EU Policy Briefing III: Inside the State of the Union speech by the European Commission President

Webinar graphic: “ENIL EU Policy Briefing — State of the Union 2026: What does it mean for disabled people?” With ENIL’s Policy Team, online on 17 November 2026, 15:00–16:00 CET. “Register now!” appears at the bottom. The background shows Ursula von der Leyen speaking at the European Parliament beside EU flags. ENIL and European Union co-funding logos appear at the bottom left.
Photo: © European Union, 2026, CC BY 4.0. Cropped and overlaid with text by ENIL.
Date: 17 November 2026

Time: 15:00–16:00 CEST

Location: Online

Register here


Weak economic growth, accelerating climate change or the war against Palestine. Europe is constantly challenged by crises.

Once a year the president of the European Commission, at the moment Ursula von der Leyen, gives a speech on the state of the Union in the European Parliament. At this occasion the president encourages European patriotism by envoking Europe´s many strengths, attempts to reinforce our courage in the face of the myriad challenges and most importantly announces new policy initiatives.

Thus, the state of the Union speeches are an importance guide for our work.

In the upcoming edition of our EU Policy Briefing we want to unpack the State of the Union Speech 2026 for you. Which are the most important challenges according to the president and how will Europe attempt to master them? Which initiatives will affect disabled people and what will ENIL do to approach them?



  1. The State of the Union Speech 2026

    Florian Sanden, Policy Coordinator


  2. Initiatives with a relevance for disabled people

    Kamil Gongour, Policy and Movement Support Coordinator


  3. Initiatives ENIL will tackle

    Veronika Kovacs, Co-production officer


Register here