FEPS Talks

Many observers expect the 2026 FIFA World Cup to be the most political in history because it will unfold amid intensifying geopolitical rivalries, migration disputes, debates over democracy and human rights, and tensions involving participating countries such as Iran, all while being hosted by three North American countries. In this episode of FEPS Talks, Christian Salm, FEPS Head of Democracy and...

In this episode of FEPS Talks, Josep Borrell Fontelles (former EU HRVP, former European Parliament president, former foreign minister of Spain and former chair of the FEPS Scientific Council) shares his opinion about the current challenges which the global disruption pose for the European Union. He explains why it is so hard to forge a stronger, more effective common foreign policy, especially in...

🎧 In the spirit of #IWD2026, listen to the latest episode of FEPS Talks focusing on #FeministForeignPolicy with Lina Gálvez, FEPS Vice-President and MEP and Toni Haastrup, Chair in Global Politics, School of Social Sciences, University of Manchester. 🌎 ♀️ As debates around multilateralism intensify and the global order shifts, rules we thought were here to stay are suddenly under threat. #Femini...

🎧 Listen to the latest episode of FEPS Talks with FEPS President Nicolas Schmit! 🇪🇺 🇱🇺 Nicolas Schmit was the lead candidate of the European socialists at the 2024 elections for the European Parliament. As a former Minister in Luxembourg and EU Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, he has now returned as FEPS president to lead the progressive think tank and contribute to a social democratic re...

In a year marked by political backsliding and a return to outdated economic thinking, FEPS is proud to name Mariana Mazzucato as its Progressive Person of the Year. Through books such as The Entrepreneurial State and The Big Con, Mariana Mazzucato has contributed to key debates on the role of the state and public purpose in the economy. In this special edition of FEPS Talks Podcast, renowned econo...

Europe is facing a growing mental health crisis. From digital overload to workplace burnout and addiction, too many people are struggling to stay healthy in systems that make them ill. In this episode of FEPS Talks, François Balate, FEPS Policy Analyst on Social Affairs, sits down with three leading experts: Sara Bojarczuk (University of Warsaw), Aida Bikic (University of Southern Denmark) and Jan...

🇮🇪 Delivery Matters More Than Promises In this episode of the Progressive Pollsters FEPS Talks series, Kevin Cunningham, MD and founder of Ireland Thinks, joins Ania Skrzypek, FEPS Director for Research and Training, to reflect on the evolving dynamics of Irish politics — from shifting trust in institutions to the lessons progressives can draw from Ireland’s distinctive landscape. 🗳️ Cunningham ex...

Why are so many Europeans angry at politics today? Listen to the latest episode in the Progressive Pollsters FEPS Talks series with Bruno Jeanbart, Vice President of OpinionWay! From frustration with “broken” political systems to fears around identity and immigration, we look at why dissatisfaction dominates — and what that means for progressive movements. Are people really losing hope? Or can soc...

Prof. Stephen Bronner has been leading an international network of scholars and experts to study dialogue and diplomacy in the world, with a particular focus on peace negotiations, in theory as well as practice. In this interview he presents his views on the Russo-Ukrainian war, but also on Israel and Palestine. He offers his assessment of the impact of the Alaska summit on the diplomacy surroundi...

Discover the new podcast series "Progressive Pollsters". The second episode with Kaisa Vatanen focusing on the electoral prospects of European social democracy! 📺🔊 Available on YouTube, Spotify & Apple Podcast Over the course of four episodes, FEPS Director of Research and Training Ania Skrzypek, delves into topics including elections, populism, cost-of-living, housing, and more, with: ➡️ Marcin...

Prof. James K. Galbraith shares his views about the dramatic changes in US politics and policy which we experienced in the past year. Europeans are still struggling to understand what produced Donald Trump and how consequential his second term in the White House can be. In the conversation with FEPS Secretary General László Andor, he explores both internal and external factors driving the politica...

Discover the new podcast series "Progressive Pollsters". The first episode with Marcin Duma focusing on the far right is already available! 📺🔊 Available on YouTube, Spotify & Apple Podcast Over the course of four episodes, FEPS Director of Research and Training Ania Skrzypek, delves into topics including elections, populism, cost-of-living, housing, and more, with: ➡️ Marcin Duma, CEO of IBRIS,...

