Written by Sorina Silvia Ionescu The EU Strategy for the Alpine Region (EUSALP) builds on a solid background of cooperation in the Region. It is the EU’s fourth macro-regional strategy. The European Commission published on 28 July 2015 the Communication and the Action Plan on the EU Strategy for the Alpine Region. Adoption of the Strategy… Read More The EU Strategy for the Alpine Region – EUSALP
Written by Lieve Van Woensel and Guillermo Garrido-Lestache This year the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) launched a new series of publications on techno-scientific trends and how these could change our lives. The first selection of ten techno-scientific trends was compiled in a single publication entitled ‘Ten technologies which could change our lives – Potential impacts… Read More ‘What if …?’, an EPRS publication on techno-scientific issues for non-experts
Written by Marcin Grajewski Fridays are a good time to gather some reading material on major topics for those quiet moments over the weekend, and the European Parliamentary Research Service weekly publication ‘What think tanks are thinking‘ aims to supply exactly that. To provide comprehensive research and analysis, we comb the websites of dozens of… Read More What think tanks are thinking
Written by Clare Ferguson We all know the old adage about images and numbers of words. We are all increasingly faced with the need to communicate faster, shorter, and usually, more visually. When you don’t have 1 000 words, but rather 140 characters, an image is just what you need. Members of the European Parliament are no exception,… Read More EPRS Graphics Warehouse – When a picture tells…
Written by Sam Prestidge When an EU policy initiative is likely to have significant economic, social and/or environmental effects, the European Commission usually produces an Impact Assessment (IA) to accompany its legislative proposal. Commission IAs seek to verify and justify the need for EU action and to identify the likely impacts of the various policy options available,… Read More Initial Appraisals of European Commission Impact Assessments
Written by Isabel Saavedra As official record keeper of the European Parliament, the Historical Archives hold a wealth of historical documents spanning from the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community Assembly in 1952, to the present. These documents include official EP texts (adopted reports and resolutions, parliamentary questions, and debates), and also the… Read More The Historical Archives: European Union history and European Parliament history
Written by Marcin Grajewski Tackling climate change caused by greenhouse gas emission is high on the European Union’s agenda as negotiations on a global climate deal enter their final phase ahead of the December international conference COP21 in Paris. The EU’s policy on climate change is among the most ambitious in the world. It aims… Read More EU policy on climate change [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Alessandro D’Alfonso The EU budget corresponds to around 1% of the Union’s gross national income (or 2% of total public spending in the EU) and its impact on the economy is debated, with many analysts deeming it relatively small in size in comparison with the wide range of policy areas in which the… Read More How the EU budget is spent
Written by Magdalena Sapała Although the EU budget is small in relation to the EU’s collective gross national income, it is a powerful source of investment. In the period 2014-20, almost 42% of planned spending (approximately €453.2 billion) will be channelled to the regions to enhance their economic, social and territorial development through five EU Structural… Read More How the EU budget is spent: the European Structural and Investment Funds
Written by Marcin Grajewski The European Union’s relations with Mediterranean countries form part of a broader European Neighbourhood Policy. This creates a framework for bilateral and regional cooperation with Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Syria and Tunisia. A key element, agreed in 2011 following the ‘Arab Spring’ uprisings in the region, is… Read More The EU’s Southern Neighbourhood [What Think Tanks are thinking]