Miscellaneous
In this episode, Dr. Jacqueline Cramer discusses her belief that EU Member States can pursue common goals at 'different speeds', allowing countries to act as frontrunners in fields such as sustainability and circular economic practices. Cramer emphasized the need for Brussels to reconnect with and engage citizens in order to foster a community of Europeans within an increasingly globalized world. She emphasized the threat of populism, arguing that “democracy is the key of European culture - it should be nourished all the time in order to show what the enormous merits are of our democracy." Cramer ended by commenting on the strength of diversity and the need for Europeans to find a balance between national identity and common EU values of democracy and socioeconomic stability. [Date of interview: March 6, 2017]