by Colin McIntyre | 7 Aug 2019 | Europe, Future of Democracy, Nationalism
The UK will leave Europe no matter what, says new British PM Boris Johnson. But his hard-line Brexit stance is exposing cracks within the UK itself. A Stop Brexit campaigner protests in London, 1 August 2019 (EPA-EFE/Andy Rain) Can the United Kingdom leave the...
by Malcolm Davidson | 11 Jul 2019 | Donald Trump, Europe, Future of Democracy, Technology
Populist parties are the political groupings of the 21st century. Insurgents who get social media right can make big gains. But not all succeed. A supporter of Change UK party holds a poster advertising for voting in the European election in London, 14 May 2019 (AP...
by Gene Gibbons | 6 Jun 2019 | Discovery, Europe, Personal Reflections
I accompanied two U.S. presidents to D-Day commemorations. Then I traced the footsteps of my uncle, a doctor who became a war hero. Captain John Cotter (photo courtesy of Gene Gibbons) Seventy-five years ago today, tens of thousands of American, British, Canadian,...
by Alexander Nicoll | 30 May 2019 | Europe, Eyewitness
They were eccentric code-breakers hidden in a Victorian mansion. Their secret work underpinned the D-Day invasion and shaped World War Two. Mike Hillyard, one of the volunteers who rebuilt a replica of the Turing Bombe machine that helped crack the Nazi Enigma Code,...
by Bernd Debusmann | 17 May 2019 | Americas, Decoders, Donald Trump, Europe
The Soviet Union and its allies opposed the West for 36 years. After the Iron Curtain fell, NATO expanded, deepening Russian-Western tensions. Russian Premier Nikolai Bulganin signs the eight-nation Warsaw Pact, Warsaw, Poland, 14 May 14, 1955 (AP Photo) The North...
by Alan Wheatley | 13 May 2019 | Decoders, Europe, Future of Democracy
It’s unloved and misunderstood. It splits time between Brussels and Strasbourg. Its powers have grown, yet voters shun it. It’s the European Parliament. European Parliament, Strasbourg, France, 5 February 2014 (Wikimedia Commons, by Diliff) Voters from the...
by Anna Sofie Himmer and Helene Christine Juul | 29 Apr 2019 | Europe, Future of Democracy, Herlufsholm, Student Posts, Youth Voices
We surveyed Danish youth to understand what they know about the EU’s composition and procedures. The results surprised us. French President Emmanuel Macron poses with young EU citizens, Aachen, Germany, 9 May 2018 (EPA-EFE/Ronald Wittek) How much do young people...
by Emma Lorenceau | 25 Apr 2019 | Culture, Environment, Europe, Youth Voices
The fire at Notre-Dame cathedral moved citizens in France. But an outpouring of donations to fund its reconstruction has stirred controversy. Notre-Dame Cathedral burns, 15 April 2019 (EPA-EFE/Ian Langsdon) I was meeting my parents at a restaurant near the...
by Ella Steinhilber | 8 Apr 2019 | Americas, Europe, Future of Democracy, Identity, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Youth Voices
I’ve spent the past school year studying overseas. It’s given me a new perspective on my own homeland and on the polarization that divides us. A protest against efforts to repeal the U.S. Affordable Care Act, New York, 24 July 24 2017 (EPA/JUSTIN LANE) I...
by Elisabeth Wachtel | 5 Apr 2019 | Contest winners, Discovery, Donald Trump, Europe, Personal Reflections, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Youth Voices
I’m a New Yorker studying in France. I now realize a president doesn’t define a country and there are constructive ways to talk about politics. (Courtesy of GetDrawings) Since arriving in France over six months ago, I’ve had the same conversation many times...