Greening Europe, Global Europe, Social Europe, The Future of Europe, Competitive Europe
07/06/2012
European Young Leaders: '40 under 40' - Brussels Seminar
The European Young Leaders ‘40 under 40’ programme by EuropaNova and Friends of Europe engages forty of the EU’s brightest young minds to create a new generation of opinion leaders promoting a European identity. They will be asked to reflect upon the major problems confronting Europe and to generate innovative ideas that can provide lasting solutions. Following the first December 2011 seminar in Paris, the next 3-day seminar will take place in Brussels on 7-9 June.
Greening Europe, Global Europe, Social Europe, The Future of Europe, Competitive Europe
08/12/2011
European Young Leaders: '40 under 40' - Paris Seminar
Among its many challenges, the lack of a collective vision remains one of the main obstacles to an effective and sustainable Europe. The ‘40 UNDER 40’ programme, led by EuropaNova and Friends of Europe, aims to promote a European identity by engaging 40 of the European Union’s brightest minds in initiatives that will shape Europe’s future. The first of this two-part series of seminars will take place in Paris on 8-10 December 2011.
Social Europe
01/12/2011
Encouraging healthy eating and active living in the family setting

Reduced levels of physical activity, increases in sedentary behaviour, and modifications in the structure of diet are contributing to a rising epidemic of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as obesity, certain cancers, coronary heart and cerebrovascular diseases, hypertension and diabetes. Encouraging individuals to make ‘smart choices’ in terms of eating well and maintaining a physically active lifestyle that will protect their health is key. How to encourage individuals to adopt these healthy behaviours is challenging as there are numerous barriers.

Social Europe
09/02/2011
Should the EU try to save Europe's quality press?

The EU must not restrict advertising if it wants to maintain a free and independent press, Friends of Europe's Café Crossfire discussion heard on February 9th. The debate, which brought together MEPs, commission officials, journalist and media specialists, looked at the key challenges facing Europe's fourth estate, as newspapers struggle with falling advertising revenue and growing competition from the internet.
Social Europe
16/11/2010
An innovative healthcare agenda for Europe

On Tuesday, 16 November 2010, Friends of Europe, in partnership with Novartis, held its third annual European Policy Summit on healthcare welcoming John Dalli, EU Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy, Laurette Onkelinx, Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health and Social Affairs of Belgium, as well as other senior EU and national policymakers, business leaders, social partners, civil society representatives, academic experts and the international media. There were several hundred participants from the EU and beyond representing all stakeholder categories.

Global Europe, Social Europe, The Future of Europe, Competitive Europe
14/10/2010
The State of Europe: Tough questions for the EU
Opening Friends of Europe’s seventh annual State of Europe summit, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said that after the actions member states have taken to defend the euro and the European Union, it is time for them to move out of survival mode and focus on more forward-looking measures to stimulate innovation, enhance competitiveness and deepen market integration. The high-level roundtable welcomed a select group of 100 senior discussants, including ministers, senior policymakers, business leaders and international press as well as several hundred observers.  
Social Europe
28/09/2010
Just what the doctor ordered: An EU response to medication non-adherence
Medication non-adherence is costing EU governments an estimated 125 billion euros and contributing to the premature deaths of nearly 200,000 Europeans a year, heard the participants at Friends of Europe’s Policymakers Debate, ‘Just what the doctor ordered: an EU response to medication non-adherence’ on 28 September in Brussels.
Social Europe
27/04/2010
Where is Europe's food labelling debate going next?

What information do consumers need to better understand what they are eating, and what regulatory framework might encourage them to rely more on nutrition labels when making food choices? How can industry play its part in displaying nutritional value and contents more clearly without either confusing the consumer or over-simplifying important information?

