Ecology

At February’s Munich Security Conference, Merz, Macron, von der Leyen and Co. testified to Europe's strength and independence. But concrete, independent strategies are often lacking. Europe now has the opportunity to play to its own strengths, including in the area of energy independence and sustainability.

At the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the Fukushima catastrophe, we presented a new analysis by researchers from the Technical University of Berlin discussing open questions in view of the development of small modular reactors (SMRs) in the EU.The European Commission has given SMRs a prominent place in its 2025 Affordable Energy Action Plan. However, given the long road of SMRs towards potential technology readiness and the assumed high costs of electricity generation, experts question if these projects would ever supply any meaningful quantity of electricity to businesses and consumers. Speakers: Alexander James Wimmers (TU Berlin, co-author of the new Böll EU Brief on SMRs in the EU), Allison Macfarlane (Former Chair, US Nuclear Regulatory Commission) and Mareike Rüffer (Head of Department Nuclear Safety, Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE), Berlin).

NATO allies have pledged 1.5% of GDP to resilience – but good intentions aren't enough. A new paper by Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung EU | Global Dialogue and the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) warns that without clear rules, the money risks disappearing into bureaucracy. The authors show how smart investments in energy, mobility, and supply chains can serve security and climate goals at once – and why getting this right is essential for credible European defence.

Signs of a more assertive Europe emerge through flexible coalitions, enhanced cooperation, and renewed political confidence in Brussels. In our Böll EU Newsletter 02/2026 we look at at emerging “coalitions of the willing”, debates on pragmatic federalism, and proposals for a European Security Council, as well as our recent publications and upcoming events.

Geopolitical uncertainties and the recent US shifts on monetary and climate policy have created a rare opening for the euro. With the international monetary order shifting, the euro has the potential to strengthen international role. With strong green finance rules and the European Central Bank integrating climate risks, the EU can position the euro as the world's leading green currency. As ECB President Christine Lagarde put it: this is Europe's "global euro moment." But how can Europe seize this opportunity? And what are the concrete policy steps needed to make the euro the currency of choice for financing the green transition? Speakers: Agnieszka Smoleńska (London School of Economics), Jens van 't Klooster (Universtity of Amsterdam) and Heather Grabbe (Bruegel). Moderator: Katie Martin (Financial Times).

In the runup to the recent elections in the Czech Republic, party programs were full of promises about building modular nuclear reactors. That technology basically does not exist, though. The Czech state is subsidizing the stagnating nuclear industry instead of developing clean, modern power production.

This bonus episode of The Black Thread zooms in on a single case that distills the Norwegian paradox perfectly: the planned electrification of the gas processing plant on Melkøya. It’s a key conflict site where Norway’s net zero transformation collides with its fossil fuel industry, Indigenous rights, the youth climate movement, worker safety, and even criticism from the United Nations.

Europe’s growing dependence on air conditioning reflects a broader shift in how heat is managed. Marketed as efficient and climate-friendly, cooling technologies offer short-term relief, but their energy demand, refrigerant emissions, and lifecycle impacts risk locking households into high-emission habits while distracting from systemic solutions.

When a series of power outages hit Europe last year, the finger of blame was quickly – and falsely – pointed to an unlikely source: renewables. Blackouts are being used as a political tool to oppose the energy transition. But they can also become an opportunity for open discussions about energy infrastructure – a topic too often reserved only for technical audiences.

Europe does not lack power. But too often, it lacks coherence and therefore appears weak. This contradiction became clearly visible last week. In Böll EU Newsletter 01/2026 (2.0), we take a closer look with Three Questions on the EU-Mercosur agreement, an updated dossier on EU India relations, an interview on the Democracy Shield initiative, and more.