Europeum

BLOG | Gender equality in the EU institutions: is the position of women in the Parliament and the Commission improving?

September 27, 2024

Despite the fact that women make up half of the population, they are still not equally represented in the key institutions of the European Union, even in leadership positions. The European Parliament and the European Commission are taking a number of steps to improve gender equality, both internally and towards the public. Adéla Gajdošíková writes in her blog what the current representation in these institutions looks like and what concrete measures they are taking.

Teraz.sk | Will the composition of the European Commission be balanced again?

September 06, 2024

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen presents the composition of the new EU executive to the Conference of Presidents of the European Parliament on Wednesday 11 September. This will include the portfolio presented and the work agenda assigned to each commissioner. According to Slovakian TASR, it is already certain that the European Commission will not be gender balanced as it was in 2019-2024. Žiga Faktor, deputy director of EUROPEUM Institute and head of the Brussels office, commented for Teraz.sk.

ČT24 | Von der Leyen knows almost all the candidates for EU Commissioners

August 30, 2024

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen already knows almost all the candidates for her future team. The deadline for member states to make their views known ends on Friday, August 30. In July, the EU chief executive asked member states to propose both, a man and a woman so that she will have an equal representation in the Commission. So far, only Bulgaria has heeded the EC chief's request and as the only country offered both a man and a woman. Also, the Lithuanian candidate has not been officially nominated, but his name has been mentioned in some media. For ČT24 comments Žiga Faktor, Deputy Director of EUROPEUM Institute.

e15 | Síkela has a chance at a key position in the new European Commission, von der Leyen faces tough negotiations

August 23, 2024

Intense behind-the-scenes negotiations are currently underway in Brussels over the allocation of 27 positions in the new European Commission, which will once again be led by Ursula von der Leyen. The German politician faces two major challenges: the limited number of strong economic portfolios, which many member states, including the Czech Republic, are vying for, and the effort to create the first-ever gender-balanced Commission, complicated by the predominance of male candidates. The situation was commented on for e15 by Žiga Faktor, Deputy Director of EUROPEUM Institute.

Radio Free Europe | EU Enlargement is threated by the far right parties in Member States, not in the European Parliament

June 14, 2024

Even thought parties belonging to the far right achieved good results in the European elections, their growth was not enough to have a major impact on politics in the future European Parliament. What developments can we anticipate with regard to the policy of enlargement of the EU after the elections? Žiga Faktor, deputy director and head of EUROPEUM Institute's Brussels office, comments on the situation for Serbia's Radio Free Europe.

Czech radio | The battle for EU leadership will start after the elections

June 03, 2024

The elections are not the end of the fight for the very leadership of the European Union. The coming weeks and months will decide the new leadership of the European Commission, the European Council, and the European Parliament. What will follow? Deputy Director and Head of the Brussels Office of EUROPEUM Institute, Žiga Faktor, answered questions for Czech Radio stations Radiožurnál and Plus.

ČT24 | Visit of the European Commission President to the Czech Republic

April 30, 2024

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in the Czech Republic. She met with President Petr Pavel and Prime Minister Petr Fiala. The visit was part of the campaign ahead of the European Parliament elections in June. Viktor Daněk, Deputy Director of EUROPEUM Institute, commented on Ursula von der Leyen's arrival in the Czech Republic.

Deník N | Will the rotation in NATO leadership involve the Czech Republic and Eastern Europe?

March 11, 2024

This year will see the expected renewal of top posts in NATO and, after the European Parliament elections, also in the European Union. These positions are traditionally filled by candidates from the wealthy countries of Western and Southern Europe, and to a lesser extent Northern Europe. The countries of Eastern and Central Europe have so far, even after years of membership, still been overlooked. Poland is the only country from the region to have been awarded one of the bloc’s senior positions in the past with Donald Tusk and Jerzy Buzek leading the European Council and European Parliament respectively. Viktor Daněk, deputy director of the EUROPEUM Institute, spoke about the selections of candidates for Deník N.

BLOG | Gender quotas in business: the European Union and its strategy for equality

December 29, 2023

Even in the most developed countries in the world of today, there is still inequality between men and women, especially in the top public positions. One way of tackling this problem is gender quotas, which the European Union has now taken up in a business context. You can read about the adopted directive and the EU's overall strategy to address the under-representation of women in our intern Natálie Hendlingerová's new blog.

INVITATION | Urban Talk: Female Empowerment

November 13, 2023

We would like to invite you to a debate on "Female Empowerment" that is organized as a part of the Prague European Summit. The debate will take place on Monday, 13th of November 2023, from 16:00 in Karolinum.