Focus

WIDER EUROPE raises questions relevant to Europe's neighbourhood. It paints alternative visions for 2020, and highlights recent events e.g. the move to the Left in France; Merde now, rather than Merkozy; the problems of forming a new coalition government in Greece, and its possible Grexit from the Euro; and explosions in different cities of Syria. For all people, WIDER EUROPE plays music 52/24/7, and includes a live news stream in English from Al Jazeera (click on its Play button).

Wider Europe is currently made up of 54 countries - the EU itself (27), EU candidate countries, (including Croatia as an acceding country) (6), potential candidate countries (3), countries in the Middle East and North Africa (11, including Mauritania), as well as Russia and other immediate countries of the former Soviet Union (7). With a total population approaching 1 billion people, a major youth bulge and a substantial combined GDP, Europe's Neighbourhood today is a key player facing major challenges.

A necessary condition for Wider European society to work properly is that its people have easy access to available information. But it is sometimes difficult for non-specialists to know where to look first. WIDER EUROPE helps by harvesting useful websites relevant to tomorrow's European Union (EU), EU Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy, as well as the May 2011 neighbourhood policy update. The websites refer to changing economic, social, environmental and geo-political ideas that are being developed in the public, private and third sectors, as well as by the fourth estate.