Global Europe, Social Europe
27/01/2010
Women, Peace & Security

European Commission Vice President Margot Wallström and NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen hosted a high-level conference on women, peace and security in the European Commission premises. This conference saw the participation of Spanish First Vice President Maria Teresa Fernández de la Vega, Former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright alongside civil society representatives, military officials, high-level policy-makers and witnesses.

Social Europe
02/12/2009
Planning Europe's Healthcare Revolution
Europe’s healthcare system is undergoing a revolution, with e-health leading the way. Advances in the ICT industry mean knowledge can move quickly and services can be offered more efficiently and cheaply, but guaranteeing the privacy of patient information is a key challenge. And for the time being citizens can expect to be frustrated in their efforts to have full access to a range of health services across Europe, due to a European Council of Ministers decision to reject plans for a directive making it easier for Europeans to access health services in different member states.
Social Europe, The Future of Europe
30/11/2009
Are Europe and the EU on the same wavelength?
Margot Wallström has for the last five years had the difficult task of connecting the EU to its 500 million citizens. As out-going Vice-President of the European Commission she assesses the “do’s” and “don’ts” of the Communications portfolio.
Social Europe, The Future of Europe
14/10/2009
Communicating the EU in the Member States - Working Group
A working group to discuss the Friends of Europe upcoming publication on bettering EU communication in the member states took place on Wednesday, 14 October 2009 at the Bibliothèque Solvay.
Greening Europe, Social Europe
28/04/2009
Does the Common Fisheries Policy lack 'sustainability'?
In the 40 years since its inception, the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) has never been long out of the headlines. The tensions between safeguarding employment in traditional fishing centres and the need to conserve fish stocks have been inexorable. The position today is more alarming than ever amid increasing job losses in the fisheries sector and dire warnings by environmentalists that Europe’s fishing fleets still need further drastic cutbacks.
Global Europe, Social Europe
02/04/2009
Does Europe have a global vision for tackling water scarcities?
Europe’s cornerstone legislation on water, the Water Framework Directive, is now being implemented, and the European Commission is also unrolling its action plan on water scarcity and drought to define Europe’s approach.
Social Europe
02/04/2009
Can eHealth ease the cost of ageing Europe?
Europe’s ageing population risks overwhelming national healthcare systems in the years ahead, and the financial pressures on our medical infrastructures will be further intensified by the deepening economic crisis.  But although caring for the post-war ‘baby boom’ generation now entering retirement will be expensive, the digital revolution in medical technology and patient information is set to change our healthcare economy.
Social Europe, Competitive Europe
16/03/2009
What can the EU do to sharpen its innovative edge in pharmaceuticals?
Medical science, and in particular pharmaceutical sciences and biotechnology are key elements in Europe’s global competitiveness. Whether they continue to be successful or whether they will decline is highly dependant on EU policy investments. While Europe’s pharmaceuticals sector is a major employer and export earner, in recent years it has seen itself outpaced in many areas by American and other competitors.
Social Europe, Competitive Europe
05/03/2009
Never mind fiscal recovery, what about digital?

