We are European citizens, but we are often inclined to considering the European Union as an abstract entity, which has little influence on our lives. In part this is a measure of its success: we are so used to certain achievements that we no longer consider them as such. This is precisely why the new podcast series Words of Europe, produced by the Bocconi Lab for European Studies (BLEST), was born.
By presenting some of the features of the EU in a simple way, the podcast seeks to give even those who do not have a specific legal or economic background the tools to actively take part in the discussion of opinions. In fact, says Eleanor Spaventa, director of BLEST, "we address all people interested in participating in an informed way in the public debate on the Union and its future."
The goal of the podcast, in the words of Graziella Romeo, professor at the Department of Legal Studies at Bocconi University and editor of the series, is to "tell the story of the European Union in a simple way, to highlight its logic of operation and describe the solutions adopted for complex problems."
Each episode will deal with a theme or a keyword, chosen by deliberately giving greater weight to the proposals by younger BLEST researchers, on which a correct information is essential even if (or precisely because) it is difficult to find it in newspapers or on social networks.
All nationals of European Union member states are Union citizens. While this might look like a little meaningful addition to the national citizenship, important rights descend from it. Among these probably the most important and cherished one is the right for all EU citizens to move and reside freely in all EU member states.
But why is it important to be "economically active"? Because this right to move and reside freely across the European Union differs in conditions and scope for economically "active" and "inactive" citizens.
To be economically active, in practice, means being employed or self-employed in order to prevent abuses and not become a burden on welfare and social assistance systems of the host country.
There is considerable discretionality over what you need to do in order to be considered "economically active", which is in fact a good thing as a too strict definition with binding criteria might exclude honest people who do not want to become a burden but are nonetheless temporarily unable to work full-time, or are being trained without a salary.
It is difficult in some situations to establish whether someone (more often than not, a woman) is an economically active citizen or falls in the less protected and less privileged status of economically inactive citizen. This may cause arbitrary dividing lines and discrimination in the distribution of rights and risks further marginalizing those who are already at the fringes of the labor market.
5 Apr 2022
#2 - Next Generation EU
In this episode of "Words of Europe", researcher Rosalba Famà explains what measures were taken by the European Council and the European Commission to provide a much-needed stimulus for those European economies most heavily hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. These initiatives, known under the names "Recovery Plan" and "Next Generation EU", are unprecedented in several respects, and mark a significant shift in European policymaking.
23 Mar 2022
#1 - Solidarity
In the first episode of Words of Europe, centered on the word solidarity, Maria Antonia Panascì traces the different meanings that the term has taken on in history from its origins in Roman law to the present day. In fact, the original legal meaning has come to embrace a more extensive concept of a political nature, whereby the idea of solidarity is at the basis of modern welfare systems. Over the centuries, the public duty to redistribute resources in an efficient and ethically sustainable manner has been added to the obligations between private individuals ("in solido"). Above the nation-states, a new level was then created, that of European law; but if, on the one hand, a consensus has not yet been reached on what solidarity actually means within the European framework, on the other it has already begun to transcend the traditional national dimensions rooted into a nineteenth-century concept of citizenship.
Host of Words of Europe?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
