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2. It’s the EU, Not Western Balkan Enlargement
- Author:
- Christine Hübner, Jan Eichhorn, Luuk Molthof, and Srđan Cvijić
- Publication Date:
- 02-2021
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- France is one of the European countries with the highest rates of popular disapproval of countries in the Western Balkans joining the European Union. What is this disapproval based on, and how important is the issue of EU enlargement in the Western Balkans for people in France? Using a combination of 2020 survey data representative of the adult French population and in-depth focus groups with French voters, this report offers a comprehensive insight into the views of the French on whether or not the countries of the Western Balkans should join the European Union.
- Topic:
- Diplomacy, Regional Cooperation, Treaties and Agreements, European Union, and Regional Integration
- Political Geography:
- Europe, France, and Balkans
3. Towards an EU Toolbox for Migrant Workers
- Publication Date:
- 12-2021
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- As part of its proposal for an EU Migration and Asylum Pact, the European Commission has pledged to present proposals on legal migration in 2021 to better match labour demand and supply, enable better, faster access to visas and work permits, and increase the intra-EU mobility of foreign workers. This report analyses the actions taken by three EU member states: Germany, Italy, and Spain. These countries have created or expanded labour migration pathways, regularised part of the undocumented population, and increased protections for some categories of migrants. The report examines how effective these different approaches have been and if there are lessons to be learned at the EU level.
- Topic:
- Migration, Labor Issues, Work Culture, and Migrant Workers
- Political Geography:
- Germany, Spain, and Italy
4. From Climate Change Awareness to Climate Crisis Action
- Author:
- Jan Eichhorn, Luuk Molthof, and Sascha Nicke
- Publication Date:
- 11-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- This report charts attitudes on the existence, causes, and impact of climate change in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Poland, Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It also examines public attitudes to a series of policies that the EU and national governments could harness to reduce the damage inflicted by human-made emissions. Although a clear majority of European and United States respondents are aware that the climate is warming, and that it is likely to have negative impacts for humankind, this report finds there is confusion about the scientific consensus on climate change. This, the report argues, has created a gap between public awareness and climate science, leaving the public underestimating the urgency of the crisis, and failing to appreciate the scale of the action required.
- Topic:
- Climate Change, Environment, Science and Technology, Fossil Fuels, Carbon Emissions, and Ecology
- Political Geography:
- Europe
5. Are Agri-Food Workers Only Exploited in Southern Europe?
- Publication Date:
- 07-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- In recent years, several studies have reported on the exploitation endured by migrant workers in Southern European Union member states—especially in sectors such as agriculture and food production. However, there has been much less focus on the North. New research now shows that agri-food workers in Northern Europe also face poor and even abusive conditions. In this light, Are Agri-Food Workers Only Exploited in Southern Europe? focuses on production in Germany, Netherlands, and Sweden. These three EU member states have stronger social protections than Italy, Spain or Greece—yet the dynamics driving wage compression and the violation of workers’ rights are like those in Southern Europe. This publication provides recommendations on how the EU and national governments can act to make Europe’s agri-food system more sustainable, benefiting farmers, consumers, workers, and the environment.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Environment, Human Rights, Labor Issues, Sustainability, Farming, Exploitation, and Consumerism
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Northern Europe, and Southern Europe
6. Roma in the COVID-19 Crisis
- Author:
- Neda Korunovska and Zeljko Jovanovic
- Publication Date:
- 04-2020
- Content Type:
- Case Study
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- Roma communities in Europe face a much higher risk of death from COVID-19, as their situation, already marked by extreme racism and poverty, has been worsening in the last decade. However, the European Union member states covered in this policy brief—Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain—have not responded with proportionate support. This brief argues that the COVID-19 crisis and the EU’s recovery plan in response both present an opportunity to improve the conditions of Europe’s Roma—not only in terms of rights, obligations, needs, but in the interests of sound political and economic decision-making across the region.
