The Transformation of the Global Automotive Industry

Mobility is a basic human need. Over the last 100 years, the automobile has revolutionised the transport of people and goods. The automotive industry is a core industrial sector employing millions of people in Germany, Europe and the world. The trade unions in the metal sector are strong and powerful organisations without which the enforcement of social rights would have been impossible. But the costs and irreversible damage caused by the fossil fuel era are now undeniable. The technology based on the burning of fossil fuels is reaching its ...
read more "The Transformation of the Global Automotive Industry"

Energy Democracy Movement Declaration

Groups fighting for energy democracy at all levels of society are leading resistance and remedies towards a better future. Profit-driven energy models have escalated the climate crisis, failed to decarbonise our energy systems, and do not provide universal access to clean, affordable energy. We need to unite globally to transition to public energy systems rooted in justice, solidarity and democracy. The global energy democracy movement recognises that the energy transition is an urgent opportunity to reclaim our energy systems from the market and put ...
read more "Energy Democracy Movement Declaration"

Unity Makes Strength?

An analysis of the perspectives for the French left and the NUPES in the 2024 European Parliament elections***Version française ci-dessous***   This study aims to provide a brief analysis of the current state of affairs in the European Union in order to analyse the perspectives of the French left in the 2024 European Parliament election. In France, the question of the union of the left was at the heart of public debates in the year preceding the presidential election of April 2022. This union was widely sought by a large majority of left-wing voters, which even ...
read more "Unity Makes Strength?"

Casting off the Chains of Unfair Trade

A Call for Sustainable Alternatives to the EU-ASEAN Trade RegimeThis report explores the effects of existing trade agreements between ASEAN and EU states, takes a look at possible effects induced by potential developments of these trade agreements, and discusses alternatives to their approach to organizing ASEAN and EU trade relations. We seek to offer an understanding of the positions of the various layers and the general mechanisms behind historical and present developments around the emergence of a free trade regime leading us to FTA negotiations ...
read more "Casting off the Chains of Unfair Trade"

Development Opportunities or Challenges

Looking at the Proposed Free Trade Agreement between India and the European UnionAbout the publication Since 2007, India and the European Union (EU) have engaged in active negotiations on an ambitious and comprehensive Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA), or a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in generic terms, that includes tariff removal on goods, liberalisation of services, investment, and government procurement among many other issues. The negotiations had seen an impasse since 2013 after the relative reluctance of the newly elected Indian ...
read more "Development Opportunities or Challenges"

EU-India Trade Deal: Business as usual?

An assessment of the agreement from an EU perspectiveExecutive Summary EU-India trade negotiations were relaunched in June 2022. Behind the storytelling of the Commission, Member States and business lobbies lies the reality which can not be hidden for long: the EU-India trade deal is a neoliberal deal, entrenched in the idea that more trade between the two markets will bring significant benefits. Benefits there will be, for Indian and European multinationals but people and the planet will significantly lose from this deal. Little is known on the ...
read more "EU-India Trade Deal: Business as usual?"

Capping Prices, Taxing Profits

An analysis of the Spanish government’s response to the cost-of-living crisisJust as the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic finally seemed to be behind us, the war in Ukraine that began in February 2022 sent the world economy into another tailspin. With Russian gas now tainted by Putin’s invasion, Europe acted quickly to abandon what had until then been its most important source of cheap fuel — with skyrocketing prices as the result. Since then, European consumers have found themselves paying energy bills that are two, three, or even four times higher than ...
read more "Capping Prices, Taxing Profits"

The Crisis and Future of Democracy

About the anthology Democracy is in jeopardy. The rise of authoritarian populism, the polarisation of politics and the attacks on the foundations of liberal representative democracy leave little doubt about it. The fallout of the COVID-19 crisis has only reinforced these tendencies. Yet, we also see a revitalisation of radical demands for democratic renewal. Societies are once again acknowledging that inequality is hurting democracy. Calls for democratic regulation of key sectors are getting louder. Demands for inclusion, equality and redistributive ...
read more "The Crisis and Future of Democracy"

Sustainable Illusions?

Women's Labour Market Participation in the EU: Obstacles and Policy LeversThe EU has a long tradition of – in what it says at least – supporting women’s labour-market participation and promoting social security policies. The EU’s commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are among its most recent attempts to achieve this, with the SDGs’ promise to end “all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere”. Have such policies yielded any substantive results when it comes to improving ...
read more "Sustainable Illusions?"
CC-BY-4.0
CC-BY-4.0

A Strategic Compass Leading Where?

The dangers of EU militarisation under French leadership***Version française ci-dessous*** In the shadow of Putin’s revanchist war in Ukraine and its multifold consequences for Europe’s security architecture, member states are developing the European Union’s first full-fledged military strategy. The “Strategic Compass” championed by French President Macron – whose government currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU Council – would substantially advance the militarisation of the European Union. Swept up by domestic political ...
read more "A Strategic Compass Leading Where?"