Skip to content

Social Europe

  • YouTube
  • Podcast
  • eBooks
  • Newsletter
  • Membership

Politics

Social Europe is an award-winning digital media publisher driven by the core values of freedom, sustainability, and equality. These principles guide our exploration of society’s most pressing challenges. This archive page curates Social Europe articles focused on political issues, offering a rich resource for innovative thinking and informed debate.

Who will guard The Guardian?

Stefan Stern

A strike at The Guardian exposes a deeper crisis of solidarity and purpose within the liberal left.

Can Trump broker peace in Ukraine? History may hold the answers

Rigels Lenja

Historical precedents highlight the challenges of finding a sustainable peace.

Ukraine: Putin ante Portas and Trump in the White House

Frank Hoffer

As the war grinds on with devastating costs, the path to a ceasefire may lie in difficult compromises.

A Vanguard for European Defence

Guido Montani

Rising conflicts and EU aspirations for autonomy revive the call for a European defence force

How the EU Can Break Barriers for Disabled Workers

Florian Sanden

Reforming state aid rules could revolutionize the integration of disabled people.

How Trump’s Victory Exposes the Failures of Neoliberalism

Joseph Stiglitz

After decades of inequality and broken promises, voters chose disruption over progress.

Why the Working Class is Turning to the Far Right

Bartosz Rydlinski

Workers feel abandoned by the centre-left. To reclaim their trust, progressives must deliver bold policies and engage directly with their concerns.

The End of the Liberal West

Joschka Fischer

Donald Trump’s reelection marks a critical moment for the global liberal order, forcing Europe to confront its vulnerabilities and redefine its future.

The Ideology of Donald J. Trump

Branko Milanovic

Trump’s ideology blends mercantilism, profit-driven capitalism, anti-immigration stances, and nationalist anti-imperialism.

Trump Enters the Lecture Hall: Can Gen Z Save Democracy?

Stefan Braum

With truth under siege, will Generation Z defend democracy or let it fade?

EU business lobbying on sustainability exposed

Richard Howitt

Ongoing debates about Europe’s Green Deal reveal new evidence of business lobbying’s hidden influence on environmental policies.

Austerity déjà vu: the return of the wrong economic medicine

Judith Kirton-Darling and Isabelle Barthès

The EU faces a stark choice: invest boldly in a sustainable, competitive future or risk repeating the mistakes of austerity.

Why the Democrats Lost Workers – And the Election

Daron Acemoglu

The Democrats’ failure to reconnect with American workers cost them the election, leaving the party adrift in a coalition dominated by elites and urban professionals

Europe’s Shifting Alliances: Can the EU Stand Up to Trump?

Alberto Alemanno

Trump’s return tests the EU’s unity like never before. Can Europe hold its ground, or will divisions reshape the Union’s future?

A diverse regional picture in income disparities across Europe

Carlos Vacas-Soriano

After years of being sidelined in the European policy debate as labour markets recovered in the wake of the Great Recession, inequality is back on the agenda.

Prev Next

Eurofound advertisement

Ageing workforce
Is Europe’s mental health still in crisis?

New Eurofound research reveals a complex picture of mental health in Europe post-pandemic. While some factors show improvement, concerning trends persist, including an alarming halt to the decades-long decline in suicide rates. A new episode of the Eurofound Talks podcast explores these issues, highlighting that vulnerable groups are being disproportionately affected. It also discusses how significant barriers to mental healthcare—such as stigma and long waiting lists—are leaving many without vital support.
LISTEN FOR FREE

Foundation for European Progressive Studies Advertisement

Spring Issues

Join the conference “Healthy mind, stronger Europe”

On World Mental Health Day, 10 October, join us for the conference “Healthy mind, stronger Europe”, where we’ll put forward real, progressive solutions.
Despite growing awareness of its impact on all our lives, mental health has yet to gain the momentum it deserves in EU policymaking. The latest EU budget and Commission mandate still fall short on policy work on mental health that reflects progressive values - including gender mainstreaming.
Bringing together policymakers, practitioners, academics and civil society, this event presents the results of three expert groups that have been working on concrete recommendations.

REGISTER

Hans Böckler Stiftung Advertisement

WSI Report

WSI Minimum Wage Report 2025

The trend towards significant nominal minimum wage increases is continuing this year. In view of falling inflation rates, this translates into a sizeable increase in purchasing power for minimum wage earners in most European countries. Most EU countries are now following the reference values for adequate minimum wages enshrined in the European Minimum Wage Directive, which are 60% of the median wage or 50% of the average wage.

DOWNLOAD THE REPORT

S&D Group in the European Parliament advertisement

Cohesion Policy

S&D Position Paper on Cohesion Policy post-2027: a resilient future for European territorial equity

Cohesion Policy seeks to foster balanced development and reduce economic, social, and territorial disparities, focusing on rural areas, regions in industrial transition, and those with severe or permanent natural or demographic disadvantages, including outermost, sparsely populated, island, cross-border, and mountain regions.

READ THE PAPER HERE

ADAPT advertisement

Cohesion Policy


In a context of growing direct employee voice in workplace innovation processes, the BroadVoice project explored how worker representatives and industrial relations can play a role in these dynamics. Based on a two-year study in 24 workplaces across six European countries, this comparative report, edited by Vassil Kirov (IPS-BAS) and Ilaria Armaroli (ADAPT), highlights the evolving contours of workplace democracy shaped by the involvement of worker representation in employee-driven innovation.

READ THE REPORT HERE

ETUI advertisement

HESA Magazine Cover

Back to school with HesaMag 30: the leading European magazine on occupational safety and health explores teachers’ deteriorating working conditions. With field reporting, expert voices and trade union analysis, plus insights into EU policy shifts, discover why teachers’ health is key to our future.

DOWNLOAD HERE

Our Mission

Team

Article Submission

Advertisements

Membership

Politics Archive

Economy Archive

Society Archive

RSS Feed

Legal Disclosure

Privacy Policy

Copyright

Social Europe ISSN 2628-7641

Copyright Social Europe Publishing & Consulting GmbH 2025
  • YouTube
  • Podcast
  • eBooks
  • Newsletter
  • Membership