Böll·Europe

On 29 October, the Netherlands went to the polls in a much-anticipated election that could reshape the country’s political landscape – and its role in Europe. After two years of a populist government, the centrist liberal party D66, led by Rob Jetten, emerged as the winner. Meanwhile, the GroenLinks–PvdA alliance fell short of expectations, raising new questions about the future of the Dutch centre-left – and about what comes next in coalition talks. So – what happened, what’s next, and why should Brussels care?

In this new Böll·Europe Podcast episode, host Joan Lanfranco talks with Noortje Thijssen, Director of the Wetenschappelijk Bureau GroenLinks, the political foundation of GroenLinks, the Dutch green party. Noortje is also since 2023 Senator for GroenLinks-PvdA at the Dutch Upper House. We unpack with Noortje the election results, the prospects for coalition-building, and what this means for the Netherlands’ direction – both at home and in Europe.

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Check out our new "Böll EU Brief format".

Host: Joan Lanfranco

Edition and visuals: Aleyna Naz Coşkun

For any question about the Böll·Europe Podcast and for cross-posting, contact Joan Lanfranco.

Czechia voted for change – but what kind? Andrej Babiš makes a comeback, the Greens return to parliament, and populism takes a new shape. Adéla Jurečková, Director of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung Prague office, breaks down the results and what they mean for Czech democracy and the EU.

On 3-4 October 2025, Czechia elected a new parliament – and marked the return of Andrej Babiš to power. His ANO party won 34.5 percent of the vote, while the governing coalition lost its majority. At the same time, the Czech Greens returned to parliament for the first time in 15 years, and female candidates achieved record success. In this episode of the Böll·Europe podcast, host Joan Lanfranco speaks with Adéla Jurečková, Director of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung Prague office, about the key takeaways from the election: the rise of the Motorists’ party, voter divides between centre and periphery, Czechia’s support for Ukraine, and what to expect from a Babiš-led government in Brussels and beyond.

Check out all our articles, web dossiers and publications on our website.

Check out our new "Böll EU Brief format".

Host, edition and visuals: Joan Lanfranco

For any question about the Böll·Europe Podcast and for cross-posting, contact Joan Lanfranco.

After a busy 2024 “super election year”, we keep looking at elections taking place in 2025. Joan Lanfranco, Head of Communications and Outreach at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's EU office in Brussels unpacks election results with the insights of colleagues and partners around the world. Who’s winning? Who’s losing? And what’s at stake for the EU and the global order?

In this Böll·Europe Podcast episode we focus on the run-off of the presidential election in Poland 🇵🇱, which took place on Sunday 1 June 2025. Our guest is Maciej Makulski, Head of Europe and International Politics at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's Warsaw office.

Karol Nawrocki of the Law and Justice party (PiS) narrowly won Poland’s presidential run-off—dealing a serious blow to Donald Tusk’s pro-European coalition government. What does this mean for Polish politics, the EU, and the balance of power in Warsaw?

If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button, leave a review, and share it with your friends and colleagues! All other Böll·Europe Podcast episodes are on our website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube.

Check out all our articles, web dossiers and publications on our website.

Host, edition and visuals: Joan Lanfranco

For any question about the Böll·Europe Podcast and for cross-posting, contact Joan Lanfranco.

After a busy 2024 “super election year”, we keep looking at elections taking place in 2025. Joan Lanfranco, Head of Communications and Outreach at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's EU office in Brussels unpacks election results with the insights of colleagues and partners around the world. Who’s winning? Who’s losing? And what’s at stake for the EU and the global order?

In this episode we focus on the snap federal elections in Germany 🇩🇪, which took place on Sunday 23 February 2025. Our guest is Dietrich Herrmann, since 2024 Head of the Government, Administration and Political Parties Division at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's headquarters in Berlin. Dietrich holds a PhD in modern history from the Free University of Berlin. From 1994 to 2013 he worked in political science research at Dresden University. He worked at the Alliance 90/The Greens parliamentary group in the Saxon State Parliament from 2015 to 2020. From 2020 to 2022, he established the new Department of Citizen Participation in the Saxon State Ministry of Justice and for Democracy, Europe and Equality.

If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button, leave a review, and share it with your friends and colleagues! All other Böll·Europe Podcast episodes are on our website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Deezer.

