What makes Ukraine a geopolitically crucial borderland and why has the Ukrainian question become acute at the most critical turns in global history? Historian Yaroslav Hrytsak talks to Review of Democracy about his new book ‘Ukraine: The Forging of a Nation’.
Writing open letters of protest, quoting Václav Havel, led to incarceration for a young Chinese woman. How deep do comparisons between communist China today and Czechoslovakia of the 1970s and 1980s run? And what can Jan Patočka’s thoughts on evading passivity tell us about the compulsion for dissident acts?
The ‘decolonizing’ turn in historiography emphasises culture over politics, overlooking anti-imperialism’s frequent descent into authoritarian nationalism. So how can critical histories of the Russian empire account for nationalist deformations?
When disassociation and apathy hit rock bottom, it’s common to reach for online distraction. Or is it the other way round? Digital fatalism labels interests and involvement as copes. Could denial and lost time be recouped through transparent technological structures and self-organization?
Almost half of European green investment funds go to fossil fuel giants. Legislation regulating sustainable energy is in place but doesn’t allow for action. A recent investigation reveals just how much consumer money spent on renewables is unwittingly supporting the oil industry.
Veganism, the ethical choice, was once born of necessity. Today’s regular omnivore diet was previously a luxury for the wealthy, ill afforded by peasants. Preserving food was a means of subsistence. Can pickling and jamming traditions, now making a comeback, be recognized for their cultural heritage in addition to gentrified sauerkraut and cherry compote recipes?
As we move on from cutting christmas trees to cutting personal ties, most of us are set on forging stronger bonds and resolutions this upcoming new year. Hopefully, we won’t get canceled as fast as Starbucks or Elon Musk. Our final episode for this year on Standard Time.
Returning champions and the future of Europe: our recap of this year and its most popular articles in Eurozine.
Humanism has elevated humanity above its natural condition, but our relationship to animals remains in a state of war. The legally sanctioned slaughtering machine now operates globally, with the poultry industry in particular wielding huge market power.
A back-handed Christmas present: the EU takes dire steps to erode the right to asylum. Even the ‘warm welcome’ of Ukrainian refugees is crumbling. The holiday episode of Standard Time is here.
In the 1990s, Ukraine again became one of the world’s leading grain exporters after decades of Soviet agricultural mismanagement. It retains this status despite the major disruptions to the European grain market caused by the war.
Artistic expression can surface from desperate situations. Despite oppression and impoverished circumstances, the self-organization of Ukrainian creatives has led to a special kind of resistance. Collectively taking care through adversity, their practices focus on treating emotional wounds, from the Bucha Massacre to the Holocaust.
Ongoing instability, due to conflict, environmental crises and economic hardship in parts of Africa, forces many to migrate. Those who make it to Tunisia’s borders face state violence and informal trading. Can the EU’s failing cash for immobility plan be anything more than legitimization of Tunisia’s authoritarian regime and Italy’s perilous politicization of immigration?
There seems to be too much of it, yet still too little. The vital compound that enables life on Earth is often taken for granted. As we go about our bustling urban lives, we begin to lose grip of what it demands of us. New talk show episode premiere.
During communism, extensive irrigation systems turned the regions along the Romanian Plain into major producers of fruit and vegetables. But when the infrastructure collapsed, so did the ecosystems built around it. Today, farmers are digging wells to deal with desertification: a risky strategy.
When a neighbourhood collapses into a warzone, from one day to the next, citizens become refugees. Securing safety and caring for those who remain creates a dual burden. Ukrainians, turning to their diaspora, have experienced both support and tension. Returning or remaining has become a political and deeply personal dilemma.