One cup of coffee per EU citizen. This is a rough estimate of the translation costs of the European Parliament on a yearly basis. A small price to safeguard an important feature of democracy you might argue. The EU has …
Perspectives of separatist regions’ participation in DCFTA
Georgia’s aspiration for Europe is the link connecting the country’s long-term development with democratization, while safety and conflict regulation are the most important tasks on the way to Georgia’s European integration. Given the present political and geo-political situation, progress …
AEGEE Europe/The European Students’ Forum demands a change in the European direction
AEGEE Europe — European Students’ Forum launched the Y Vote 2014 project. Following the success of the first edition of the Y Vote Project which was aimed at raising awareness of the European elections in 2009 and increasing youth participation, the Y Vote …
Why We Need Bilderberg in Brussels
Reading the reports of the Bilderberg Group meeting last week set me thinking : we need Bilderberg in Brussels. The Bilderberg Group is the secretive annual conference of world leaders from the domains of business, politics, and finance. It met …
Previewing the 2014 European elections: ALDE’s struggle to remain Parliament’s 3rd largest group
There has been a considerable amount of discussion in the European-centric media about the battle between the European People’s Party and European Socialists to secure the largest number of seats in the European Parliament in May’s elections. Aside from …
In the Brussels Bubble
The third morning of my trip into the Brussels bubble has begun; it is a little grey but still not less promising than the days before. What should I say, now that the first half of my time here in …
The local conversation model
We are sharing our daily life experiences on social media, brands are fishing for our ‘likes’ and people are having conversations in what McLuhan calls the global village. Politicians and (EU) political institutions are also starting to understand the importance of …
EU talking only to ‘Brussels Bubble’ inhabitants, not citizens
Internally-oriented communication initiatives and an overreliance on technical jargon prevent citizens from having a real conversation with the EU. In the midst of the European Union’s on-going struggle to communicate its message and plug an ever growing democratic gap, a …
The illusion of the EU bubble and the discovery of the EU foam
The EU bubble is a self-created illusion, and those who remain in this bubble simply fail to acknowledge that this bubble has actually become part of a foam over the last years. There are many bubbles in which European topics …
Far-right group in European Parliament no longer possible – but likely
Over the past few months I have been evaluating the rise of far-right political parties across Europe and their potential impact upon the post-2014 European Parliament. To form a political group in the European Parliament – a mechanism that unlocks …