This article examines the dynamics of transnational activism within the framework of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (EMP) and its interactions with the European Commission (EC). Since its inception in 1995, the EMP has catalysed the organization of numerous non-state actors, including NGOs, foundations and research centres, into transnational networks focused on political and cultural dimensions. Through the analysis of a prominent case study—the Euro-Mediterranean Civil Forum (1995–2006)—the chapter investigates how non-state actors organize across borders and scale up contention from the national level to the EU level. Employing a combination of document analysis and interviews, the study elucidates the interplay between public officials and non-state actors, revealing how regular interactions with institutional actors influence the repertoires of action and power dynamics within transnational networks. The findings underscore the significance of international bureaucracies in organizing transnational contention, opening up spaces of representation and funding, while also legitimizing the involvement of non-state actors. This chapter sheds light on how various non-state actors use spaces opened up by the European Commission to exert pressure on their national governments and raise human rights claims. However, the subdued mode of action and dependence on public funding make it challenging to apply an oppositional grid to analyse these interactions, underlining instead the necessity to take into account the negotiations and alliances between bureaucratic actors and non-state actors.