The digital economy is central to establishing conditions for economic growth, productivity gains, job creation, social cohesion, and in addressing the challenges of an aging population and climate change.  While EU governments wrangle over the size and shape of economic stimulation measures, what contribution can new technologies make to staving off recession?
Social Europe, Competitive Europe
10/12/2008
Lessons of the financial meltdown: What new rules and architecture?
Friends of Europe in partnership with the Financial Times and with the support of APCO Worldwide will address the issues of the financial crisis in this Café Crossfire debate. It will take place on Wednesday, 10 December at the Bibliothèque Solvay and will start at 12.30.
Social Europe
08/12/2008
Long live Europe! Shaping our healthcare revolution
More than 270 attended this one-day European Policy Summit co-organised by Friends of Europe and Novartis, together with media partner Europe’s World. Against the backdrop of the global financial meltdown, speakers agreed that now more than ever, it is critical not to cut healthcare budgets nor reduce R&D spending.
International Development, Social Europe
06/05/2008
Are sustainable development and economic growth mutually exclusive?
A Café Crossfire evening debate organised on the occasion of the general assembly of Vinyl 2010.
Social Europe
15/04/2008
Could better food information help win the EU's war on obesity?
The European Union has only recently begun addressing the rising levels of obesity, as the phenomenon is a relatively new one. At this Café Crossfire Evening Debate, labeling was hailed as a useful weapon in educating consumers, although there was caution about whether it was enough to reverse Europe’s obesity surge.
Social Europe
14/04/2008
Time to re-assess and fine-tune PPPs linking non-traditional allies?
At this Café Crossfire evening debate organised on 14 April by Friends of Europe in collaboration with the Rainforest Alliance, Jonathan Horrell, Manager for Corporate and Governmental Affairs at Kraft Foods UK and Ireland, Gyula Hegyi, Member of the European Parliament, Michael Scannell, Head of Unit at the European Commission Directorate General for Health and Consumer Protection, and Tensie Whelan, President of the Rainforest Alliance, discussed the importance of partnerships between public, private and civil society sector players in tackling major problems such as food security, climate change and poor labour conditions.
Greening Europe, Social Europe, Competitive Europe
07/04/2008
Shell Energy Scenarios to 2050
With global energy demand likely to double by 2050, what will be the path to a sustainable energy future?
Social Europe
31/01/2008
Europe's Looming Demographic Crunch - The Search for New Labour and Welfare Policies
Speaking at Friends of Europe’s European Policy Summit entitled ‘Europe’s Looming Demographic Crunch – The Search for new Labour and Welfare Policies’ on 31 January 2008, Commissioner Joaquín Almunia insisted that ageing was a good news story. He wanted all EU citizens to enjoy the benefits of longer lives, and he wanted those lives to be spent in good health.
Social Europe
21/01/2008
Adapting the CAP to the new realities
The fashioning of Europe’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and of subsequent reform packages largely reflected the needs of food producers and those responsible for food security. But with a radical re-think of the EU’s entire budget now putting heavy pressure on CAP structures, the outlook is also clouded by the introduction of so many new considerations.
Social Europe
09/10/2007
What ideas does the food industry have for the EU's anti-obesity drive and for making healthy options available?
Obesity is a problem that is affecting many developed societies and if the everincreasing numbers of those who can be defined as obese cannot be reduced shortly Europe will pay in many ways including spiralling health costs, disease and increased mortality.  The question put to the guest speakers and the audience at the Friends of Europe Café Crossfire event on 4 October 2007 was what the food industry has done to help combat the EU’s anti-obesity drive.
Global Europe, Social Europe
12/09/2007
Are global safety rules an achievable goal?
As the European Commission proposal to align the EU system for classifying chemicals with the Globally Harmonised System (GHS) of the United Nations goes before the European Parliament and Council, a Policymakers’ Dinner Debate at Friends of Europe on 12 September asked, are such global safety rules an achievable goal?
Social Europe
07/06/2007
Water Security: Does Europe Have a Strategy?
The growing pressure on water resources, due to economic growth and climate change, gives rise to important policy questions regarding the provision of sufficient clean water to meet population’s needs. At the same time, many sectors such as agriculture, industry and power generation are faced with water supply constraints.
Social Europe
15/05/2007
