Monica Frassoni

Biography

Monica Frassoni is a Political Science graduate from the University of Florence Cesare Alfieri. Her political career started in 1983, when she became actively involved in the European Federalist Movement, before being elected as Secretary General of the European organization of Young European Federalists (“JEF Europe”) in 1987.

Monica Frassoni's involvement in youth policies continued when she was appointed president of the European Co-Coordinating Bureau of Youth NGOs, position she held from 1991 to 1993.

In 1990, Monica Frassoni started working for the Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament in charge of constitutional matters, rule of law, procedures and immunities. She was subsequently elected as a member of the European Parliament for her first mandate under the Belgian Green Party Ecolo's lists, as the first non-Belgian politician to be elected under a Belgian political party's colors. During that legislature, she was a member of the Commission for Constitutional Affairs, and a substitute member of the Committee on Citizens' Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs and the Joint Parliamentary Committee EU-Cyprus.

In June 2004, she was re-elected for a second term under the lists of the Italian Green party. During this term, she was a member of the Legal Affairs Committee and a substitute member of the Committees on Constitutional Affairs and on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety. Monica Frassoni also took part of the Delegation for relations with Mercosur, the delegation for relations with Iran and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean.

Monica Frassoni also took part of the executive of the Parliamentary Network on the World Bank (PNoWB) in 2006.

From 2002 to 2009, she held, with Daniel Cohn-Bendit, the co-Presidency of the Green/EFA group, a political group in the European Parliament containing green, regionalist and nationalist political parties. Later, she became the co-President of the European Green Party in October 2009. In 2014, she was re-elected as co-president along with Reinhard Bütikofer.

Monica Frassoni holds an extensive experience in electoral observation as she was appointed as Chief of the European Union Election observation mission in Venezuela and Bolivia in 2006, by the then EU commissioner for External Relations, Ms. Benita Ferrero Waldner.

In 2010, she collaborated on the Europa 2.0 volume entitled “Prospects and evolution of European dream”, published by Ombre Corte, edited by Nicola and Simon Vallinoto Vannuccini with an essay on the conditions for the re-launch of the constitutional process in Europe.

According to the site VoteWatch.eu, the percentage of attendance of Monica Frassoni plenary was of 92.95% (277 days out of 298).

In 2011, she became the president the European Centre for Electoral Support (ECES), a non-profit private foundation, headquartered in Brussels (Belgium), that aims to promote sustainable democratic development through the provision of advisory services and operational support to electoral stakeholders throughout the electoral cycle.

Later on, she became the president of the European Alliance to Save Energy (EUASE), an organization established at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP16) composed of members from prominent cross-party group of European politicians, energy efficiency campaigners from across Europe and Europe’s leading multinational companies.

Political commitment

Monica Frassoni is known for her strong commitment for women and youth empowerment policies around the European Union and the world. She is also a worldwide recognized advocator for energy saving, fairer immigration policies in the European Union, human rights and democratic support.

In 2011, She participated in several campaign such as “Renovate Europe”, a campaign aiming for energy efficient renovations, taking a technology neutral, integrated and holistic approach to energy efficient renovations. In 2012, she participated with the European Green Party in the “the Big Green Bus”.

Monica Frassoni is part of Spinelli Group, an initiative launched in 2010 that promotes the federalist push within the European Union decisions and policies. The group aims to become a network of stakeholders, citizens, politicians, academics with a strong pro-European conviction. Currently are part of the Spinelli Group more than 110 MEPs and 44 active members divided among EU experts, NGOs, think-tanks etc.

Monica Frassoni often publish articles on Huffington Post, Euractiv and Green European Journal.

Recognition

In 2010 Monica Frassoni was featured in the Top 100 Global Thinkers list published by the American Magazine Foreign Policy. In 2016, she was listed as one of the 40 most influential actors on EU Energy Union Policy by Euractiv.