FEPS Talks

Europe is good at creating new technologies and innovative ideas, but too often European companies struggle to get the funding they need to grow. While the EU has traditionally looked to the 🇺🇸 USA and Silicon Valley for inspiration, could 🇨🇳 China offer Europe some useful lessons on how to help innovative companies scale up and strengthen Europe’s industrial base?

In this episode of FEPS Talks, Anna Kolesnichenko, FEPS Policy Analyst on Economy, talks to Cornel Ban, Associate Professor of International Political Economy at Copenhagen Business School, about how Europe can better finance its growing companies and turn innovation into industrial strength.

They explore why European start-ups often struggle to move from innovation to growth, what Europe can learn from China’s approach to funding new companies, and how the EU could make it easier for promising businesses to grow, scale up production and compete internationally.

📕 Read FEPS policy study “How can Europe’s missing middle be financed” by Cornel Ban on our website.

📺🔊 Available on YouTube, Spotify & Deezer

AI continues to remain a priority topic on the political agenda. As the EU leverages an increasing number of policy and financial instruments to stimulate the development and uptake of AI in Europe, this technology permeates virtually every aspect of our lives: our work, when we access public services, in education, our private lives and so on. Monty Aal, FEPS Policy Analyst for Digital talks to MEP Katarina Barley, Vice-President of the European Parliament and Chair of the AI Working Group of the Party of European Socialists.

In the episode they talk about why AI is one of the biggest challenges of current times, how Europe can decrease it's dependence on the US, what the social-democratic vision on AI should be and how the centre-left can build alliances across ideological and party lines to create the political majorities needed to steer AI in Europe in a direction where it benefits society as a whole, not just a handful of tech oligarchs who have accumulated unseen amounts of money and power.

Many observers expect the 2026 FIFA World Cup to be the most political in history because it will unfold amid intensifying geopolitical rivalries, migration disputes, debates over democracy and human rights, and tensions involving participating countries such as Iran, all while being hosted by three North American countries.

In this episode of FEPS Talks, Christian Salm, FEPS Head of Democracy and Participation Programmes, talks to Cas Mudde, Dutch Political Scientist and Research Professor of International Affairs at University of Georgia/US about the politics around the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

They explore and discuss issues ranging from the impact of the Iran conflict on the 2026 FIFA World Cup, to the legitimization of controversial policies during the event, potential boycott measures, and the role of football in political campaigning.

📺🔊 Available on YouTube, Spotify & Apple Podcast

In this episode of FEPS Talks, Josep Borrell Fontelles (former EU HRVP, former European Parliament president, former foreign minister of Spain and former chair of the FEPS Scientific Council) shares his opinion about the current challenges which the global disruption pose for the European Union. He explains why it is so hard to forge a stronger, more effective common foreign policy, especially in times of war and the transition towards multipolarity.

Josep Borrell advocates a closer coordination of defence policy within the EU, but highlights the risk of losing some of the soft power of the EU on the way. Europe can and must champion multilateralism and international law, in all contexts and geographic regions. He believes that progressive politicians and experts can learn from the Spanish example, and specifically the courageous and principled leadership of Pedro Sánchez.

📺🔊 Available on YouTube, Spotify & Apple Podcast

🎧 In the spirit of #IWD2026, listen to the latest episode of FEPS Talks focusing on #FeministForeignPolicy with Lina Gálvez, FEPS Vice-President and MEP and Toni Haastrup, Chair in Global Politics, School of Social Sciences, University of Manchester.

🌎 ♀️ As debates around multilateralism intensify and the global order shifts, rules we thought were here to stay are suddenly under threat. #FeministForeignPolicy can open a pathway to embed gender-responsive, justice-oriented thinking and an accountability framework into international relations, and to rethink what security, cooperation, and power should look like.

In this conversation, Lina Gálvez, FEPS Vice-President and Chair of FEPS Scientific Council; S&D MEP and Chair of Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, and Toni Haastrup, Professor and Chair in Global Politics, School of Social Sciences, University of Manchester, discuss #FeministForeignPolicy in depth.

The podcast recording is part of the initiative by FEPS in collaboration with the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung on the Feminist Foreign Policy Progressive Voices Collective (FFPPVC). The Collective questions traditional approaches to foreign policy to enable an alternative account of foreign relations from the standpoint of the most disadvantaged. The work of the Collective provides insights into what might be the most challenging questions regarding feminist foreign policy today.

The Collective is co-chaired by Ann Linde, former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden and Machris Cabreros, Co-Chair of the network and Coordinator at Progressive Alliance.

