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Five years after the start of the Arab Spring, the optimism of the disillusionment has given way. Given the never-ending violence, the return to authoritarian forms of rule or even failing states the "Arabellion" is considered a failure.

The Hungarian government will hold a referendum in order to signal to Brussels that refugees are not welcome in Hungary. The referendum cannot influence EU policies, and may not even be legal.

Europe is going through troubled times and more than ever needs new ideas. South Africa born writer Breyten Breytenbach offers an outside perspective on the current state of the European project.

Air traffic must become climate neutral and more environmentally friendly. The question has been the subject of discussions since 2014 between Airbus Group and the Heinrich Böll Foundation. Now, they have summarised the outcome of this dialogue in the publication ‘Oben – Ihr Flugbegleiter’ (Aloft – An Inflight Review). The publication will be presented at the opening of the International Aerospace Exhibition (ILA) on 1st June 2016 in Berlin.

Contrary to the objective to quit nuclear energy, a recent paper of the European Commission’s DG Research maps out possible nuclear research priorities. An analysis to put the latest developments into perspective.

Opening remarks on the occasion of the "EU Quo Vadis?" Conference of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung in Berlin on May 26th, 2016 titled "Crossing Boundaries in European Asylum and Refugee Policy".

At the beginning of May, large demonstrations against the policy of the government have taken place in Warsaw, Poznan and Wroclaw. The initiator of these and other former demonstrations in the last months is the movement KOD (Komitet Obrony Demokracji), the Committee for the Defense of Democracy. Veronika Felder and Michael Álvarez Kalverkamp spoke with Aleksandra Śniegocka-Goździk und Jarosław Marciniak, two KOD members, about the movement and the current situation in Poland.

In France economic and social problems, terrorism and internal security are viewed as more important than the migrant crisis. Seeing the migrant flows as a result of conflicts in the Arab world they deal with the problem with military assistance.

Thousands of Syrians have sought shelter in Lebanon. But having such a precarious status there and no legal recognition many feel their best option is to try entering the EU via the Mediterranean.

Turkey is hosting some 2.7 million Syrian refugees. Only one tenth are in camps and the rest spread around urban areas. Local cultural and religious affinity with them has kept social friction low.

The EU needs a proper strategy that allows migrants a legal form of access. The current situation of the camps in and around the EU is unacceptable. The issue of clarifying immigration regulations for the EU must not be put off any longer.

Due to their recent history many Croatians understand the plight of refugees. Others fear the influx of different cultural and religious influences, and the effects on the economic situation.

During the Slovak parliamentary election campaign even moderate parties adopted anti-immigrant language. But the strategy backfired and far-right politicians entered parliament.

Whilst the refugee crisis has dominated debates in Germany since 2015, it plays a subordinate role in France where the war on Islamist terrorism and tackling the problem with military intervention.

Currently the debate on nuclear weapons in the European Union is not making any progress, this could be due to the failure of the Non-Proliferation Treaty in 2015. Nevertheless, a nuclear-weapon-free zone in Europe should still be envisaged.

As Europeans struggle to deal with the tensions between growing right-wing, xenophobic parties and new refugee and immigrant populations, there is much to be learned from the US immigrant rights movement.

Greece as a key migrant entry point needs extra resources to secure the EU’s external border and provide humanitarian assistance. It's vital to manage the burden sharing and secure a pragmatic agreement with Turkey to stem migrant flows and facilitate returns.

Czech society is polarised by attitudes to refugees. This is absurd given that fact that only 1,156 have applied for asylum in a country of ten million people. Xenophobia and hysteria drive the debate.

Pakistan is facing a severe energy crisis. Most of the rural areas of Pakistan are not connected to the national grid because of the geographical distance and the scattered population. In absence of the required energy supply, the socio-economic life of people is disrupted and they are forced to use alternative means of producing energy such as tree cutting for fire-wood, use of kerosene, cattle dung and crop residue. These alternative means are a threat to the environment especially in the wake of climate change

Caroline Ausserer spoke with Zhan Chiam, employee at ILGA (International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association), about the recent report of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) on LGBTI asylum-seekers and -refugees.

In 2006 human rights experts elaborated the Yogyakarta Principles. Their question: What is known about human rights law in relation to gender identity? An Interview about the impact of the principles so far.

The repression of NGOs and other civil society groups increases worldwide, which leads to a decline of democratic freedom. This issue should be added to the agenda of national parliaments and multilateral organizations.

The envisaged sale of Vattenfall’s East German lignite assets to EPH has raised many questions about the sustainability of open-cast lignite mining and power generation. It has also shone a spotlight on the prospective new owner.

Within the framework of the project “Regional Civil Society Engagement in Green Dialogs. Promoting Peace and Stability through Equitable Resource Management”, the offices of Heinrich Böll Stiftung in Pakistan and Afghanistan successfully conducted a Vision Workshop for a seed group of the Regional Green Dialogs Network. The workshop aimed at increasing mutual understanding and developing a joint vision and a plan for future action. Intellectuals, experts and activits from both countries (Pakistan and Afghanistan) participated in the event and reflected on how to promote peace and stability in the region through equitable natural resource management, especially looking into water and energy.

Within the framework of the project “Regional Civil Society Engagement in Green Dialogs. Promoting Peace and Stability through Equitable Resource Management”, the offices of Heinrich Böll Stiftung in Pakistan and Afghanistan successfully conducted a Vision Workshop for a seed group of the Regional Green Dialogs Network. The workshop aimed at increasing mutual understanding and developing a joint vision and a plan for future action. Intellectuals, experts, and activists from both countries (Pakistan and Afghanistan) participated in the event and reflected on how to promote peace and stability in the region through equitable natural resource management, especially looking into water and energy.

With Ahmad Abdallaht, head of the human rights organisation "Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedom", the Egyptian authorities have arrested another partner of the Heinrich Böll Foundation. "Egypt is a country under authoritarian control which has largely abandoned the principles of fundamental rule of law and human rights", said Barbara Unmüssig. "These principles are non-negotiable - and cannot be exchanged for large contracts for German industry."

Since 2004, there has been a wave of aggressive privatization in Georgia. Until today the state is allowing for a situation, whereby uncontrolled exploitation of natural resources leads to people becoming dependent on monopolist enterprises. An overview in occasion of the International Workers’ Day.

Economic sciences are not the same as evolutionary theory. But why do we consider economy as nature given? We don't have to, says ecologocial economist Irene Schöne.

Thirty years after the biggest nuclear disaster at Chernobyl nuclear power plant, Ukraine is still seriously dependent on nuclear energy. It is high time for Ukraine to take the path of nuclear phase-out.

The Minsk agreement has come to a standstill. From Ukraine can't accept bogus elections in Donbass and grant autonony to puppet republics while Russia simultaneously expand its power in the region.