- Topic:
- Economics, Health, Human Rights, Health Care Policy, Social Policy, Public Health, Pandemic, and COVID-19
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Spain, Italy, and Slovakia
7. Do We Need an EU Ethical Food Label?
- Author:
- Giorgia Ceccarelli and Daniele Fattibene
- Publication Date:
- 09-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- Eradicating the exploitation of agri-food workers, promoting fairer food supply chains, and offering consumers effective tools to make truly informed food choices remain huge challenges in Europe. This report highlights the limitations of relying solely on food labelling schemes to meet these goals, and finds that voluntary certification schemes do not adequately enforce regulations or protect human rights. The report also argues, however, that the EU can use a number of tools to foster more just food supply chains, with ethical labels playing a role in that process as part of a “smart mix” of measures. The case studies in this report show that it is possible to have increased transparency in food labelling and supply chains, as well as better protections of workers in Europe and throughout the world. Additionally, the report explains how the EU can play an important role in providing food businesses with clear regulatory frameworks to ensure their operations do not harm workers or the environment.
- Topic:
- Environment, Health, Human Rights, Labor Issues, Food, Regulation, and Business
- Political Geography:
- Europe
8. Working Together to Address Health Workforce Mobility in Europe
- Publication Date:
- 09-2020
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- The free movement of people is a cornerstone of an open and integrated Europe. Yet the labor migration of Europeans from lower-income countries in southern and eastern Europe to higher-income countries in northern and western Europe has had significant impact on the workforce—including the loss of skilled health professionals in their most productive years. Indeed, since 1989, hundreds of thousands of European health professionals have left their countries of origin for more promising opportunities in the west and north. Denied opportunities for decent work at home, and recruited by countries facing their own labor shortages, their mobility is a byproduct of a failure throughout Europe to develop health workforces in an evidence-based and strategic way. Ultimately, this failure threatens the human right to health. This brief offers policymakers six key insights, drawn from a literature review and interviews with European experts, on the migration and mobility of health professionals. These insights are offered within a framework that prioritizes human rights, gender equality, and worker solidarity.
- Topic:
- Migration, Labor Issues, Health Care Policy, European Union, Economic Mobility, and Migrant Workers
- Political Geography:
- Europe
9. German Priorities for Africa during Its Presidency of the EU Council
- Author:
- Bram Dijkstra and Marta Martinelli
- Publication Date:
- 09-2020
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- 2020 is a pivotal year for EU-Africa relations. Germany’s presidency of the EU Council provides an opportunity to address structural challenges—such as health care infrastructure, food provision, and managing the refugee and migration crises—revealed by the current COVID-19 crisis. The policy brief details Germany’s ambitions to foster a new partnership with Africa and offers recommendations in three priority areas: health care policy, economic development, and democratic governance.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Diplomacy, Migration, Food, Health Care Policy, Refugees, Refugee Crisis, and Economic Development
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Germany
10. The Modern Agreement of Amity and Commerce: Toward a New Model for Trade Agreements
- Author:
- Beth Baltzan
- Publication Date:
- 10-2020
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- Around the world, the process of economic globalization is under fire for serving the needs of corporate elites rather than ordinary citizens. But it is important to recall that trade does not have to aggravate inequality. The rules of globalization matter. If we have better rules for trade, trade will produce better results. In this paper, Beth Baltzan, a trade lawyer with extensive experience in government, proposes a new paradigm for a more equitable trading regime—outlining the key elements of an agreement with the overarching purpose of fostering positive relations between like-minded parties.
- Topic:
- Globalization, Economic Inequality, Trade, and Trade Policy
- Political Geography:
- Global
11. North Macedonia: What’s Next?
- Publication Date:
- 01-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- In January 2019, Macedonia’s parliament approved, by a two-thirds majority, a constitutional amendment to change the country’s name to the Republic of North Macedonia. While this represented a major step toward North Macedonia’s ultimate goal of establishing a durable, stable democracy, the name change must still be endorsed by Greece’s parliament before it can go into full effect. But as a new report from the Open Society European Policy Institute shows, a newly-named North Macedonia would still face significant challenges—and opportunities. North Macedonia: What’s Next? examines the 2018 Prespa Agreement between neighboring Greece and North Macedonia, which laid out agreed upon conditions for resolving the longstanding dispute over Macedonia’s name, and what it means for the larger project of integrating the countries in the Western Balkans more fully into the political and economic systems of Europe, the British Isles, and the United States. The report further explores how key players—such as the European Union, NATO, Russia, other Western Balkans states—approach the Prespa Agreement, explains the significance of the name change in larger geopolitical terms, and offers insight into possible scenarios for the final resolution of this fraught and lengthy conflict.
