#AskTheExpert: Facing the future - Exploring the key challenges for Europe in election year

The debate

In recent years, the EU has faced a polycrisis. The COVID-19 pandemic profoundly shook EU societies, followed by the war in Ukraine which triggered a surge in energy and food prices. This, in turn, ignited a cost-of-living crisis.

While on the surface Europe looks to have weathered the storm well, the strain of the last five years is causing cracks in the social fabric. There has been a deep erosion of trust, not only in the EU and national governments, but also the media, the police, and financial institutions. A housing crisis has slowly developed across the bloc, profoundly impacting younger Europeans, and contributing to inter-generational tensions. Quality of life between urban and rural areas is also diverging, exposing a gap that is not only socio-economic, but also cultural.

The world of work is also experiencing fundamental change, the pandemic made regular telework a reality for millions of people in Europe and while largely embraced, it comes with its own set of physical and phycological challenges, as many struggle with the implications of an ‘always on’ culture, work intensification, and a disconnect from colleagues.

On top of this, Europe faces several meta-challenges, including a climate crisis that affects everything from job creation to cost of living, a demographic crisis that threatens inter-generational solidarity and social cohesion, and AI - which seems to threaten and promise at the same time.

In this #EurofoundLive webinar, Maria Jepsen, Deputy Director, Massimiliano Mascherini, Head of the Social Policies unit, and Barbara Gerstenberger, Head of the Working Life unit, will discuss the pressure points for citizens across Europe, from housing to AI, the potential political ramifications of perceptions of living and working in Europe, and what prospects there are for the future.

Speakers

• Maria Jepsen, Deputy Director, Eurofound
• Massimiliano Mascherini, Head of the Social Policies unit, Eurofound
• Barbara Gerstenberger, Head of the Working Life unit, Eurofound
• Moderator: Mary McCaughey, Head of Information & Communication, Eurofound

Sign up here to tune in to this live interactive webinar.