The Agora is a podcast created by the team behind MacroPolis (http://www.macropolis.gr/). It’s a political and economic analysis website based in Athens.
In this podcast series, we examine political, economic and social developments in Greece. But our podcasts will also look at what’s happening in the world around us.
We provide listeners with insight from our own experts and analysis from special guests.
If you enjoy intelligent, lively discussion and want the bigger picture, join us for a stroll through the Agora.
To get an idea of the kind of insight we provide, check out The Agora blog (http://www.macropolis.gr/?i=portal.en.the-agora), which has being going strong since 2013.
Our theme music is a track called Straight Line Blues and has been kindly provided by the Burgundy Grapes (https://inner-ear.gr/artists/burgundy-grapes/).
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Economic gain, social strain and political pain - Greece’s road to elections
In this episode of The Agora, we unpack the latest findings from the Q2 2026 ProMacro_Scope - one of the most detailed quarterly portraits of Greek public opinion available.
Produced in partnership by MacroPolis and Prorata, the publication combines exclusive polling with proprietary socioeconomic indicators to track how Greeks are experiencing this moment of macro stability, social pressure and political fragmentation.
MacroPolis co-founder and The Agora host Nick Malkoutzis speaks with Prorata’s research director Angelos Seriatos about what the data reveals: a persistent cost‑of‑living strain, cautious foreign policy instincts, and entrenched distrust in institutions – and how this is affecting support for Greece’s political parties as the next general elections appear on the horizon.
The trends picked up by the latest polling map a Greece entering a volatile pre‑election period - resilient on paper, but with voters who feel squeezed and sceptical of the country’s political and civil‑ society structures.
Useful reading
Volatile election season ahead as parties court skeptical electorate (https://www.ekathimerini.com/opinion/1316319/volatile-election-season-ahead-as-parties-court-skeptical-electorate/) - Kathimerini English Edition
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30 Jul 2026
Has Greece really recovered from the crisis?
Greece has come a long way since the dark days of 2015, but has it fully recovered? In this episode of The Agora, Nick Malkoutzis speaks with Peter Sanfey and Dimitris Sourvanos, authors of the new Hellenic Observatory paper Out of the Abyss, to unpack Greece’s decade‑long journey from crisis to stability.
Peter Sanfey is the Deputy Director for Country Economics, Strategy and Policy at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Dimitris Sourvanos is a Principal Political Counsellor at the EBRD.
Drawing on their “10×10” benchmarking of Greece’s performance across ten socioeconomic dimensions, the discussion explores where the country has made real progress, and where deep structural gaps remain. From happiness and household confidence to governance, education, financial resilience, digitalisation and the green transition, this conversation goes beyond headline GDP figures to examine the lived reality of recovery.
Is Greece converging with Europe? Why are businesses optimistic while households remain cautious? And what reforms will matter most in the decade ahead?
A data‑rich, nuanced look at Greece’s post‑crisis trajectory, and what comes next.
Useful reading
Out of the abyss: has Greece fully recovered from the crisis? (https://www.lse.ac.uk/asset-library/information/greese-no220.pdf) Sanfey, P. & Sourvanos, D. (https://researchonline.lse.ac.uk/view/lse_creators/ff16d2dff516a8951937f9aeee780428.html) (2026). (GreeSE Papers 220). Hellenic Observatory, London School of Economics and Political Science.
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9 Jul 2026
Party time: Greek politics in flux ahead of next elections
Greece’s political landscape is shifting at remarkable speed. Alexis Tsipras’s new party, ELAS, has upended the opposition, destabilised SYRIZA, rattled PASOK, and pushed New Democracy into full campaign mode. With voters frustrated, trust low, and new actors entering the scene, the run‑up to the next elections is proving unusually volatile.
In this episode, Nick Malkoutzis is joined by MacroPolis co‑founder Yiannis Mouzakis and features editor Georgia Nakou to unpack the major developments:
– New Democracy’s stability‑focused messaging and internal anxieties
– ELAS’s rapid rise and organisational build‑out
– SYRIZA’s existential crisis
– PASOK’s strategic confusion
– The rise - and subsequent slide - of Maria Karystianou’s Elpida
As Greece heads toward elections, which are expected later this year or next spring, the political system is entering a new phase of flux. Yiannis and Georgia help us make sense of what’s driving this moment and what we should expect next.
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Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
YouTube views
2,557
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.8 / 5
6 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
22 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 42 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
38
Social presence
0
YouTube
68
Engagement
51
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