- Topic:
- NATO, Democratization, Regional Cooperation, European Union, Democracy, Constitution, and Nation-State
- Political Geography:
- Balkans, Macedonia, and North Macedonia
12. States of Change: Attitudes in Central and Eastern Europe 30 Years after the Fall of the Berlin Wall
- Publication Date:
- 11-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- Despite deep concerns about the future of democracy, people in Central and Eastern Europe retain a strong attachment to civil society and faith in the freedoms achieved with the collapse of Communism, according to States of Change: Attitudes in Central and Eastern Europe 30 Years after the Fall of the Berlin Wall, a report from the Open Society Foundations. Based on polling by YouGov conducted in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia, States of Change provides a snapshot of current opinion on democracy, freedom of speech, the market economy, and the media in the former Eastern Bloc and Germany.
- Topic:
- Civil Society, Democratization, Markets, Democracy, Media, Berlin Wall, and Free Speech
- Political Geography:
- Eastern Europe and Central Europe
13. Armed Drones in Europe
- Author:
- Srđan Cvijić, Lisa Klingenberg, Delina Goxho, and Ella Knight
- Publication Date:
- 11-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- The use of armed drones in the European Union has become a topic rife with controversy and misinformation. This report gives a comprehensive and in-depth overview of the approach to, and use of, armed drones in five European countries: Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, France, and the United Kingdom. Further, the report is intended to start a wider debate about armed drones in Europe and to serve as a guide on this topic for the European Parliament.
- Topic:
- Science and Technology, Military Strategy, Military Affairs, and Drones
- Political Geography:
- Europe, France, Germany, Italy, and Netherlands
14. From Enlargement to the Unification of Europe: Why the European Union needs a directorate general Europe for future members and association countries
- Author:
- Srđan Cvijić, Marie Jelenka Kirchner, Iskra Kirova, and Zoran Nechev
- Publication Date:
- 06-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- The need for the European Union’s involvement in the Western Balkans, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine has never been more acute. The European Commission’s structures are not up to the job. A new approach is needed to respond to the realities on the ground and in member states. The European Union needs to boost the tools of the European Commission to move the process on from enlargement and move decisively towards the unification of Europe. This means creating a directorate general that would have the resources to drive forward the accession process with the Western Balkans countries and the ambitious trade and reform agenda in Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova. A new directorate general Europe could play this role.
- Topic:
- Regional Cooperation, Treaties and Agreements, Europe Union, Trade, and Economic Integration
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Ukraine, Moldova, and Balkans
15. Does Offshoring Asylum and Migration Actually Work?
- Publication Date:
- 09-2018
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- As the stalemate continues over a common set of rules on asylum within the European Union, “externalizing,” “offshoring,” “outsourcing” and, most recently, “regionalizing” asylum and migration management in non–European Union countries remain on the agenda. So does offshoring actually work? This brief takes a comparative look at offshoring asylum and migration management in Australia, Spain, Tunisia, and the United States, and lessons learned for the European Union. This brief argues that government attempts to curb irregular migration may make it harder and more dangerous for those involved, but ultimately have little impact if the drivers and the demand for irregular migrants (in certain sectors of European countries’ economies, for instance) remain unaltered. Offshoring won't be the silver bullet which will solve the European Union’s migration conundrum. Instead, the notion of outsourcing asylum and migration to non-European countries, while politically expedient, will only continue to divert resources and time away from a sustainable, workable model of migration management; to undermine efforts to build genuine partnerships with non–European Union states; and to compromise European values in the process.
- Topic:
- Migration and Asylum
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Global Focus
16. Towards Elections with Integrity
- Publication Date:
- 10-2018
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- Since the 1990s, election observation has become a vital tool of the international community to support democracy and assess the legitimacy of governments. Observers receive better pre-deployment training and briefings, funding is more readily available, and methodologies have grown more sophisticated. Yet, as the election observation industry has become more professional, democracy is in decline. The European Union needs to be more strategic as both a donor and a provider of election observation. This policy brief, authored by the external policy team of the Open Society European Policy Institute, proposes six areas of reform, which include monitoring of the political processes leading up to polling day; improving collaboration with observers at a local level; strengthening and supporting the role played by civil society; setting stronger guidelines for the digital arena; developing guidelines for technology used; and finally, striking a new balance between the observation missions’ technical and political mandates.
