Although it makes for a great dramatic effect, the theories of the sudden death of democracy disregard the gradual erosion and capture of institutions, and the role of the populace - argues political scientist John Keane.

Keane, a key theoretician of media history joins from his home in Melbourne, Australia to discuss his article, 'How democracies die, fast and slow'. 
https://www.eurozine.com/how-democracies-die-fast-and-slow/

A longer version of this conversation with bonus material is available to Eurozine's patrons. Support our work with as little as €5/month or more to access extra content and help sustain this publication that connects you with over 100 publications from across Europe. https://www.patreon.com/Eurozine

Today's topic is the keynote article Eurozine's new focal point, 'The writing on the wall'. In it, Keane and Co. discuss the challenges democracies fact worldwide. On a more practical note, analyses map the state of democratic governance in Serbia, Moldova, Croatia, Bulgaria and Ukraine, Iran, Turkey, Georgia, Brazil and Greece - and more are to come. https://www.eurozine.com/focal-points/writing-on-the-wall/

Please subscribe to the podcast and leave a review so more people can find us. You can also subscribe to our weekly newsletter, so you’ll always know what’s worth thinking about: www.eurozine.com/newsletter/

The myth of sudden death - John Keane on democracies

The European experience has changed in biblical proportions in the past year. A major land war in Ukraine, instances of genocide, and the continued rise of anti-democratic political movements pose more than a mere challenge. On the other hand, the introduction of AI to the general public is yet not fully understood. All of these are framed by the increasing disruptions of the climate crisis. Where to, then, for Project Europe? André Wilkens returns to the pod to identify opportunities among the threats and to announce a major new project.

A longer version of this conversation with bonus material is available to Eurozine's patrons. Support our work with as little as €5/month or more to access extra content and help sustain this publication that connects you with over 100 publications from across Europe. www.patreon.com/Eurozine

Please subscribe to the podcast and leave a review so more people can find us. You can also subscribe to our weekly newsletter, so you’ll always know what’s worth thinking about: www.eurozine.com/newsletter/

No turning a blind eye - André Wilkens on making things happen

Overlapping crises, enforced political passivity and a new political normal: all things that gradually dismantle a democracy. Long standing Eurozine contributor, historian Ferenc Laczó joins editor-in-chief Réka Kinga Papp to discuss how a democracy can be alive and dead at the same time. 

Laczó took part in the discussion about how democracies die in the Eurozine focal point ‘The writing on the wall’ with his article 'How democracies transform, fast and slow' : https://www.eurozine.com/how-democracies-transform-fast-and-slow/

A longer version of this conversation with bonus material is available to Eurozine's patrons. Support our work with as little as €5/month or more to access extra content and help sustain this publication that connects you with over 100 publications from across Europe. www.patreon.com/Eurozine

Please subscribe to the podcast and leave a review so more people can find us. You can also subscribe to our weekly newsletter, so you’ll always know what’s worth thinking about: www.eurozine.com/newsletter/

Living dead democracy - Ferenc Laczó on democide

Clock times and social times conflict across much of Europe. Timekeeping is a deeply political matter, and João Lipinsky Nunes of Better Times takes issue with them.

This conversation is a bonus to accompany our talk show episode on timekeeping from our Standard Time production: https://www.eurozine.com/its-about-time/

Please subscribe, like this episode and check out Standard Time at eurozine.com/standardtime

Time zones are out of joint

The Active Amputee blog's Björn Eser belives that the way we go about prosthetics should change. He's a lover of the outdoors, even more so since his amputation, but he takes an issue with the limits of social and medical support for disabled people. https://www.theactiveamputee.org/

Please support Eurozine on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Eurozine

Prosthetic library: the Active Amputee

Welcome to the first episode in the Knowledgeable Youth series! This series is developed by students from the Free People Educational Hub – a school for young people from Ukraine based in Vienna, who have been displaced by Russia's war on Ukraine. Together, they explore current themes in the social sciences. This episode introduces the young voices behind Knowledgeable Youth and shares how education is a means to freedom for them.

This project was co-ordinated by Carine Chen (Eurozine) and Irena Remestwenski (RECET).

Knowledgable Youth: Science Communication in Times of War is co-organised by Eurozine, RECET, Radio Orange and the Free People Educational Hub in Vienna. The project is funded by the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna. Read more about the project here: https://www.eurozine.com/focal-points/youth-project/.

I feel freedom when I am in my school | Knowledgeable Youth #1

In the second episode of Knowledgeable Youth, the students of the Free People Educational Hub discuss a theme that is close to their current experience and many others' in Vienna: migration. The group of Ukrainian students explore migration with Ukrainian scientist and researcher Olena Yermakova of RECET, drawing insights from her article "The Way Home.“ Join the students as they reflect on migration through their personal experience of forced displacement. 

Knowledgable Youth: Science Communication in Times of War is co-organised by Eurozine, RECET, Radio Orange and the Free People Educational Hub in Vienna. The project is funded by the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna. Read more about the project here: https://www.eurozine.com/focal-points/youth-project/.

It's important to be open | Knowledgeable Youth #2

In the third episode of Knowledgeable Youth, the Ukrainian students of the Free People Educational Hub in Vienna discuss tertiary education. Due to differences in school systems between Ukraine and Austria, Ukrainian adolescents often enter university earlier than Austrian students. Their conversation focuses on the article "Bleaching Blue Collars“ by Polish scientist and researcher Agata Zysiak, drawing insights from the experiences of first-generation students under state socialism in Poland and the barriers they faced when trying to enter university. The students share their own thoughts about entering university and the difficulties and challenges they might encounter in Vienna.

Knowledgable Youth: Science Communication in Times of War is co-organised by Eurozine, RECET, Radio Orange and the Free People Educational Hub in Vienna. The project is funded by the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna. Read more about the project here: www.eurozine.com/focal-points/youth-project/.

Science is cool | Knowledgeable Youth #3

In the final episode of Knowledgeable Youth, the Ukrainian students of the Free People Educational Hub in Vienna reflect on what kind of future they envision for themselves and the world. Their conversation is inspired by the article “Children of the Twenty-First Century” by Lucas Becht, which delves into young people’s futuristic visions in Poland around the 1960s. The students discuss where they see themselves after high school, and what their impressions of Austria and life in Vienna have been so far.

Knowledgable Youth: Science Communication in Times of War is co-organised by Eurozine, RECET, Radio Orange and the Free People Educational Hub in Vienna. The project is funded by the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna. Read more about the project here: www.eurozine.com/focal-points/youth-project/.

It was a cozy atmosphere | Knowledgeable Youth #4

In this edition of the Gagarin podcast, we talk with Per Nyholm, a seasoned journalist whose multiple visits to Ukraine’s front line provide stark, first-hand insights, critical of Trump’s bullish intervention. The Danish reporter also holds strong views on the US President’s land-grabbing plans for Greenland.

Per Nyholm for Gagarin

We help you cut through the noise and make sense of things. Eurozine brings you diverse voices from across Europe.