Foreign affairs is still designed with masculine power at its core, and feminists, especially women and the LGBTQIA+ community, continue to be underrepresented in this area - despite evidence proving a positive effect of diverse negotiation teams. They also warn about the growing anti-gender backlash and the political efforts to weaken democracy by targeting feminist movements.

At a time of shrinking aid and increasing geopolitical competition, they stress the need for global #FeministSolidarity and renewed commitment to equality and human security.

🎧 Listen to the latest episode of FEPS Talks with FEPS President Nicolas Schmit!

🇪🇺 🇱🇺 Nicolas Schmit was the lead candidate of the European socialists at the 2024 elections for the European Parliament. As a former Minister in Luxembourg and EU Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, he has now returned as FEPS president to lead the progressive think tank and contribute to a social democratic reconstruction.

❗ In this conversation with FEPS Secretary-General László Andor, he points to the rise of the far-right which, aggravated by the transatlantic rupture, represents a great danger to Europe’s social models and democratic standards.

For inspiration, he looks at the recent interventions of Canadian PM Mark Carney (on international order) and the election of Zohran Mamdani (regarding the importance of affordability and working conditions), and highlights the example of Spain under Pedro Sánchez, whose policies and political strategy offer good lessons and a timely orientation for our movement in Europe and globally.

In a year marked by political backsliding and a return to outdated economic thinking, FEPS is proud to name Mariana Mazzucato as its Progressive Person of the Year. Through books such as The Entrepreneurial State and The Big Con, Mariana Mazzucato has contributed to key debates on the role of the state and public purpose in the economy.

In this special edition of FEPS Talks Podcast, renowned economist and author Mariana Mazzucato joins László Andor for a wide-ranging conversation on why economics is never neutral, and why the real challenge today is not fixing markets, but actively shaping them.

From parasitic public-private partnerships to the limits of competitiveness, from the EU’s Green Deal and the Draghi report to state capacity, mission-driven industrial policy and dignity, Mazzucato challenges orthodox thinking and calls for a new political economy that serves people and planet.

This interview is also part of the 2026 edition of the Progressive Yearbook edited by FEPS and launched during FEPS’ traditional New Year Reception at our Headquarters in Brussels.

Europe is facing a growing mental health crisis. From digital overload to workplace burnout and addiction, too many people are struggling to stay healthy in systems that make them ill.

In this episode of FEPS Talks, François Balate, FEPS Policy Analyst on Social Affairs, sits down with three leading experts: Sara Bojarczuk (University of Warsaw), Aida Bikic (University of Southern Denmark) and Jana Michailidu (University of Chemistry and Technology, Prague), co-authors of the FEPS Policy Brief "Healthy Minds, Stronger Europe"

🇮🇪 Delivery Matters More Than Promises

In this episode of the Progressive Pollsters FEPS Talks series, Kevin Cunningham, MD and founder of Ireland Thinks, joins Ania Skrzypek, FEPS Director for Research and Training, to reflect on the evolving dynamics of Irish politics — from shifting trust in institutions to the lessons progressives can draw from Ireland’s distinctive landscape.

🗳️ Cunningham explains how delivery, rather than rhetoric, shaped voter confidence during the cost-of-living crisis — and why Ireland’s absence of a strong radical right sets it apart. Yet, he also highlights the warning signs: growing frustration among younger voters, deep divides in housing and migration debates, and a widening gender gap — with young women more focused on Gaza and social justice, and young men increasingly concerned about immigration.

🌹 In the run-up to PES Congress in Amsterdam Progressive Mobilisation, the Next Left Progressive Pollsters series highlights the ongoing work of the FEPS-Karl-Renner-Institut's Progressive Pollsters network, which brings together leading pollsters and political analysts to discuss and reflect on key political and social trends shaping Europe’s destiny, especially following the European elections in 2024.

📺🔊 Available on YouTube, Spotify & Apple Podcast

Why are so many Europeans angry at politics today? Listen to the latest episode in the Progressive Pollsters FEPS Talks series with Bruno Jeanbart, Vice President of OpinionWay!

From frustration with “broken” political systems to fears around identity and immigration, we look at why dissatisfaction dominates — and what that means for progressive movements. Are people really losing hope? Or can social democrats reconnect by addressing the basics: education, housing, welfare?

🌹 In the run-up to PES Congress in Amsterdam Progressive Mobilisation, the Next Left Progressive Pollsters series highlights the ongoing work of the FEPS-Karl-Renner-Institut's Progressive Pollsters network, which brings together leading pollsters and political analysts to discuss and reflect on key political and social trends shaping Europe’s destiny, especially following the European elections in 2024.

📺🔊 Available on YouTube, Spotify & Apple Podcast