Federation of the European Schools of Psychoanalysis  - FESP   Founded in 1990, the European School of Psychoanalysis (ESP), underwent a profound transformation when crossing into the 21st century, which resulted in the establishment of three Schools that emerged from within:  Escuela Lacaniana de Psicoanàlisis, in 2000 (Madrid); Scuola Lacaniana di Psicoanalisi, in 2002 (Rome), and the New Lacanian School, in 2003 (Bruges).  In a few years, we witnessed also the birth of new Schools, each one created according to its process of maturation. The deeply original character of the ESP was to have always been thought of as a School which rendered its organisation incomplete.  The ESP was never a hierarchically structured organisation of the Schools in Europe, but it instead embodied a European dimension from each one of them. By taking into account this history, like an Aufhebung of its past, we have in June 30 2007, presented a new plan in the form of statutes for the Federation of the European Schools of Psychoanalysis (FESP).  Ratified by the AMP-European Counsel, the proposal had to be submitted to all members of the ESP, brought together in a General Assembly. Members expressed a favourable opinion, and an agreement was reached for a time line comprising various phases:  firstly, a discussion between the incoming president of the ESP and the presidents of the Schools over the statues of the Federation of the School; secondly, during which the proposal of the statutes of this Federation of Schools would be voted on by the General Assembly from each School; and thirdly, a final adoption of the new statues, scheduled for the ESP’s General meeting at the AMP’s Congress in Buenos Aires (2008).   It’s through the adoption of these statutes which led to the transformation of the ESP into a Federation of the European Schools of Psychoanalysis (FESP), a federation which included, as a member, all those from the AMP European Schools.  From then on, we can also rely on the support of the École de la Cause freudienne, the first School to have been adopted by Dr Jacques Lacan following the dissolution of the EFP.  The ECF agreed to be associated with FESP where it will make up one of the central poles in its construction.    In these present times, this transformation is essential because it creates an establishment which is more unified and effective, of a European dimension, to fight against the ideology of assessment and its legislative initiatives, to fight certain health policies implemented in mental health in the member states of the European Union.   Thus, the FESP constitutes a European Observatory that vigilantly monitors the legislative developments in the various EU countries, so as to be able to find them appropriate solutions.  In this way, the policy of the FESP will aim at debating as well as opposing throughout all Europe, the cognitive advances of a “politics of civilisation”, through the bureaucracies of the State; short-sighted policies that are both authoritarian and utopian, which have placed their hopes in evidence-based assessment and in the reign of number.   For this reason, FESP relies on its official journal Mental, together with various publications of the School.  It will become its most effective medium – in conjunction with the PIPOL meetings – for the dissemination of our proposals in the field of mental health.  In fact, Mental is the journal of Psychoanalysis of FESP, which is intended for a large audience.  The last issue of Mental, devoted to PIPOL3, emphasises the decisive role of PIPOL’s agenda, established in 2002, in being one of the vectors for psychoanalytic development in Europe.  We know that PIPOL3 was a turning point in being kept up to date with contemporary psychoanalytic practices.  It is for this reason that the next encounter for PIPOL4 scheduled for July 11-12 2009, in Barcelona, will endeavour to encourage and to introduce the policies of the FESP.  The title “Disinsertion – clinics and pragmatics of disinsertion in psychoanalysis”, chosen by Jacques-Alain Miller, will encourage us to travel through Lacan’s final teaching in the training of future analysts. The reconfiguration of FESP is necessary in a Europe which is in a state of development.  Future generations will encounter psychoanalysis within the so-called “psy field”.  The next step which must be made supposes the interpretation of the contemporary, making a reading of the subjectivity of our epoch, and advancing towards a clinic of civilisation directed at Civilisation and its Discontents, together with its impasses and its traps.   FESP paves a new way in expanding our orientation in a European context, seeking new forms of collaborative work between our colleagues of different countries and languages.  It’s a matter of finding a way in being able to sustain our current strength and creative capacity, as a Federation, in light of the challenges that the future has installed for us.  We must know that what’s expected of us is that we maintain an active role in elaborating innovative solutions which are opposed to the uncertainties generated by irresponsible policies which have penetrated into the subjectivity of the citizens of our countries.  A coordinated and responsible response from our Schools is necessary.  With FESP, we enter a new stage of reconquest of the Freudian Field in Europe.   Vicente Palomera President of the FESP   Translated by Keith Al-Hasani