Crisis

GEF Co-President Pierre Jonckheer responds to European Commission President Barroso’s ‘State of the Union’ speech in 2012.

Europe’s crisis is being felt at multiple levels, from the future of the Eurozone and divisions between Member States to the rise of populist forces.

The French Greens (Europe Écologie Les Verts) are at a crucial point in their history.

Polish commentator Cezary Michalski likens Germany to a nuclear power plant – providing energy to Europe when working well, but a destructive force when it fails.

Rather than focus on Spain’s overall public debt, is it smarter to look at a bailout tailored just for its banks? A leading German and Spanish Green politicians discuss the reality of this prospect.

Irish Green Party leader Eamon Ryan argues that a breakup of the Eurozone would offer no benefits to Ireland, and that the solution instead is to champion a strong, Green economy that ties Ireland ever closer to Europe.

The Greens have to use alternative green economic concepts and share them far beyond the academic sphere, with all who are now starting to realise that our economy is completely unsustainable. And above all they have to assert their specific approach to social justice.

With a rerun of Greek elections taking place this weekend, what are the prospects that the political upheaval in the country will present an opening for the Greens?

The success of the far-right candidate Marine Le Pen in the first round of the French Presidential election, and the success of similar nationalistic parties in other European countries, has left many wondering how the greens and progressive forces should respond to this perceived threat to European values.

Four years into the economic crisis, the global economy continues to verge on catastrophic failure. Debt-fueled capitalism, and its resulting inequalities, appear at fault, but what is the solution?