Did the Commission get the balance right in proposing the aviation carbon cap?
The European Commission set the cat among the pigeons late last year when it announced plans to cap CO2 emissions from all aircraft using EU airports, and to introduce “pollution credits” that airlines could trade as part of the existing Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) for industrial installations.
Social Europe
15/05/2007
Time and Substance: Twin Challenges for Portugal's EU Presidency
Speaking at the latest Friends of Europe Policy Spotlight, Portuguese Foreign Minister Luís Amado spelled out his country’s comprehensive plans for the next EU Presidency. Describing the urgent need for a new constitutional treaty, Amado said the basis already exists and that Portugal will act quickly if it receives the appropriate mandate in June from the German Presidency. The Minister also set out the case for a greater focus on the EU’s southern borders and for a solid partnership with the African Union.
Global Europe, Social Europe
04/05/2007
Political Cartoons: Where should we draw the line?
The “Cartooning for Peace” initiative was launched in October 2006 by Kofi Annan and French newspaper Le Monde’s cartoonist Plantu in the wake of the cartoon crisis over Danish caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad.
Social Europe
17/04/2007
Is a pan-European postal market now in sight?
Europe’s postal services have undergone dramatic economic, technological and political change in the two decades since EU policymakers first began to introduce reforms as part of the Single Market strategy. But further substantial change is now in the offing as the European Commission puts the finishing touches to its proposal for the opening of national postal and delivery markets to EU-wide competition by 2009.
Social Europe
08/03/2007
Policy Spotlight with François Bayrou
François Bayrou, President of France’s UDF centrist party and candidate in the presidential elections in May, outlined his strategy to address the fundamental crises in the EU on Thursday 08 March at Friends of Europe. In his landmark address he outlined to a capacity audience of international press, NGOs, EU officials and business leaders, how France needs to be at the centre of efforts to provoke a Europe-wide political debate on the EU’s future.
Social Europe, Competitive Europe
05/03/2007
Can Self-Regulation cut through the EU’s Red Tape?
“Less red tape means more growth,” promised Enterprise Commissioner Gunter Verheugen a year ago, and he’s followed up with a very recent proposal to work with EU member governments on a plan to reduce by 25% the administrative burden on companies.
Social Europe
29/01/2007
The European Agencies: Who needs them?
Since they were introduced in the mid-1970's, European Agencies have provided specialised advice and information on specific European topics. This debate will discuss pertinant issues relating to the Agencies such as scope of political supervision, the limits of their independence and what advantages, if any, do they bring to the EU project?
Social Europe
24/01/2007
Whetting the consumer's appetite for new EU food labelling rules
The labels on food products are the closest that many people get to EU rules and regulations, and offer European policymakers a valuable means of encouraging healthier eating. With the Commission now pondering a revised nutrition labelling directive, what should be the ingredients for a new and unified EU-wide system? What sort of information should consumers be able to find on food labels and packaging, and how should the new directive reconcile scientific rigour with better communication?
Social Europe
22/01/2007
Does Europe yet have the roads that lead to economic prosperity?
Europe’s roads, and in particular motorways, are the arteries of the economy, and the EU’s enlargement underlines the wide differences and challenges that already exist in the Union’s roads infrastructure. Is the European Commission’s revised Transport White Paper the right tool?
Social Europe
23/11/2006
Europe's Demographic Challenge
Europe’s economy needs a well educated and youthful labour force if it is to expand and hold its own against increasingly fierce competition from around the world. But demographers warn that with their shrinking and rapidly ageing populations, EU countries will be poorly placed unless determined policy measures are adopted soon.
Social Europe
20/09/2006
EU policymakers' options on patient information
The major strides achieved in healthcare and medical science have not been matched by comparable advances in the information available to patients about treatment options. Strict regulations in Europe governing the direct provision to consumers of information on prescription medicines limit patients' access to information on the treatment options available to them. Opinion polls suggest that many of Europe's citizens are dissatisfied with this, and are also making increasing use of Internet healthcare sites that are beyond EU controls.
Social Europe
13/09/2006
