Europe Speaks: A TEPSA Podcast

EuropeChats - Ukraine: War, peace, and EU enlargement | Discussion with Klara Lindström

This episode of EuropeChats is a discussion between Klara Lindström, Analyst at the Stockholm Centre for Eastern European Studies (SCEEUS), and TEPSA Executive Director Mariam Khotenashvili. The discussion focuses on Ukraine’s perspectives on the war, peace talks, and prospects for EU membership.

Klara Lindström is Analyst at SCEEUS at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs (UI) and Special Advisor, European Policy Institute in Kyiv (EPIK). She previously worked at East Capital Group, at the Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters, and the Swedish Ministry of Defence. She also served at the Embassy of Sweden in Moscow from 2018 to 2020 and worked as a military interpreter in Ukraine in 2021. Klara Lindström is an expert on Ukraine’s domestic politics and reforms, EU enlargement, and Russian studies. She regularly travels to Ukraine, for around 2-3 weeks every other month.

EuropeChats is the flagship podcast of TEPSA and it is part of the TEPSA Podcast Channel “Europe Speaks”

Music: Worakls, 22 September 2014, Salzburg, Hungry music

This video is co-funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme of the European Union

Co-Funded by the European Union.

Democracy Cracks #6 - Is it too late to save democracy?

A final episode focused on repairs: protecting checks and balances, making accountability visible, investing in civic education and media literacy, and building resilience against inequality, distrust, and manipulation - without pretending democracy will ever be “perfect”.

Democracy Cracks is a six-episode podcast mini-series exploring the cracks in our democratic systems, from weakening trust to widening social divides, narrated by TEPSA's Programme Manager Eva Ribera and produced as part of ActEU, a Horizon Europe research project.

 

Host and writing: Eva Ribera
Production: Florence Ferrando,  Barbara Vanotti
Editorial review: Mariam Khotenashvili, Alexandros-Christos Gkotinakos, Ilaria Giustacchini
Music: Nicolas Gadrat

Sound credits: 
paper shuffle.wav by alec_mackay -- https://freesound.org/s/463682/ -- License: Creative Commons 0
ping 2.wav by cameronmusic -- https://freesound.org/s/138419/ -- License: Attribution 3.0
Magic - Cymbal Swell 2 by Vrymaa -- https://freesound.org/s/826131/ -- License: Creative Commons 0

This podcast is funded by the European Union.

Democracy Cracks #5 - Does democracy need an upgrade?

If democracy feels out of sync with today’s crises, information speed, and geopolitical pressure, what does “updating” look like without breaking the core promises? Let’s examine institutional stress, experimentations, and the tension between responsiveness and stability.

Democracy Cracks is a six-episode podcast mini-series exploring the cracks in our democratic systems, from weakening trust to widening social divides, narrated by TEPSA's Programme Manager Eva Ribera and produced as part of ActEU, a Horizon Europe research project.

 

Host and writing: Eva Ribera
Production: Florence Ferrando,  Barbara Vanotti
Editorial review: Mariam Khotenashvili, Alexandros-Christos Gkotinakos, Ilaria Giustacchini
Music: Nicolas Gadrat

Sound credits: 
Robots and Electromechanics v2 - 152.wav by Headphaze -- https://freesound.org/s/268387/ -- License: Attribution 4.0
traffic horns city nervous busy.wav by klankbeeld -- https://freesound.org/s/180156/ -- License: Attribution 4.0
air horn close and loud.WAV by goose278 -- https://freesound.org/s/174819/ -- License: Creative Commons 0
demonstration-SCREAMS.wav by chazam -- https://freesound.org/s/218881/ -- License: Attribution NonCommercial 4.0
Frustrated Grunts Shouts.wav by Jim Goad -- https://freesound.org/s/265585/ -- License: Creative Commons 0

This podcast is funded by the European Union.

Democracy Cracks #4 - Why vote if nothing ever changes?

