Words of Europe held its first meeting on December 19, 2022, at Arci Solidarietà's headquarters in Via Goito 35b in Rome. The meeting followed the World Café methodology and a small-scale version of "future dialogues," both of which were designed to increase participation and encourage debate among participants. Mariangela and Diletta from Arci Solidarietà introduced the meeting by giving a brief overview of the project. Each participant received a coffee cup, a yellow paper star, and was placed in one of three groups: Politics, Community and Values, and Participation.

The group leaders began by reading a brief, prepared context for an imaginary European Union in 2027. Participants were asked to write a word on their yellow star that summarized what they would like to see in this future European Union. One moderator in each group helped to facilitate the sharing of ideas, while another staff member took "minutes" of the discussion, which were recorded on a poster. To allow participants to introduce themselves, everyone was asked to draw a quick self-portrait and write their name on it.

Each group was tasked with choosing four main words at the end of the debate. The 12 words discussed in the three groups were then debated in a plenary session, and the final assembly was asked to choose the four final words of the event. The outcome was democracy, equity, solidarity, and sustainability, which were chosen by a vote in which participants raised their hands in favor of the word that best fit the majority.

The event concluded with a shared snack and holiday wishes!