NEW POLICY PAPER

Rethinking Arctic governance

The EU is updating its Arctic Policy in 2026, and the timing could not be more consequential. Russia's war on Ukraine has paralysed the Arctic Council, Trump's ambitions over Greenland are fracturing transatlantic trust, and the climate crisis risks being pushed off the political agenda. As the region's governance vacuum deepens, the EU faces a pivotal choice: seize the moment or be sidelined. This policy paper sets out how the EU can build a credible, legitimate role in a rapidly shifting Arctic.
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NEW E-PAPER

Unlocking the ECB’s green potential

A new report gives a clear pathway for the ECB to be playing a much bigger role in making the green transition affordable. It suggests alternative steps that would speed up and key actions that are needed to fight climate change on a larger scale. The report also warns that the EU’s new Omnibus legislative package – which weakens corporate sustainability reporting – could reduce the availability of high-quality green data. This would make it harder for the ECB to run the most ambitious version of a green refinancing programme.
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The Industrial Accelerator Act: a stepping stone or paradigm shift?

Analysis
When the European Commission presented its proposal for an Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA) earlier this year, EU Commission Executive Vice-President Stéphane Séjourné called it a ‘change in doctrine – something that would have been unthinkable just a few months ago’. This analysis offers a more nuanced assessment. The IAA confirms that industrial policy has truly arrived at the EU level and the proposal marks a genuine step forward by addressing demand, not just supply, and introducing an explicit language shift on local content. But the proposal reflects conflicting political priorities and contains loopholes that risk leaving delivery one step behind the rhetoric. Whether that changes will be decided in the negotiations ahead: in Parliament and EU Council, the gap can still be closed.
Elena Schneider, Ciarán Humphreys
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From local shores to shared seas: youth climate action linking Egypt and Europe

Commentary
Young climate advocates are tying local actions to cross-border cooperation by linking regional grassroots clean-up activities to diplomatic efforts. They've harnessed their passion to establish climate-focused partnerships to protect the Mediterranean, one of the most plastics-polluted seas in the world, as they rally to drive various initiatives. Commentary by our 2026 Young Climate Leader Salma Abbass.
Salma Abbass
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3 Questions on the resignation of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina to Paola Petrić

3 Questions
Christian Schmidt's resignation as High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina was not a routine handover. It followed intense US pressure, linked to a controversy over the Southern Interconnection pipeline, where Bosnian legislation handed a major energy project to a Trump-linked company over EU objections. With Republika Srpska's Milorad Dodik presenting the departure as his personal triumph, and European actors conspicuously silent, Bosnia's fragile post-war order is under serious strain. We asked Paola Petrić, Director of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's Sarajevo office, what this moment means for Bosnia's institutions, for Washington's role in the Western Balkans, and for the EU's credibility as a guarantor of the Dayton framework.
Katja Giebel, Paola Petrić
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Defending Equality in an Age of Democratic Decline

Report
This report by Forbidden Colours argues that the EU’s Gender Equality Strategy 2020–2025 was designed for a political moment that has since shifted dramatically. Although it secured important legal advances, it failed to anticipate the rise of coordinated anti-rights movements challenging fundamental freedoms across Europe. As the EU prepares its 2026–2030 Strategy, a decisive shift is needed: gender equality must be anchored as a core pillar of democratic resilience, security and rule-of-law protection – not treated as a standalone social policy.
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Unlocking the ECB’s green potential

E-paper
A new report gives a clear pathway for the ECB to be playing a much bigger role in making the green transition affordable. It suggests alternative steps that would speed up and key actions that are needed to fight climate change on a larger scale. The report also warns that the EU’s new Omnibus legislative package – which weakens corporate sustainability reporting – could reduce the availability of high-quality green data. This would make it harder for the ECB to run the most ambitious version of a green refinancing programme.
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Rethinking Arctic governance

Policy paper
The Arctic is at a geopolitical crossroads. Russia's war on Ukraine has paralysed the Arctic Council, Trump's ambitions over Greenland are fracturing transatlantic trust, and the climate crisis risks being pushed off the political agenda. As the region's governance vacuum deepens, the EU faces a pivotal choice: seize the moment or be sidelined. This policy paper sets out how the EU can build a credible, legitimate role in a rapidly shifting Arctic.
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We declare our full solidarity with Ukraine. We stand by the side of our Ukrainian partners and colleagues, and at the same time also by the side of our partners in Russian civil society who are under harsh state repression.

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