- Topic:
- Civil Society, Science and Technology, Elections, Democracy, Election watch, Digital Policy, and Presidential Elections
- Political Geography:
- Europe
17. Whistleblowers for Change: The Social and Economic Costs and Benefits of Leaking and Whistleblowing
- Publication Date:
- 11-2018
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- The decision to be a whistleblower is not easy. Mental trauma, the risk of retaliation, the potential loss of employment or ostracization by work colleagues—not to mention the impact on one’s personal life—all weigh heavily on the individual who decides to speak out for the common good. But when potential whistleblowers feel too vulnerable to act, it's society itself which suffers. In this report, whistleblowers from eight European countries describe what they experienced after they took a stand. Additionally, civil society experts weigh in on how the EU can craft policies to better protect whistleblowers. The question of how to define whistleblowing—does it apply to sexual harassment, can NGOs be considered whistleblowers, and so on—is also explored. The report ultimately recommends an EU-wide directive on whistleblowing, which it argues would give whistleblowers the protection they need to step forward. The report also argues that a multi-level, multi-stakeholder approach would emphasize the value of whistleblowers and the crucial role they play in a healthy open society.
- Topic:
- Civil Society, Intelligence, NGOs, Transparency, Whistle Blowing, and Secrecy
- Political Geography:
- Europe
18. An End to Manels II: Closing the Gender Gap at Europe’s Top Policy Events
- Publication Date:
- 11-2018
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- An End to Manels II is the second in a two-part series from the Open Society Foundations on closing the gender gap at Europe’s high-level policy events. The first brief, An End to Manels, examined the composition of panels, highlighting the dramatic underrepresentation of women. Manels II, scrutinizes this data further, taking a closer look at 23 European conferences, over the course of five years and analyzing discussion topics, their frequency, and speakers’ gender in an effort improve the quality of debate in Europe. The report reveals the dramatic underrepresentation of women engaged in speaking roles for six topics at Europe’s top conferences: foreign policy; the European Union; crime, terrorism and security; economic situation; environment, climate, and energy issues; and technology. Likewise, men are underrepresented as speakers on gender. Having quantified the gender gap at 23 conferences in Europe, the report offers a range of pragmatic solutions that conference organizers should consider to close this gap. These range from a broadening the range of topics discussed to speaker recruitment and better monitoring.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, European Union, Women, Representation, Sexuality, and Domestic Policy
- Political Geography:
- Europe
19. An End to Manels: Closing the Gender Gap at Europe’s Top Policy Events
- Publication Date:
- 03-2018
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- The number of women who speak at key policy-shaping conferences across Europe is far below that of their male peers. Looking at five years of high-level conferences in Europe, this report finds that a woman has only one opportunity to speak for every three times a man speaks. The situation is not improving, but it can. Two conferences of the 23 conferences included in the report have shown that, with a concerted effort, they can drastically increase the number of female speakers and move toward gender parity. The onus is now on governments, businesses, and conference organizers to ensure they are sending and receiving representative delegations at these events. Conference organizers are the gatekeepers to the stage. This is a big responsibility. They make decisions about who will have the opportunity to share their views with heads of state, policymakers, and business leaders. Journalists report the statements of these speakers to audiences around the world. Prioritizing gender balance over seniority can stop help counter inequality in our societies by allowing women a fair say on policy and allowing female role models to come to the fore.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Gender Issues, Women, Men, Domestic Policy, and Equality
- Political Geography:
- Europe
20. Untangling the Web: A Blueprint for Reforming American Security Sector Assistance
- Author:
- Rose Jackson
- Publication Date:
- 01-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Open Society Foundations
- Abstract:
- Since the attacks of 9/11, the United States has spent more than $250 billion building up military and police forces around the world. From attempts to build whole armies in Iraq and Afghanistan to efforts to help Yemen or Nigeria fight terrorism, the impact of these efforts has been mixed and in some cases counterproductive, exacerbating local corruption, human rights abuses, and even terrorism. A knot of U.S. offices and agencies have evolved to provide this aid, mostly pulling in different directions. Untangling the Web: A Blueprint for Reforming American Security Sector Assistance describes the main failures in the system and sets out immediate steps the next administration can take to improve how the U.S. government plans, coordinates, and executes its security-related assistance. This would significantly increase transparency and accountability and link the aid more closely to the human rights, development, and governance outcomes that are essential to U.S. foreign policy interests and national security.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, National Security, Terrorism, War, International Security, Military Affairs, Counter-terrorism, and Grand Strategy
- Political Geography:
- Middle East and Global Focus