning, adapting, and improving 

Despite these successes, the fact that things went well was far from guaranteed. No campaign is without its challenges, and mistakes are inevitable. Whether in messaging, outreach strategies, or partnership decisions, errors will happen. It happened to us, and it will happen to you. What matters is not the mistake itself, but how quickly and effectively you learn from it. Each unsuccessful event, low-engagement post, or rejected partnership request is not a failure, but an opportunity to adapt and refine your approach. The key is to remain flexible and open to feedback, whether it’s from your team, your supporters, or the broader public. Some of our best improvements came after setbacks, as we adjusted our tactics based on the lessons learned. And remember, failure is often the best teacher – what feels like a setback today could be the stepping stone to your next breakthrough. So, embrace the errors, learn from them, and keep moving forward with even greater insight and determination.

As demonstrated, turning an idea into a movement requires strategy, resilience, and adaptability. Each step – from patience to engaging with new voices, overcoming obstacles, to learning from inevitable setbacks – plays a crucial role in shaping the success of your campaign. It’s about being flexible, adjusting to the unexpected, and staying committed to your goal, even when the road gets tough.

What’s one lesson you’ve learned from your own advocacy or ECI experience? Have you ever faced a major challenge in campaigning? How did you overcome it? What’s the PEACE step you struggle the most with? Share your thoughts in the comments or reach out with your own tips and stories. Let’s keep the conversation going and continue to empower change together.

Check My Voice, My Choice’s website to learn more about coalition and movement building. 

You may also be interested in reading:

Building momentum: the funding and strategy behind the 'My Voice, My Choice' initiative

“Unlocking Engagement: Strategies to Reach and Activate the Unengaged for Your ECI”

“Harnessing the Power of Influencers: Key takeaways for your campaigns”

Watch this video with My Voice My Choice representative Nika Kovac

For insights on the skills that organisers need to make their initiative a success, check out the ECI Day 2023 highlights and the summary of a 2022 ECI Day workshop: “Make it Known, Make it Fun, Show Them the Impact!”