By: Anneke Pelzer, Reading time: 4 min

When Greta Thunberg stood up at the podium at the UN Climate Action Summit in 2018 and spoke her famous words „How dare you?“  over and over again, she was trying to get the world’s political elite to take action against mankind’s greatest threat, climate change. Today, in 2025, frustratingly little progress has been made. Instead, it seems like other problems and crises have always been more important. The covid pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine have both challenged European economies unexpectedly, which has led to the postponing of efficient measures to lower the European Union’s (EU) greenhouse gas emissions. Existing goals like the EU becoming climate-neutral by 2050 or the 2015 Paris Treaty limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees celsius get increasingly unreachable as more time without action passes. In the present day, European member states’ worries mostly revolve around protection of Europes’ borders, which has caused military spending to have reached a new high in the EU. With rearmament’s new importance, the question arises as to how the EU wants to include its new focus on military advances in its climate goals. 

By: Dori Felber, reading time: 4 minutes, 58 seconds

Ensuring balanced representation on corporate boards has moved from a mere social objective to a legal and governance priority across the EU. On 17 October 2022, the Council adopted its final text on gender balance in the corporate boards of listed companies (Directive 2022/238). How did this Directive impact corporate governance? In order to answer such a question, it is first necessary to outline what the Directive entails: its objectives, policy background and scope. Only then can we meaningfully assess its legal and practical implications for corporate governance across Member States. 

By Aurora Dagnino, reading time: 5 minutes and 45 seconds

Greece's parliament approved a few weeks ago a contested labour bill that would allow 13-hour workdays, despite strong opposition from labour unions, opposition lawmakers, and civil society groups, all of whom argued that the measure undermines worker protections. Two nationwide strikes were held in the space of two weeks from early October, paralyzing the country.  In both Athens and Thessaloniki, transportation networks were shut down, while hospital staff, teachers and other civil servants stopped working.

By Anna-Magdalena Glockzin, 5 minutes.

In July 2019, an 18-year-old British woman went to the Cypriot police, and told them, that she had been raped by a group of 12 Israeli men in Ayia Nap. The Cypriot authorities questioned her for hours without legal assistance, which subsequently led her to withdraw these allegations. The woman later stated that she was pressured to comply and had to sign a waiver, which was drafted by Cypriot detectives. In the following proceedings, the Cypriot authorities found her guilty of lying about the gang rape attack, convicted her of causing public mischief, and issued a suspended sentence of four months. With the help of the human rights group Justice Abroad, the woman appealed to the Court of final instance, the Supreme Court of Cyprus, which overturned the verdict. It found that the woman did not receive a fair trial. The authorities, however, never admitted to any wrongdoings. This case caused outrage among women’s rights activists, who argued that the woman was treated as the offender rather than the victim.

By Anni Rissanen. Read: 1 min 54 s

The European Commission has decided to withdraw a key proposal that would have made it easier to hold companies accountable for AI-related harm. Some say it is a win for innovation, while others warn it creates a legal mess. What happens next for AI regulation in Europe?

Gisele Pélicot is a survivor of a series of rape, orchestrated by her husband Dominique Pélicot. Over a period of 9 years (July 2011 to October 2020) Gisele Pélicot was repeatedly raped by her husband and individuals who he would invite, whilst she was drugged and unconscious. In total, Gisele Pélicot was raped 92 times by 72 men, as her husband filmed the abuse. These horrific acts came to light when Dominique Pélicot was arrested by the police for taking upskirt photographs of women in supermarkets. The police discovered thousands of images and videos that Pélicot had taken of the rapes and stored on his computing equipment. Pélicot is further accused of training Jean-Pierre Maréchal on how to drug and rape his own wife.

By Dori Felber. Read: 3 minutes 42 seconds

Time to redefine the outdated definition of rape in France? As the horrific testimony of Gisele Pélicot unfolds, many have argued for a redefinition of rape in France. This specifically followed after lawyer Guillaume de Palma, who is defending 6 of the accused, argued that “In France proof of intent is required” in order for it to qualify as rape. 

Gisele Pélicot is a survivor of a series of rape, orchestrated by her husband Dominique Pélicot. Over a period of 9 years (July 2011 to October 2020) Gisele Pélicot was repeatedly raped by her husband and individuals who he would invite, whilst she was drugged and unconscious. In total, Gisele Pélicot was raped 92 times by 72 men, as her husband filmed the abuse. These horrific acts came to light when Dominique Pélicot was arrested by the police for taking upskirt photographs of women in supermarkets. The police discovered thousands of images and videos that Pélicot had taken of the rapes and stored on his computing equipment. Pélicot is further accused of training Jean-Pierre Maréchal on how to drug and rape his own wife.

By Yana Chakarova, 7 minutes.

On the 27th of February 2024 the European Parliament adopted a number of revolutionary environmental measures enshrined in the Environmental Crimes Directive that penalized environmental crimes much more stringently compared to the past. The Greens/EFA Group from the European Parliament called for the establishment of a serious criminal liability in the case of destruction or widespread and substantial damage which is long-lasting or irreversible to an ecosystem, a habitat or the quality of air, soil or water. More specifically, the MEP of the Greens/EFA Group stated that:

By Felix Kraft, 5 minutes. Global warming forces Europe to rethink its industrial production and sets national decision-makers before a legislative paradox. Meanwhile, Brussels has come up with a controversial solution that has the potential to either harmonise or rip apart the world’s entire supply chain network.

By Ilaria Settembrini, 9 minutes. I bet you did not know it. Fair enough. Still, the warming of the Mediterranean Sea is one of the fastest in the world and requires fruitful engagement by the EU. As an essential and historically contentious resource, water can offer Brussels new pathways for intergovernmental cooperation with the southern shores.

Beatriz Santos Mayo, 6 minutes. Did you know that eating fast food products inside the EU is healthier than eating them elsewhere? Did you know some food additives have been restricted in the EU due to potential health risks? The European Food Safety Authority seeks to protect the food chain from the farm to the table and banned everything that may imply a risk to European Citizens.