This episode of EuropeChats is a discussion between Ann Mettler, Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Columbia University, and TEPSA Executive Director, Mariam Khotenashvili. The discussion focuses on the EU's competitiveness, the future of the Single Market, and the Omnibus proposal by the Commission, which aims to simplify and harmonise the EU's digital laws.

Ann Mettler is a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Columbia Center for Global Energy Policy. Until recently, Ann promoted the green transition at Breakthrough Energy, an organisation founded by Bill Gates, and previously she headed the European Political Strategy Centre, in-house think-tank of the European Commission during the Presidency of Jean-Claude Juncker.

EuropeChats is the flagship podcast of TEPSA and it is part of the TEPSA Podcast Channel “Europe Speaks”

Music: Worakls, 22 September 2014, Salzburg, Hungry music

This video is co-funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme of the European Union

Co-Funded by the European Union.

This episode of EuropeChats is a discussion between Klaus Welle, Former Secretary-General of the European Parliament, and TEPSA Secretary-General Jim Cloos. The discussion focuses on the EU long-term budget, the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), covering the years 2028 – 2034.

The MFF sets the EU’s financing methods and policy priorities for the next 7 years. This episode looks at the history of the MFF, its evolution through the years, and its ability to address the challenges the EU is facing. It also explores the Commission’s recent proposal for the next MFF and questions whether it can be considered a ‘Hamiltonian moment’ for Europe.

Klaus Welle is the former Secretary-General of the European Parliament. He chairs the Martens Centre’s Academic Council since April 2023, and, in May 2025, he was appointed Special Advisor to the Commissioner for Defence and Space.

EuropeChats is the flagship podcast of TEPSA and it is part of the TEPSA Podcast Channel “Europe Speaks”

Music: Worakls, 22 September 2014, Salzburg, Hungry music

This video is co-funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme of the European Union

Co-Funded by the European Union.

This episode of EuropeChats is a discussion between Erik Jones, Director of the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute, Mariam Khotenashvili, Executive Director of TEPSA, and TEPSA Secretary-General Jim Cloos. The discussion, recorded in late June 2025, examines the first months of Donald Trump’s second term in the White House and what they mean for transatlantic relations.

This episode is a discussion with Erik Jones. Erik is Director of the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute and a Nonresident Scholar at Carnegie Europe. He is the author, editor, or co-editor of books and special issues of journals on topics related to European politics and political economy. Professor Jones is co-editor of Government & Opposition and a contributing editor of Survival. His commentary has appeared in the Financial Times, the New York Times, and other major newspapers and magazines across Europe and North America.

This episode also takes place in the context of TEPSA’s latest book, to which Erik Jones has contributed. “The United States and the Future of Europe: Views from the Capitals”, is co-edited by Michael Kaeding, Johannes Pollak, and Paul Schmidt, and published by Springer.

EuropeChats is the flagship podcast of TEPSA and it is part of the TEPSA Podcast Channel “Europe Speaks”

Music: Worakls, 22 September 2014, Salzburg, Hungry music

This video is co-funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme of the European Union

Co-Funded by the European Union.

This episode of EuropeChats is a discussion between Giselle Bosse, Professor at Maastricht University, and TEPSA Executive Director Mariam Khotenashvili. The discussion focuses on the EU enlargement process in the context of a turbulent geopolitical landscape and against the backdrop of Russia’s war against Ukraine.

Giselle Bosse is full professor at Maastricht University, Visiting Professor at the College of Europe and a fellow at the European Democracy Hub. She is a leading expert on EU democracy support, Eastern Neighbourhood and European security.

EuropeChats is the flagship podcast of TEPSA and it is part of the TEPSA Podcast Channel “Europe Speaks”

Music: Worakls, 22 September 2014, Salzburg, Hungry music

This video is co-funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme of the European Union

Co-Funded by the European Union.