Check out all our articles, web dossiers and publications on our website.

Host: Joan Lanfranco

Edition and visuals: Laura Moreno

For any question about the Böll·Europe Podcast and for cross-posting, contact Joan Lanfranco.

After a busy 2024 “super election year”, we keep looking at elections taking place in 2025. Joan Lanfranco, Head of Communications and Outreach at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's EU office in Brussels unpacks election results with the insights of colleagues and partners around the world. Who’s winning? Who’s losing? And what’s at stake for the EU and the global order?

In this episode we focus on parliamentary elections in Kosovo 🇽🇰, which took place on Sunday 9 February 2025. Our guest is Granit Gashi, Kosovo Contact Point at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's Belgrade office. Granit is an environmentalist and sustainability pioneer in Kosovo, and has previously worked for civil society organisations such as GAIA Kosovo, BirdLife Serbia. He’s also the co-founder of the Foundation for Animal Rights in Kosovo.

If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button, leave a review, and share it with your friends and colleagues! All other Böll·Europe Podcast episodes are on our website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Deezer.

Check out all our articles, web dossiers and publications on our website.

Host: Joan Lanfranco

Edition and visuals: Laura Moreno

For any question about the Böll·Europe Podcast and for cross-posting, contact Joan Lanfranco.

2024 was a super election year, with more than half the world’s population going to the polls, including elections to the European Parliament, and the US Presidential election.

Roderick Kefferpütz, Director of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung EU talks to Reinhard Bütikofer. He was Member of the European Parliament for the Green/EFA group for 15 years, from 2009 to 2024. During his time at the European Parliament, Reinhard Bütikofer focused on foreign affairs, international trade, and EU-China relations. He served as the chair of the EP delegation for relations with China and was a long-standing member of the delegation for relations with the United States. As Co-Chair of the European Green Party from 2012 to 2019, and as a Leader of the German Green Party from 2002 to 2008, he played an important role in shaping Green policies in Europe. In this episode, they delve into his insights on evolving global challenges, the trajectory of Green EU policies, and the future of EU-China relations, in a conversation filled with reflections, and strategies for addressing pressing global issues.

All other Böll·Europe Podcast episodes are on our website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Deezer.

Check out all our articles, web dossiers and publications on our website.

If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button, leave a review, and share it with your friends and colleagues!

For any question about the Böll·Europe Podcast and for cross-posting, contact Joan Lanfranco.

In 2023, Javier Milei, a self-described “anarcho-capitalist” surprised Argentina’s political establishment and won the presidential elections. He’s an admirer of US President-elect Donald Trump and of tech mogul Elon Musk, and his political platform is characterised by hash austerity and a very conservative social agenda. Using the rulebook of other illiberal regimes throughout the world when it comes to political communications and dealing with pluralism, his style and policies are making waves worldwide. What is going on in Argentina and what are the implications for human rights, digital rights and the environment? Joan Lanfranco, Head of Communications and Outreach at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung EU office, explores these dimensions with 3 Argentinian civil society representatives that visited Brussels in November of 2024, to present their case to key EU decision-makers and stakeholders.

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If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button, leave a review, and share it with your friends and colleagues!

For any question about the Böll·Europe Podcast and for cross-posting, contact Joan Lanfranco.

Nobody knows exactly how to permanently restore a lost humus layer on large fields. Yet soil degradation is already a serious problem today. More than 60 percent of soils in the EU are already damaged and more than a third of the world's arable land is already degraded. Will we soon run out of fertile soil to feed a growing world population, as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has already warned? A soil protection directive is to be adopted at EU level. However, critics complain that we are running out of time: soils and the fertile humus layer must be built up and protected more quickly and sustainably using the methods we already know.

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With soaring land prices, small family farms can barely survive on their yields. Buying or leasing additional land is becoming impossible for most farmers. The “death of farms” is accelerating particularly quickly where large investors from outside the agricultural sector have discovered land as an object of speculation. Particularly in Eastern Europe, farmers are often outbid by non-agricultural investors, as we can see in Romania and Hungary. The statistics show that ever fewer owners now own ever larger areas of land. Oligarchs in Hungary are taking advantage of the situation with serve consequences, as a research of the New York Times shows.

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