Policy Brief on Sustainable Growth
2018 | Thinking Lab on Sustainable Growth
Civil society actors from six European countries present their policy brief on Sustainable Growth in Europe. The Thinking Lab developed six main policy recommendations focusing on two key priorities.
Final results of the Thinking Labs online!
Check out the four policy briefs
Over the course of the last two years, civil society experts and practitioners from across Europe gathered in four DIALOGUE ON EUROPE Thinking Labs to deliver fresh ideas and to independently elaborate concrete policy recommendations on four European key areas: Migration & Integration, Populism, Social Cohesion, and Sustainable Growth. Discover the summary of their proposals and the full-length policy briefs below! (more…)
The people’s verdict – adding informed citizen voices to public decision-making by Claudia Chwalisz
Reviewed by Sophie Pornschlegel
With case studies from Australia and Canada and a short comparative analysis of deliberative formats in the UK, this short book tries to convince skeptical decision-makers that, given the right framework, people can be good, legitimate and efficient decision-makers.
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Greek islands going green
Greek islands going renewable and intelligent: a driver for the energy transition in the EU?
Greek non-interconnected islands are small isolated systems bearing the great potential to become autonomous in terms of energy, using renewable and intelligent systems. Is there a potential for small islands to drive Europe’s transition into a sustainable, low-carbon and inclusive economy? What role can Greek islands play in this process?
Migration crisis in Greece: the need for a European action plan
An expert interview with Dimitris Varadinis for #DialogueOnEurope
Long considered as an emigration country, Greece started receiving immigrants in the 90’s. Over the last few years, the country had to deal with huge number of newcomers and despite the engagement of the social society, it doesn’t have the means to properly assist them. Greek authorities repeatedly asked for the support of the other European member states, which are reluctant to take responsibility.
The French migration policy: a tragic lack of long-term vision
An expert interview with Marie-Laure Basilien-Gainche for #DialogueOnEurope
Marie-Laure Basilien-Gainche comments on the way France and Europe fail to deal with the so-called “refugee crisis”. If some improvements have been achieved, in particular regarding the relocation system, integration remains a major issue, even for second or third-generation immigrants.
Migration and Integration in Portugal: An example to follow?
A look at a country with one of the world's best level of protection for refugees' human rights, by Cláudia Pedra
Claudia Pedra, Director of the Network for Strategic and International Studies, comments on the way Portugal deals with the refugee crisis. Even in a country with one of the best asylum laws worldwide, integration and tolerance seem to remain problematic issues.
Local Energy Communities and priority corridors of north-south energy connections
An integrated approach to the promotion of a renewable energy market in Europe
The development of Local Energy Communities is a vision which aims to address the pressing future global issues of energy efficiency, healthy food sources and water management. The fact that a very large percentage of EU regional development funds remain unused represents an opportunity for the Member States to review the European energy market strategy and develop a policy program aimed at funding these projects.
Populism is not the problem
Why we should focus on values in political debate instead of style
Populism is everywhere these days. Not only as a phenomenon but also as a topic in political discourse. Yet, the closer you look at it, the more you will realize that populism is quite a messy term. It signifies everything from an unease towards dissent, to the fear of a weakened democracy. More importantly, once you get a grip on how you define the term you will realize that populism may be destructive and inflammatory but is not the real problem. It is mostly a symptom for fundamental conflicts in society.
Tackling the exclusion of minorities in Europe
Mentoring: towards a culture of inclusion in Europe
In Europe we know that Portugal, France and Italy are the most unequal countries according to OECD household incomes. In addition to income inequality, inequality of opportunities may result from different types of discrimination, including discrimination based on gender, ethnicity, or religion. Widespread inequalities lead to the exclusion of minorities. Despite the fact that ethnic, cultural and religious diversity is a central feature and value of the European Union minority exclusion still persists in the EU.
Rescuing Refugees at Sea
SOS Mediterrane Rescues Refugees at Sea and Unites European Activists
With the simple, but great and effective idea of rescuing refugees at sea, SOS Mediterrane manages to save the lives of those seeking to enter the European Union.
Europe 2.0: Developing Policies to Reinvent the EU
With the EU in crisis, the #DialogueOnEurope seeks to reinvent the Union
The European Union is in distress. On the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome this has become an ever-present issue, which the #DialogueOnEurope seeks to address. The gathering of various members of civil society aims to find new insights and solutions to the Union’s most prevalent problems.
How to restart Britain and Europe?
The #MilennialVoices' perspective on the new EU-Britain relations
#DialogueOnEurope organised its eighth Town Hall Meeting in London, on February 27. Policy Network covered the event, publishing the conference’s findings.
Don’t think it’s all over: How to restart Britain and Europe?
Dialogue on the Future of British-European relations
Brexit was a wake-up call, especially for young Brits. Therefore, the Dialogue on Europe brought together representatives of the young civil society with parliamentarians and experts from the UK and Germany. Among the guests were Thomas Oppermann, Gloria de Piero, Martin Roth, James Graham and Sonia Sodha. Together, they discussed the future of British-European relations.
After Trump’s Success: A Convergence of the Populist Challenge
The unexpected happened and we are still searching for an answer why it happened and what might be the adequate response. This essay attempts to look for the reasons of the current success of populists on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean and to face the challenge that is produced by this convergence.
Makri
Elina Makri is Journalist, Co-Founder and Media Project Manager of C.A.R.L. (Computer Assisted Reporting Laboratory) and the Youth Investigative Journalism Prize. Furthermore she moderated the #EuropeanTownHall Meeting in Athens. In addition Elina is engaged in numerous international networking and journalism platforms such as Oikomedia.com, Cabebabel.com and Dialoggers.eu. She has studied Law at the Université du Droit et de la Santé in Lille and European and International Law at the Université catholique de Louvain.
Austerity is the Wrong Framework: Why Italy needs a Shift Towards Investments and Growth
Expert interview with Giulio Guarini, analysing key parameters of the current economic situation in Italy and identifying ways out of the crisis
The political mainstream thinks that this crisis is conjunctural, not structural. But the trouble with austerity policies is that they increase the crisis in a cumulative way. With austerity one can only enlarge the probability to maintain the crisis, not to rule out it. And politicians don’t solve this problem – they preserve it.
Political Communication of Populist Parties: The cases of Podemos and AfD
The Digital Advantage and Social Media Authority of Populist Parties
The Spanish party Podemos and the German “Alternative for Germany” could not be, apparently, more opposed. However, there is one thing which brings them together: They both successfully use digital communication to reach their electorate in new, unmediated ways.
Social Cohesion is eroding when there is no Trust between the People and the State
Expert interview of Elina Makri on the topic of Social Cohesion in Greece
The government has to stop taxing people and is in need of a long term plan, liberating entrepreneurs and also modernizing the public sector through technology and more qualified personnel. Social cohesion is eroding when there is no trust between the people and the state, but instead exertion and pressure.