In this new episode of EU History Explained, Giulia Bonacquisti, Programme Manager at the Trans European Policy Studies Association (TEPSA), takes a look at the history of the European Commission, the institution that proposes laws, defends the common European interest, and acts as ‘guardian of the Treaties’. We’ll look at how it grew from a bold post-war experiment into a key force shaping today’s Union.

This video takes us from Jean Monnet’s idea to pool together France and Germany’s coal and steel industries following the end of the Second World War with the European Coal and Steel Community and its High Authority, through the establishment of the European Communities and the subsequent merger of their executives, including the High Authority, into the European Commission, right up to the Commission of today.

EU History Explained is TEPSA’s video series exploring the origins of the modern EU. If you have ever wondered how the European Union of today came to be, or what lies behind the talk of politics being shaped in ‘Brussels’, then this is the series for you!

We would like to warmly thank the following institutions for their support in the production of this video: Historical Archives of the European Union, Jean Monnet House, European Parliament Partnerships Team.

Script: Giulia Bonacquisti Recording & Editing: Barbara Vanotti & Hugh Evans Music: Garrett Bevins - Infinite - Infinite (Wondershare Filmora X)

In this new episode of EU History Explained, Giulia Bonacquisti, Programme Manager at the Trans European Policy Studies Association (TEPSA), takes a look at the history of the European Parliament, an institution at the heart of pan-European democracy. We'll learn about the world’s first experiment in transnational democracy, whose members are unique among international parliamentary assemblies insofar as they are directly elected by the citizens they represent. We'll also learn about how the Parliament's powers have expanded over the course of the European project from the 1950s to today.

This video takes us from the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951, a key step in the post-war Schuman Plan to secure lasting peace in Europe by pooling the French and German coal and steel industries, and the High Authority which managed this arrangement, through the decision to create a Common Assembly of appointed members to hold the supranational High Authority accountable, and beyond. From this origin, we trace the history of the Common Assembly under various guises - from European Parliamentary Assembly to today's directly elected European Parliament, noting the key moments where its powers and representativeness have evolved over the years.

EU History Explained is TEPSA’s video series exploring the origins of the modern EU. If you have ever wondered how the European Union of today came to be, or what lies behind the talk of politics being shaped in ‘Brussels’, then this is the series for you!

We would like to warmly thank the following institutions for their support in the production of this video: Historical Archives of the European Union, European Parliament Partnerships Team.

Script: Giulia Bonacquisti Recording & Editing: Barbara Vanotti & Hugh Evans Music: Garrett Bevins - Infinite - Infinite (Wondershare Filmora X)

This episode of EuropeChats is a discussion between Marc De Vos, CEO of the Itinera Institute and author of "Superpower Europe: The European Union's Silent Revolution", and TEPSA Secretary-General Jim Cloos. The discussion focuses on the place of the European Union in the world, its potential to rival the major powers, and what it needs to harness that potential.

Marc De Vos is CEO and founder of Itinera. His expertise is wide-ranging, covering the European Union, globalisation, and economics among others. He is a professor at Ghent University, a published author, and a strategic consultant.

EuropeChats is the flagship podcast of TEPSA and it is part of the TEPSA Podcast Channel “Europe Speaks”

Music: Worakls, 22 September 2014, Salzburg, Hungry music

This video is co-funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme of the European Union

Co-Funded by the European Union.

The European Union is built on a set of supposedly shared values among its Member States, defined in the Treaties as "human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights". But democratic backsliding means that even if a Member State 'signs up' for these at time of accession, it's no guarantee that this commitment will remain during their membership.

In this episode of EU Democracy Explained, the second in a two-part mini-series on democratic backsliding in Europe, Hugh Evans explains why Article 7, infringement procedures, and the rule of law conditionality regulation may not be all they're cracked up to be in terms of protecting the quality of democracy in the EU. We also look at what might change in future, looking ahead to the new Commission under President Ursula von der Leyen.

EU Democracy Explained is a series where we delve into detail about what democracy actually is and how it works in Europe, and ask ourselves: “what makes the EU democratic?”

Script, Recording & Editing: Hugh Evans

Music: Wondershare Filmora X

Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.