Elections still matter, but participation is changing shape. We look at who walks away from voting (and why), how participation gaps map into inequality and civic space, and where people go when they still do not abandon politics.

Democracy Cracks is a six-episode podcast mini-series exploring the cracks in our democratic systems, from weakening trust to widening social divides, narrated by TEPSA's Programme Manager Eva Ribera and produced as part of ActEU, a Horizon Europe research project.

 

Host and writing: Eva Ribera
Production: Florence Ferrando,  Barbara Vanotti
Editorial review: Mariam Khotenashvili and Alexandros-Christos Gkotinakos
Music: Nicolas Gadrat

Sound credits:
Typing on Computer-St.wav by mar.u02144 -- https://freesound.org/s/508234/ -- License: Creative Commons 0
Signing 2 by The_AT5000 -- https://freesound.org/s/820051/ -- License: Creative Commons 0
protests_casolets_trombone.wav by mmiron -- https://freesound.org/s/350649/ -- License: Attribution 4.0
iPhone Text Sound by ukjoncollins -- https://freesound.org/s/653820/ -- License: Creative Commons 0
Likes, Thumbs Up by LilMati -- https://freesound.org/s/714569/ -- License: Creative Commons 0

This podcast is funded by the European Union.

Democracy Cracks #3 - What happens when no one believes in democracy anymore?

What does a society look like when trust in democracy crumbles? In this episode, we explore how distrust reshapes civic life, from people walking away from the ballot box to rising polarisation, conspiracy theories, and the appeal of extreme “solutions”. But we also look at the other side: how frustration can spark new forms of participation, creativity, and democratic renewal.

Democracy Cracks is a six-episode podcast mini-series exploring the cracks in our democratic systems, from weakening trust to widening social divides, narrated by TEPSA's Programme Manager Eva Ribera and produced as part of ActEU, a Horizon Europe research project.

 

Host and writing: Eva Ribera
Production: Florence Ferrando,  Barbara Vanotti
Editorial review: Mariam Khotenashvili, Alexandros-Christos Gkotinakos, Ilaria Giustacchini
Music: Nicolas Gadrat

Sound credits: 
parliament noises.wav by Eneasz -- https://freesound.org/s/178247/ -- License: Creative Commons 0
iPhone Text Sound by ukjoncollins -- https://freesound.org/s/653820/ -- License: Creative Commons 0
Surfer dude - kit - Surprise n Shock kit 1 by Sadiquecat -- https://freesound.org/s/818949/ -- License: Creative Commons 0

This podcast is funded by the European Union.

Democracy Cracks #2 - Are politicians lying or have we stopped listening?

Many feel politicians don’t listen and that nothing changes. In this episode, we explore the roots of disillusionment: accountability failures, material pressures, and the way loud voices can reshape what feels “normal” in politics.

Democracy Cracks is a six-episode podcast mini-series exploring the cracks in our democratic systems, from weakening trust to widening social divides, narrated by TEPSA's Programme Manager Eva Ribera and produced as part of ActEU, a Horizon Europe research project.

Host and writing: Eva Ribera
Production: Florence Ferrando, Barbara Vanotti
Editorial review: Mariam Khotenashvili, Henrik Serup Christensen, Ilaria Giustacchini
Music: Nicolas Gadrat

Sound credits:
book_noises.wav by angients_ -- https://freesound.org/s/622081/ -- License: Creative Commons 0
cash register.mp3 by SoundCollectah -- https://freesound.org/s/108278/ -- License: Creative Commons 0

This podcast is funded by the European Union.

Democracy Cracks #1: Political trust - A thing of the past?

What does political trust really mean and can democracy survive without it? In the first episode of Democracy Cracks, we unpack what political trust is, why mistrust is not always bad, and why the “trust is collapsing everywhere” story is more uneven than it looks.

Democracy Cracks is a six-episode podcast mini-series exploring the cracks in our democratic systems, from weakening trust to widening social divides, narrated by TEPSA's Programme Manager Eva Ribera and produced as part of ActEU, a Horizon Europe research project.