How safe is REACH making Europe's consumers?
After seven years of intense negotiation between EU policymakers, industry representatives and both consumer and environmental organisations, the EU's REACH strategy for making chemical products safer is nearing completion.
Social Europe
08/06/2006
Meeting Europe's Obesity Challenge
Europe’s obesity problem has taken on epidemic proportions; Finland, Germany, Greece, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Malta now have overweight rates that surpass the US. With 14 million children in the EU now overweight and up to 27% of men, 38% of women and 3 million children clinically obese in some parts of the EU, must we revise our econometric and health projections in the years ahead?
Social Europe
27/05/2006
Do Foundations Play a Political Role in Europe?
Roundtable discussion of the pros and cons of a higher profile role of foundations in the EU policymaking process. Hosted by the Madariaga European Foundation and by Europe's World , the only Europe-Wide policy journal.
Social Europe, Competitive Europe
25/04/2006
Automotive Research: Recapturing Europe’s Lead
While transport is one of Europe’s economic strengths it is also responsible of 25 % of the emissions of CO2 and causing still some 41 600 deaths per year. Technology should be used to improve this situation and at the same time improve European technological edge in global markets if we want to become the most competitive economy by 2010.
Social Europe
20/03/2006
Who’ll benefit most from the EU’s Single Payments Area?
The debate on the Single European Payments Area (SEPA) produced a lively discussion, much of it centred on whether the project was on schedule. The European Banking Federation’s (FBE’s) Secretary General Guido Ravoet did admit that there had been slippage but he insisted that the banks were fully committed to the project. Visa’s Johannes Van der Velde was firm. The project was behind schedule but it wasn’t just the fault of the banks. He wanted a harmonised legislative system as a pre-requisite to SEPA.
Social Europe, The Future of Europe
08/03/2006
Who’s afraid of the Polish plumber? The road ahead for the single market in services
With the Services Directive on the latest Friends of Europe Café Crossfire’s agenda, there was always likely to be a divergence of views. By the end of the debate, it was not entirely clear if the “country of origin” principle was completely out of the revised directive or still embedded within the text. It was all a matter of definition. However, the Commission’s Martin Power, the European Parliament’s Evelyne Gebhardt and the ETUC’s Jozef Niemiec were all united in supporting the revised directive on its way to the Council. It obviously had something for everyone.
Social Europe
07/03/2006
Policy Drivers for Change: Meeting Europe’s Road Safety Challenge
The Commission’s mid-term review of the EU Road Safety Action Plan is due to target a halving of road accident fatalities in the EU-25 by 2010. Although it is clearly a daunting challenge, it could be achieved if the Union as a whole were to introduce road safety improvements akin to those already accomplished by the UK and Sweden.
Social Europe
07/03/2006
Policy Drivers for Change: Meeting Europe’s Road Safety Challenge
The Commission’s mid-term review of the EU Road Safety Action Plan is due to target a halving of road accident fatalities in the EU-25 by 2010. Although it is clearly a daunting challenge, it could be achieved if the Union as a whole were to introduce road safety improvements akin to those already accomplished by the UK and Sweden.
Social Europe, Competitive Europe
22/02/2006
What can CEOs do to push the Lisbon Agenda?
More than 200 participants took part in the latest Friends of Europe Café Crossfire debate. The debate focussed on what company chief executives can do to advance the objectives of the much-vaunted Lisbon Agenda. When European leaders met in Lisbon in March 2000 they set the EU to ambitious goal of becoming "the most dynamic and competitive knowledge-based economy in the world" by the end of the decade. But six years on Europe is hardly the beacon of economic growth and prosperity that leaders imagined.
Social Europe, The Future of Europe
01/02/2006
Will it Work? An Open Debate on the Commission White Paper - Debating Europe, Involving People
The Commission has put in place the third and last piece of its new communication puzzle by adopting its White Paper on communication policy. A well-attended conference on the same day proved that the Commission is not the sole owner of the EU communication strategy.
Social Europe, Competitive Europe
30/11/2005
Is Europe on the road to greater transport efficiency?
This was an informal brainstorming dinner for invitees of Friends of Europe. No surprises, perhaps at this latest 'Press and Policy-makers Dinner Debate' devoted to greater transport efficiency. 'More needs to be done, without endangering the transport industry,' appears to be the conclusion.
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