Regio Waves

In this final episode of Regio Waves, Commissioner for Regional Policy and Reforms Elisa Ferreira discusses the 9th Cohesion Report. From convergence and solidarity, to helping growth across European regions through the unprecedented crises that hit the EU during her mandate, Commissioner Ferreira tells all.

Take me down to the paradise city, where the grass is green…mobility is fluid, active and multimodal, housing is available and affordable, and citizens’ needs are met! On this episode of Regio Waves we will zoom-in on cities, where 75% Europeans live. Dorthe Nielsen from Eurocities and European Commission Thomas Debethune discuss modern challenges cities face and what cohesion policy does to improve the quality of life.

Is there a recipe to reduce inequalities? Is Cohesion policy an ingredient? In this episode of Regio Waves, OECD expert Ana Moreno Monroy and LSE Professor Neil Lee decode the mixology of place-based policies and how they intervene in reducing inequalities. Join us for this evidence-based cocktail on how to achieve balanced and inclusive growth with the addition of one secret ingredient: citizen participation.

The Clash's classic track "Should I stay or should I go?" must be ringing across some EU regions that suffer from depopulation and brain drain. European Commission's Rebecca Fleming sheds light on why youth decide to leave their region and what regions can do to stem this exodus of talent. At the microphone of REGIO Waves she shares her task force's analysis of the reasons why young people choose to leave a region, to stay or to go back.

How can EU funds turn coal into green gold? Meet the alchemists of the Just Transition Fund Marta Wnuk from the European Commission and Dariusz Stankiewicz Dariusz from the Polish region of Silesia. In this week's episode of Regio Waves, follow Fiorella Lavorgna on her trip to Poland, where she uncovers the challenge of phasing out coal-mining while protecting the miners.

How to foster growth without raising inequalities? Is Cohesion policy the right tool to spread opportunities, innovation and prevent regions from falling into the development trap?Follow Fiorella Lavorgna in conversation with European Commission's Peter Berkowitz and Professor Micheal Storper while they unpack recipes for growth and whether it is time for some tampering.

"Don't look up", Snoop Dogg and Greta Thunberg are the milestones of this discussion on how to effectively communicate the need for a green transition. In this episode of Regio Waves, Philosopher Timothy Morton and Sevim Aktas, policy officer for the Climate Action department of the European Commission, discuss ways to make the green transition COOL! Moving away from the doomsaying and the bickering of a polarized political landscape, how to call to action and bring about the green transition?

Think of the outlines of your country on the map in your classroom: where does a country end? What's beyond those outlines? In today's episode of Regio Waves Ricardo Ferreira and Maja Radovanovic invite us to travel to border regions within the EU. How's the life of the citizens of border regions? Legal, administrative, infrastructural obstacles make the internal borders of the EU still a very much real issue for people living and working close to a border. Learn about Interreg, the policy that removes these obstacles and pushes the boundaries of cooperation. European integration in a nutshell.

Regio Waves is back! With our new host Fiorella Lavorgna, dive into the many ways in which Cohesion Policy adapts to ever-changing circumstances and new crises. In our first episode, we'll delve into the power of the EU in tackling global threats, starting from the war in Ukraine and looking beyond to the security of the continent. How does the war affect the EU budget and the path to a greener future? European Commission experts Kadri Uustal and Antonia Battaglia lend their voices to unravel these complex issues.

Since February 2022, over seven million refugees left the Ukrainian territory, with a large amount finding shelter in Poland. How do Polish cities manage to integrate those citizens? Does the initial solidarity of the local population lasts? Being the Mayor of Lodz since 2010, Hanna Zdanowska, this episode's guest, explains the dynamics, the current state of affairs and talks about the benefits of having more people living in the city.

When crisis arise, young people are the ones to struggle. Those who are new to the labour market are the most vulnerable and at risk of unemployment. They seize the opportunities and keep moving forward, but it is not always an easy path. How is the European Union protecting the Next Generation? Are young people's voices heard sufficiently at the highest political level? What does it mean to be a young person in Europe today? Zdenka Trachtova deconstructs these issues with Tine Radinja, mayor of Slovenian town Skofja Loka and member of the European Committee of the Regions.

Cohesion policy is about leaving no one behind, but what happens when citizens feel left-behind? What is the development trap and how is it correlated with Eurosceptic views and voting patterns? Is the EU failing to help "the places that do not matter" or is it failing to make itself understood? In this episode, Zdenka Trachtova discusses brain drain, regional disparities, populism and just transition with Lewis Dijkstra, Head of the Economic Analysis Sector at European Commission's DG Regio.

Citizens and policy-makers need to take a hard look at mobility in the face of Europe's ongoing efforts to become carbon-neutral. This rings true for most EU cities, where cars have enjoyed decades of unchallenged primacy. What will future cities look like? Will they be greener, more inclusive? Car-less? Can we even afford to dream of future cities, in the middle of the present energy crisis? Zdenka Trachtova discusses with Linda Gaasch, Councilwoman for Luxembourg City for the Greens and Member of the Committee of the Regions.

Cohesion Policy can feel technical and complicated: how to explain its purpose to a classroom of teenagers? Solidarity is the answer, and Cohesion policy is there to do that. But is it only about the money? What are its implications? How does solidarity look at local and European level or in the face of unprecedented crisis? Zdenka Trachtova interviews Marc Lemaitre, Director General of the Regional department of the European Commission and Francesco Molica Director for Cohesion and EU Budget at Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions to understand the many ways in which Cohesion Policy adapts to European people's needs.