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Illustration of European democracy leaders with EU flag and cityscape background.

May 8 Belongs in the Calendar of Every European Democracy

Ellen de Soete and Ludovic Voet

As eyewitnesses fade and the far right reframes liberation as defeat, EU institutions must answer with policy.

Stylized illustration of a man with intense expression and lightning behind him.

Madrid Has the Cure for Trump-Era Energy Shocks

Peter Bofinger

Spain's heretical VAT cut tames inflation—a model for Europe as Trump's tariffs and Middle East shocks bite.

Futuristic illustration of a person with a brain and AI technology interfaces.

AI Productivity Growth Won’t Match the Computer Revolution

Carl Benedikt Frey

AI Productivity growth will underwhelm, not because the technology is weak, but because it creates a bottleneck that earlier digital tools largely avoided.

Urban cityscape with sun, water, and industrial elements for Social Europe.

A New Economics for the 21st Century

Mariana Mazzucato and Lara Merling

By coming out in favor of industrial policy after many decades of advising against government intervention in the economy, the World Bank has taken an important step.

Silhouette of a woman's profile with church and cathedral elements.

MAGA Forges Christianity Into a Weapon of War

Robert Misik

From Hegseth's crusader tattoos to Thiel's apocalyptic sermons, MAGA is fusing Christianity with raw political power.

Artistic portrait of Donald Trump with a serious expression.

Trump’s Tragedy of Errors

Joseph Stiglitz

Trump's unchecked Iran war is wrecking supply chains, reigniting inflation, and deepening a global affordability crisis.

Person standing among numerous packed suitcases with Chinese flags.

China’s Overcapacity Problem Is Europe’s Problem Too — But Not in the Way You Might Think

Bernhard Tröster, Simela Papatheophilou and Werner Raza

As Beijing acknowledges its own overcapacity problem, new research reveals a more complex and more enduring threat to European manufacturing.

Stylized digital art of a man reading at a desk with swirling background.

Hungary After Orbán: Why Tisza’s “New Hungary” May Leave Workers Behind

Erdost Akin

Hungary's new government promises to restore rule of law — but not labour rights.

European Union flag with a man reading a newspaper amidst clouds and scrolls.

Europe’s Migration Promises Are Building A Dangerous Expectation Trap

Arjen Leerkes, Maurizio Ambrosini and Sandra Lavenex

Stricter return rules and border procedures sell reassurance to voters, but the evidence suggests Europe cannot deliver what politicians promise.

Futuristic scene of AI impacting European education and job markets.

Europe’s Graduate Glut Collides With The AI Disruption

Odysseas Konstantinakos and Luca Cigna

Record applications to the EU civil service reveal saturated labour markets, a hollowed-out state and a generation exposed to automation.

European Union flag over Budapest with Hungarian Parliament in the foreground.

Europe Chose Greek Deficits Over Hungarian Democracy

Angelos Chryssogelos

In April 2010, the EU betrayed Greece and enabled Orbán — and has yet to reckon with either.

Panoramic view of Budapest with Parliament and Chain Bridge over Danube.

Hungary’s Long Road From Electoral Autocracy to Plural Democracy

Stephen Pogány

Péter Magyar's election victory gives Hungary its best chance in a generation to break with a centuries-long pattern of authoritarian rule.

Industrial oil platform with a world map painted underneath, symbolising global oil industry.

The World Needs an Oil Buyers’ Club

Isabella Weber and Gregor Semieniuk

As the world is plunged into another energy crisis, market allocation is leading to grossly unjust outcomes, as the rich outbid the poor.

Illustration of China's industrial growth affecting global manufacturing.

Europe Is Losing Its Industry To China’s Second Shock

Franz Nauschnigg

Surging Chinese exports, a sliding renminbi and a depleted European industrial base are colliding — and Brussels has run out of time to respond.

Crowded office with employees working at desks and computers.

Silicon Valley’s Anti-Democratic Turn Begins at Work

Valerio De Stefano

Silicon Valley's quarrel with democracy is not abstract — it begins in the workplace, where unilateral authority is normalised.

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Progressive Thinking on the Big Issues of Our Time

Read by policymakers, academics and journalists in 100+ countries.

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S&D conference The Middle East at crossroads: A progressive vision, 9 September 2026, European Parliament, Brussels

S&D conference “The Middle East at crossroads: A progressive vision”

In case you missed it, you can watch the replay of the S&D Group’s conference “The Middle East at crossroads: A progressive vision” by clicking the button below, and read the press release and opinion piece.

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Cover of the ETUI report Climate change and workers’ health: protecting workers against heat and other climate-related hazards, by Marouane Laabbas-el-Guennouni and Andreas D. Flouris.

New Report - Climate change and workers’ health

After a summer marked by repeated heatwaves across Europe, this publication tackles an increasingly urgent issue: workplace heat exposure, now one of the leading climate-related threats to workers' health. The report identifies the sectors and workers most at risk, and calls for a dedicated EU directive to strengthen and harmonise their protection.

READ HERE

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EurofoundTalks podcast with Mary McCaughey and Eszter Sandor: Is financial resilience and trust in Europe faltering?

Is financial resilience and trust in Europe faltering?

In this episode of Eurofound Talks, host Mary McCaughey and senior researcher Eszter Sandor unpack the results of the 2025 Living and Working in the EU e-survey. While headline inflation has stabilised at 2.1%, the data reveals a continent gripped by chronic precariousness, with 57% of respondents now at risk of depression. Mary and Eszter explore how this economic insecurity is impacting institutional trust and democratic engagement.

LISTEN HERE

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Cover of The Progressive Post issue 31, Summer 2026: The Mediterranean, a crowded sea.

The Summer issue of The Progressive Post is out! 

The EU is belatedly awakening to a changing Mediterranean sea, where more assertive regional powers are reclaiming a role.

The new issue of the magazine also reflects on how we struggle to keep pace with AI innovations, examines the uncertainties surrounding the execution of the Pact on Migration and Asylum and the risk to human rights posed by the Return Regulation, and focuses on the EU Commission's newly proposed Industrial Accelerator Act.

READ THE MAGAZINE

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WSI blog series “Climate Transition: Socially Just and Fair”: Equality in the labour market – the challenges of the socio-ecological transformation, by Silke Bothfeld and Peter Bleses

Equality in the labour market: the challenges of the socio-ecological transformation

In order to ensure that the socio-ecological transformation is gender-equitable, a strategy for expanding services must be combined with better working conditions.

READ HERE

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Cover of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung analysis The Capability State: A Progressive Vision for the 21st Century by Henning Meyer.

“What is the actual purpose of the state?” – this central question is the focus of the analysis. At a time when bureaucratic processes are making life difficult for citizens, the paper proposes a three-part model. It aims at a conception of the state as a platform that helps society build the capabilities it needs to address its problems effectively.

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