FEPS Talks

What’s next in the fields of cohesion, convergence and enlargement? Dr Mario Holzner, executive director of the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies (wiiw), discusses with Dr László Andor, FEPS Secretary General, the latest study of the institute: “Avoiding the specialisation trap and embracing megatrends: A new growth model in EU-CEE”. The study was commissioned by the Friedrich-Eb...

Professor Bea Cantillon and Dr David Rinaldi exchange on the massive social consequences of the pandemic and how that requires stepping up the ambitions for a more social Europe. They reflect on the alarming inequalities that are affecting vulnerable groups in Europe and conclude that the political momentum witnessed at the Porto Summit must be transformed into tangible changes of the policy mix s...

Pierre-Emmanuel Guigo, Associate Professor Paris-Est Créteil, and László Andor, Secretary General of FEPS, analyse the figure of François Mitterrand on the 40th anniversary of his first electoral victory. They discuss how the energy of the 1968 movement contributed to a more progressive France and to the renovation of Parti Socialiste putting the focus on new topics like self-management, climate c...

Just a few moments ahead of the Social Summit in Porto and long-awaited launch of the Conference of the Future of Europe, Ana Paula Zacarias, State Secretary for Europe in Portugal shares in a conversation with Dr. Ania Skrzypek, FEPS Director for Research and Training the insights of the Presidency’s strategy on how to get things done. Being humble, respecting and listening to others, while remai...

Czech Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, Jana Maláčová, and FEPS Secretary General László Andor exchange views about their expectations concerning the forthcoming Social Summit in Porto. They look back and assess the effectiveness of the social policy measures implemented by the Czech government during the COVID 19 pandemic: the so-called “antivirus programme”, financed in part by the EU, and...

Professor Stephany Griffith-Jones, IPD Columbia University, and Dr David Rinaldi, FEPS Director of Studies and Policy, exchange on the need of investment to deliver on structural transformation and the recovery. Professor Griffith-Jones reflects on the role of the European Investment Bank as well as on that of national development banks. A specific call is made to complete the transformation of th...

Ambassador Derek Mitchell, President of the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and former US Ambassador to Myanmar, joins Vassilis Ntousas, Senior International Relations Policy Advisor at FEPS, for an episode exploring the recent coup in Myanmar, its geopolitical underpinnings and repercussions and the links between what is happening in the country and the democratic backsliding observed elsewhe...

Katerina Barley, Vice-President of the EP and a prominent progressive fighter for democracy, rule of law and equal rights is the special guest of this #FEPSTalks, discussing with Ania Skrzypek, FEPS Director for Research and Training what can be expected in the months to come following: introduction of conditionality mechanism and the Commission Annual Report on Human Rights, the EP actions in sol...

This podcast focuses on a decision affecting thousands of women’s lives. More precisely, the Turkish government announced its withdrawal from the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combatting violence against women and domestic violence, commonly known as the “Istanbul Convention”. In this context, Aslihan Tekin (EU Representative of the European Women’s Lobby Coordination for Turkey a...

Jacinda Ardern has become a symbol of progressive renewal; a Prime Minister able to unite the country in toughest times; and a leader, whom people admire and feel understood by. But what was the Party that she leads path to power? What made it note a landslide victory last year? What challenges does it face today? Find out – tuning in to a unique conversation between Professor Grant Duncan of Mass...

Nadia Calviño, Vice President of the Spanish Government and Minister for Economy and Digitalisation, and László Andor, FEPS Secretary General, analyse in this podcast episode the Spanish recovery plan in a European context. The Spanish economy is one of the hardest hit in Europe by the #COVID-19 crisis, mainly due to its dependence on sectors like tourism and hospitality. From the first days of th...

It’s been more than 25 years since the adoption of the Beijing Declaration, the most visionary and progressive blueprint for women’s rights. And yet the fight for gender justice is far from over! Just a few days after the 8th of March IWD mobilisations and ahead of the 65th UN Commissions on the Status of Women (CSW65), this podcast features Asa Regner (Assistant Secretary General & Deputy Executi...

Tune in for an amazing intellectual journey with Enrique Baron Crespo, President of the FEPS Scientific Council and Ania Skrzypek, FEPS Director for Research and Training! We are travelling back in time look at the legacy of 5 Treaties, an EU Charter, 2 Conventions and countless negotiations – and see, what defining elements are already are on the debating table ahead of the Conference on the Futu...