We are often told that inflation “happens”, as if it is an unstoppable natural phenomenon. However, a new FEPS study shows that the inflation we experienced in 2021-2023 was largely caused by profiteering and speculation. 📺🔊 Available on YouTube, Spotify & Apple Podcast In this FEPS Talks episode, Ainara Bascuñana, FEPS Head of Communication discuss with the authors of 'The profit-price spiral i...

In this episode of FEPS Talks, Secretary General László Andor talks with the former prime minister of Greece, George Papandreou, who in recent years has been focusing on questions of democracy in the Council of Europe. The main concern today is democratic backsliding, and in 2025 the United States is also among countries where we can observe such dramatic. According to Papandreou, the democratic q...

📺🔊 Available on YouTube, Spotify & Apple Podcast 🇵🇸 “What about the 6th of October? What about the 5th? There was already occupation, siege, and no future.” As the war on Gaza continues, and while much of the international community remains inactive, Palestinians face mass displacement, starvation, and the systematic destruction of civilian life—from homes and schools to hospitals and water syst...

“We are discussing rearming, but Europe is a peace project and housing should be the first pillar”. In this episode of FEPS Talks, the Mayor of Athens Haris Doukas speaks with FEPS Policy Analyst François Balate on the housing crisis Europe is facing. Athens is one of the 15 European cities behind the "Mayors for Housing" Alliance, which is in Brussels this week to demand swift action from the EU...

📺🔊 Available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcast Rethinking Security through Nuclear Disarmament with Florian Eblenkamp In this climate of militarisation and declining support for international law, some European countries are considering nuclear weapons a legitimate defence strategy, with calls even emerging for the development of a European nuclear programme. We interview Florian Eblenkamp,...

🔊📺 Available on Youtube, Spotify and Apple Podcast Michelle O’Sullivan, Associate Professor at the University of Limerick, and member of FEPS Scientific Council, offers an assessment of recent developments in working conditions and industrial relations, including the successful crisis response to the Covid-19 pandemic. There are certainly fears that after a period of progress, Europe might be go...

Peace keeping expert Prof. John Karlsrud (head of the international NAVIGATOR research project) comments on the current European discussion regarding the creation and maintanence of peace in Ukraine. He puts forward concrete ideas regarding the composition of peace keeping forces in Ukraine, and clarifies why the United Nations could not have been more instrumental during the last 3 years of war....

🔊📺 Available on Youtube, Spotify and Apple Podcast Now that the transatlantic alliance has come under pressure with actions and statements of the Trump administration, it becomes ever more urgent to address the issue of the EU’s reliance on US tech for its essential digital infrastructure. 80% of our technology is provided by foreign actors. That is why in this episode of FEPS Talks our guest Ce...

📺🔊 Available on Youtube Spotify and Apple Podcast As International Women’s Day 2025 approaches, feminist movements face mounting threats from rising authoritarianism and Big Tech’s growing role in shaping public discourse. In this episode, Laeticia Thissen (Senior Policy Analyst on Gender Equality, FEPS) speaks with Asha Allen (Director and Secretary General, Center for Democracy & Technology Eu...

📺🔊 Available on Youtube Spotify and Apple Podcast In the latest episode, Vita Shnaider, a Ukrainian anthropologist and a researcher of housing policy, joins us to discuss how the country’s housing sector has been reshaped by a decade-long war and Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022 in particular. We dive into the policies affecting displaced populations, examine the gaps in long-term housing so...

🔊 Available on Spotify and Apple Podcast How can Europe achieve a unified industrial strategy that balances competitiveness with social and regional cohesion? In this episode, FEPS welcomes Lukas Bertram, economist at the ZOE Institute for Future-Fit Economies, to delve into the findings of the recent policy study "A Unified Industrial Strategy for the EU." Together with FEPS Director of Studies...

British economist and Professor Jonathan Portes (King’s College, London) explores how UK—EU relations have developed since the entry of the Labour government in July 2024. He explains that while regret among many is felt in Britain, not a single step of reintegration would be easy in the foreseeable future. There has been talk about some "low hanging fruits” (e.g. student mobility), but this also...

🔊📺 Available on Spotify, YouTube, and Apple Podcasts In this episode of FEPS Talks, Anne Van Lancker (President of SOLIDAR and former MEP from Belgium) speaks about the evolving social agenda of the EU. Civil society organisations united in SOLIDAR consider the European Pillar of Social Rights as a game changer and an inspiration for social policy action in the EU with further potential to gener...