 

Host and writing: Eva Ribera
Production: Florence Ferrando, Barbara Vanotti
Editorial review: Mariam Khotenashvili, Alexandros-Christos Gkotinakos, Ilaria Giustacchini
Music: Nicolas Gadrat

Sound credits:
Leiden University Netherlands by Ryding -- https://freesound.org/s/483135/ -- License: Creative Commons 0
ping 2.wav by cameronmusic -- https://freesound.org/s/138419/ -- License: Attribution 3.0
Glass Shatter 2.wav by Greg_Surr -- https://freesound.org/s/554564/ -- License: Creative Commons 0

This podcast is funded by the European Union. 

Democracy Cracks - Trailer

Democracy Cracks is a six-episode podcast mini-series exploring the cracks in our democratic systems, from weakening trust to widening social divides, through storytelling, research, and thoughtful conversation, narrated by Eva Ribera, TEPSA's Programme Manager and EU policy professional. 

Produced as part of ActEU, a Horizon Europe research project looking at trust, participation, and how democracy is changing in Europe, the series brings in science and stories to help answer a central question: is democracy breaking or breaking through?

 

Eva Ribera is Programme Manager at TEPSA. She coordinates the work of TEPSA’s Secretariat, working closely with Project Managers and Communications staff to ensure the effective implementation of the organisation’s activities. She holds an MA in International Relations (Security, Peace and Conflicts) from the Free University of Brussels and a BA in Social Sciences from Bordeaux Montaigne University. Her academic research focuses on democracy, fundamental rights, transitional justice, gender-just peace, and collective action.

 

Host & writing: Eva Ribera
Production: Florence Ferrando & Barbara Vanotti
Editorial review: Mariam Khotenashvili, Alexandros-Christos Gkotinakos & Ilaria Giustacchini
Music: Nicolas Gadrat 

This podcast is funded by the European Union.

EuropeChats - EU competitiveness, the Single Market, and the Omnibus | Discussion with Ann Mettler

This episode of EuropeChats is a discussion between Ann Mettler, Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Columbia University, and TEPSA Executive Director, Mariam Khotenashvili. The discussion focuses on the EU's competitiveness, the future of the Single Market, and the Omnibus proposal by the Commission, which aims to simplify and harmonise the EU's digital laws.

Ann Mettler is a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Columbia Center for Global Energy Policy. Until recently, Ann promoted the green transition at Breakthrough Energy, an organisation founded by Bill Gates, and previously she headed the European Political Strategy Centre, in-house think-tank of the European Commission during the Presidency of Jean-Claude Juncker.

EuropeChats is the flagship podcast of TEPSA and it is part of the TEPSA Podcast Channel “Europe Speaks”

Music: Worakls, 22 September 2014, Salzburg, Hungry music

This video is co-funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme of the European Union

Co-Funded by the European Union.

EuropeChats – The politics of the EU budget: Europe's Hamiltonian test? | Discussion with Klaus Welle

This episode of EuropeChats is a discussion between Klaus Welle, Former Secretary-General of the European Parliament, and TEPSA Secretary-General Jim Cloos. The discussion focuses on the EU long-term budget, the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), covering the years 2028 – 2034.

The MFF sets the EU’s financing methods and policy priorities for the next 7 years. This episode looks at the history of the MFF, its evolution through the years, and its ability to address the challenges the EU is facing. It also explores the Commission’s recent proposal for the next MFF and questions whether it can be considered a ‘Hamiltonian moment’ for Europe.

Klaus Welle is the former Secretary-General of the European Parliament. He chairs the Martens Centre’s Academic Council since April 2023, and, in May 2025, he was appointed Special Advisor to the Commissioner for Defence and Space.

EuropeChats is the flagship podcast of TEPSA and it is part of the TEPSA Podcast Channel “Europe Speaks”

Music: Worakls, 22 September 2014, Salzburg, Hungry music

This video is co-funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme of the European Union

Co-Funded by the European Union.