During the conference, keynote speakers provoked debate about the political perspectives for Europe and for local development, and the counterpoint between local initiatives and the prevailing governmental and commercial systems.

The values and ideas promoted by AEIDL had also been previously summarised in a statement produced for the event:

“We are convinced that local initiatives, citizen involvement, social innovation and experimentation, the identification of and respect for shared assets, solidarity between regions here and elsewhere, and the invention of new forms of multi-level and multi-stakeholder governance, can all contribute to building the Europe we aspire to - a Europe rich in the diversity of its landscapes, its communities and its cultures, open to the world, and striving for a new economic and social equilibrium.”