European Union (EU)

The programme "Europe for Citizens" pools activities fostering tolerance promotion, gender equality and the protection of fundamental rights.

In this core area of the work programme “Europe for Citizens” activities are pooled that focus diversly on various aspects of the European asylum and refugee policy.

Before the Spanish reelections on 26. June 2016 the democratisation of the European institutions and the solution of the refugee crisis became relevant issues of the political debate.

In his new book A Heart for Europe. The Case for Europatriotism, Dick Pels postulates a new Europatriotism in times of doubt and uncertainty. Politicians and intellectuals should take responsibility of charismatic and visionary leadership to oppose the politics of fear by rising nationalist movements.

Since late 2015, the Heinrich Böll Foundation is in the process of setting up a new office in Paris, which will focus on four main activities: energy transition and climate protection, greening the economy, democracy’s crisis of confidence, and European politics.

The EU wanted to exert international pressure to speed up the reduction of carbon emissions in air traffic. However, it failed because its climate policy met with existing conflicts of interest.

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.

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.

Xenophobia and efforts to turn public opinion against “social welfare migrants” are not a new invention. But the fact that every solution that comes from the EU is ignored – this is something new.

Will the Greek crisis return? Will Tsipras be able to stave it off? The road to national dignity is paved with good intentions and even better proclamations.