All day today President Staffan Nilsson and the European Economic and Social Committee hosted a high-level conference on the basic theme of the Europe 2020 Strategy. The European Council of June 2012 took action to invest more in growth and to supplement the fiscal compact with a growth pact. The European Economic and Social Committee welcomed these measures but, as Staffan explained, feels that the time has come to put the “Compact for growth and jobs”, adopted as part of the Europe 2020 Strategy, into real practice. How can this be achieved? What are the best levers and tools? Which areas are the best triggers for sustainable growth and social cohesion? This VIP-studded (no exaggeration) conference provided the opportunity for a rich, far-ranging and constructive debate on strategic levers, such as economic governance, the budget, the Single Market, employment, innovation and sustainability. The conference, which was a great success, showcased and shared the specific expertise and grassroots ideas of those who make growth and jobs a reality: namely, social and economic players represented in the EESC and in economic and social councils across Europe and many other civil society actors at local, national, regional and European level. I cannot possibly do justice to the conference contents in one post (there is extensive coverage on the Committee’s website here), but I shall just finish with Staffan Nilsson’s closing words: ‘The best way to predict the future is to create it.’