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*Date Change* Upcoming Event: “A new chapter for ‘Project Europe’ “

I heart Europe

Tuesday 27 September 2016 | 12.00-14.00

Venue: Friedrich Naumann Stiftung, Avenue de Cortenbergh 71, 1000 Brussels

About the event:

Even though Brexit is certainly not the end of “Project Europe,” the UK’s decision to leave the EU has dealt a hard blow to Europe-advocates across the board. But Brexit is just the last event in a series of challenges of the past years – economic, financial, migratory – which have tested solidarity among European Member States and citizens’ trust in the EU.

With populist, anti-European forces gaining traction across Europe, how can we find a fresh approach to successfully promote the European idea?

Many have called to use this pivotal moment in Europe’s history for reform and renewal in order to make the European Union fit for purpose again. But what would such a reform and reorganization look like in practice? How would it go about? How could citizens be involved in an effective manner?

 

Welcome

Caroline Haury

European Affairs Manager

European and Transatlantic Dialogue, Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom

 

Speaker

Alexander Graf Lambsdorff MEP
Vice-President of the European Parliament, Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe

 

Moderator

Angelika Mlinar MEP, Vice–President of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party

 

Kindly register for this event by 23 September 2016 at http://tinyurl.com/NewChapterForEurope

Please note that you will be forwarded to a Google Drive sheet. Should you wish to register with us directly please send an email to register.brussels@fnst.org. Photographs will be taken at the event for use on the FNF website, social media, in the press, FNF marketing materials, and other publications. By entering this event, you consent to FNF photographing and using your image and likeness.

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Michaela Paskarou – Generation 1.5 Greeks

 

PaskarouMichaela Paskarou (24) is a student of Political Science and International Relations who would like to pursue a career in Human Rights. Currently, her aim is to continue with post-graduate studies in International RelatPaskarou_01ions and Diplomacy. Her parents moved to Greece from Moldova in the early 1990s.

Moving to and growing up in Greece has been a challenging, but also an enriching, experience. It has helped shape my core beliefs, and ultimately what I have become – a world citizen. Continue reading →

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Nancy Fanara – Knowledge is participation

FanaraNancy Fanara (32) is a political scientist. She has studied Political Science and European Studies at the Universities of Athens and Sorbonne Nouvelle (Paris III). Since 2010 she works as a journalist and would very much like to pursue this career.

“No thief, however skilful, can rob one of knowledge, and that is why knowledge is the best and safest treasure to acquire.”

L. Frank Baum, The Lost Princess of OzFanara_01

Greece is in its fifth year of the “memorandum” and its seventh year of recession. Every time that we have thought we had come to the end of a particular period and left behind us the errors of the past, we discover that those errors are still with us, reminding us that the important changes have not yet been implemented. Continue reading →

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Georgios Iliopoulos – e-Greece moving forward

Iliopoulos

Iliopoulos_01George Iliopoulos (23) has studied informatics & telecommunications at the University of Athens. In 2013 he worked as a trainee in the European Parliament in Brussels. He wants to continue his studies on e-Governance and is very interested in European affairs.

For yet another year, Greece is trying to overcome a multi-faceted crisis with many and varied consequences. The negative traits of an entire society have now become obvious, as has the imperative need for radical reforms in the direction of development and growth in every sector of modern life. The failed practices of the past must be overcome at any cost, while the productive process, which has been interwoven with the huge, slow and inefficient state mechanism, must, at last, be modernised. Continue reading →

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Georgios Kokkolis – Urban Sprawl and Debt Sprawl – Two sides of the same coin

KokkolisKokkolis_01George Kokkolis (27) is a political scientist. Since 2014 he is the Vice-Mayor of the Municipality of Rafina-Pikermi. In 2012, he was awarded with the “Charlemagne Youth Prize” from the City of Aachen for his activities in European projects. He is interested in continuing his career in local and national politics.

In our attempts to envisage a modern, powerful Greece, we usually focus on the country’s macroeconomic performance and growth model, stressing factors such as market economy, investments, and the quality level of services. But all the scenarios, however ambitious, do not take into account a crucial parameter, which, if turned to account, could operate as a catalyst in all aspects of what we call “New Greece”. I refer to the Greek cities themselves and their form. Continue reading →

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The future of the welfare state

Europeans are proud of their high standard of living, Unbenannt-1social protection and generous provision of various public services.

But the global financial meltdown and the ensuing sovereign debt crisis in Europe triggered a debate about the sustainability of this model.

Changing social norms, higher life expectancy rates, migration, negative demographic trends: these are just some of the  factors that put pressure on national governments to find working formulas for good welfare policies that do not overburden public budgets and indebt future generations.

Continue reading →