Professor Anke Hassel speaks to László Andor about a new book she co-edited with Bruno Palier entitled "Growth and Welfare in Advanced Capitalist Economies. How Have Growth Regimes Evolved?” The book offers an opportunity to analyse the interaction between growth strategies and social policies, both from an academic perspective but also applied to European policy. Prof. Hassel elaborates on the co...

Patrick Diamond, associate professor of public policy Queen Mary’s university of London, and Ania Skrzypek, FEPS Director for Research and Training, go through the Labor Party’s history, which provides an incredibly stimulating material for discussions. Tune in, to find out about party’s difficult 70s and 80s, the Third Way experience and the last decade – which chapters and lessons that can be dr...

Xavier Prat-Monné, Special Advisor at Teach for all and at the Open University of Catalonia, former EC Director General for Education and Culture, discusses with Dr. David Rinaldi, FEPS Director of Studies and Policies, how the pandemic and other societal transformations are impacting the way we understand and organise education. A crucial point is to rethink education to really contribute to curb...

Belén Barreiro, CEO of 40dB and Maria Freitas, FEPS Senior Policy Advisor discuss the multidimensional aspects as how the current health crisis is affecting the experiences of young people. Belén and Maria also discuss how the Millennial generation that already faced with the effects of the 2008 economic crisis at their emancipation age are now again bearing the burden of a new recession, just at...

EU guarantees every employee a right to 11 hours undisturbed rest. But how can it be ensured, when more than 1/3 works remotely, and there is an unspoken expectation in many companies that everyone remains reachable all the time? Who should be in charge of making sure that each person should close a computer at the end of the contractually agreed working time and truly disconnect? How are those is...

Michaela Kauer, Director of the Brussels Office of the City of Vienna and Co-coordinator of EU Urban Agenda Housing Partnership, joins David Rinaldi, FEPS Director of Studies & Policy, in this episode of the FEPS Talks podcast series to speak about housing policy and how the EU can help improving living conditions. The quality of the dwellings and the neighborhoods we live in are an fundamental pa...

Professor Bo Rothstein, August Röhss Chair in Political Science at the University of Gothenburg, joins Vassilis Ntousas, Senior International Relations Policy Advisor at FEPS, for an episode with a special focus on American democracy, the drivers behind the tragic events on the US Capitol Hill, and the opportunity this moment presents both for the US and Europe.

This podcast addresses the gender digital gaps and the extra challenges the online sphere poses to women and girls. Our guest speaker Dr. Lilia Giugni (researcher at the University of Cambridge, intersectional feminist activist and CEO of GenPol) discusses with Laeticia Thissen (FEPS Gender Equality Policy Advisor) about the causes and consequences of female underrepresentation in STEM fields but...

László Andor and Mikael Leyi, Secretary Generals (respectively) of FEPS and Solidar, analyse in the last FEPS Talk podcast episode of 2020 the lessons learnt during the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact of the different policy measures at European and national levels. What role social democrats have played to foster solidarity? Did policy makers listen to civil society before taking important decis...

Rosa Balfour, Director of Carnegie Europe, joins Vassilis Ntousas, Senior International Relations Policy Advisor at FEPS, for an episode with a special focus on the EU’s global role and engagement, in light of the year that is coming to an end, and in expectation of the year that is in front of us. What were the highs and lows of 2020 for the world and the EU? What lessons can we learn from this e...

FEPS Talks featuring Professor Marek Belka, MEP and Vice-President of the S&D Group in a conversation with Dr. Ania Skrzypek, FEPS Director for Research and Training. The announcement of the Future of Europe Conference geared a lot of enthusiasm, followed by many questions with the main one being: when would it start? While replies are pending, the Socialists and Democrats are getting ready to fac...

Professor Vivien Schmidt, Jean Monnet Chair of European Integration at Boston University exchanges with Dr. David Rinaldi, FEPS Director of Studies & Policy on the comparison between the financial crisis and the current health crisis. Particularly, they reflect on the democratic process of EU decision-making and its legitimacy, with some insights from the latest book by Prof. Schmidt on "Europe's...