Real World Radio Europe

A vibrant and protected civic space is an essential part of a healthy democracy - but its under attack.

16 Friends of the Earth member organisations have told us they are facing restrictions, intimidation, harassment and attacks - what we collectively call 'shrinking space'. In this episode we hear how it is affecting our members in Austria and in Cyprus, and look at the causes, and responses.

(Image credit: http://7x7-journal.ru)

This time we’re joining Sandra (+some special guests) from Bosnia and Herzegovina on a journey to the mountain village Pecka. This famously magical place is currently becoming a solar energy community, thanks to a ground-breaking crowdfunding campaign by FoE Bosnia and Herzegovina and partners.

Over the last few months, climate protests have erupted across Europe and the world, forcing governments to pay attention - if not making them take action yet. We spoke to school and university students from across Europe who started organising and protesting for the first time. Why now? And what will it take them to stop?

Many communities in the world are fighting for their right to live in a safe and natural environment. Some weeks ago, during Young Friends of the Earth Europe’s training in Ireland, we spoke with Lynda Sullivan and V’Cenza Cirefice about their experiences working with communities affected by environmental injustice. They not only reflected on common obstacles and struggles for these communities, but also shared with us some strategies and advice for anyone looking to support them. This podcast is supported by the European Union.

Our Friends of the Earth family has grown bigger! Focus Association for Sustainable Development has recently joined our wonderful network, and to celebrate it, we talked with Živa Kavka Gobbo about her organisation’s past, present and bright future. Listen to our podcast and welcome Friends of the Earth Slovenia with us!

#RefugeesWelcome - Voices of solidarity with refugees have recently been drowned out by hate speech or even systematically silenced through criminalisation. This happened in the Balkans, where hundreds of thousands of people in need have arrived, but also in the rest of Europe. Now is the moment for us to be louder! Marija from Zelena Akcija/Friends of the Earth Croatia gives us some clues on recent developments and presents options for everyone to show solidarity even beyond hashtags.

(C) photo: Marina Kelava

An ancient forest in the West of Germany was on the verge of destruction to expand a coal mine - until the hard work of activists from local communities and further afield paid off.

We follow the remarkable progress of the #fossilfree movement in Ireland. Ireland is one of Europe's climate change 'laggards', but a powerful grassroots campaign could be about to change that. In just a few short months, a well-organised group of people has sprung up to protest oil and gas drilling, and they're on the cusp of what could be a major victory - to get Ireland to outlaw new drilling for fossil fuels. Ireland would be the fourth country in the world to do so. Aideen Ó Dochartaigh from 'Not Here Not Anywhere' and Oisín Coghlan from Friends of the Earth Ireland tell us the story. Check out www.facebook.com/pg/notherenotanywhereIRL

This episode is about Brexit – the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union.

We explore what the decision means for the environment, and for our network, with interviews with representatives of Friends of the Earth member groups in different constituent parts of the UK.

What does Brexit mean for the environment? How can we stop “a dystopian Brexit scenario”? What does it mean for Scotland specifically? And Northern Ireland? How can we make sure dirty industries don't take advantage of the uncertainty and that environmental laws are respected?

What happens when a town strikes gas? 30 years after Shell and ExxonMobil opened up Europe's biggest gas field for drilling, the residents of Groningen are finding out – near-constant earthquakes are destroying people's homes, leaving them too dangerous to live in and too expensive to fix. Meanwhile, while north-west Europe continues to burn fossil gas, the low-lying region sits perilously close to the sea level.