The White Paper analyses how Europe will change over the next ten years: the impact of new technologies on society and jobs, doubts about globalisation, security concerns and the rise of populism. The White Paper clearly articulates the choices we face: either to be swept along by new developments, or to embrace the challenges and seize the new opportunities they present.
We may be living in difficult times, but Europe has always been able to adapt. This time too, we need to respond more adequately to changing realities and turn challenges into opportunities.
Here are some of the challenges we face:
- New technologies – The impact of the wider use of technology and automation on the manufacturing sector and the labour market
- Climate change – Innovative environmental solutions will need to be marketed at home and abroad.
- Migration – Protecting our borders while maintaining the right to free movement within Europe
- Security threats close to our borders and within the Union – Building military capacity east of our borders, war and terrorism in the Middle East and Africa
- Europe’s changing position in an ever-evolving world – Demographic decline and declining economic power
- The impact of the economic crisis – Long-term unemployment, especially among young people, and high public and private debt
- Ageing population – Need to modernise our social security systems
- Rise of populist and nationalist rhetoric – Need to restore citizens’ confidence, deliver results in line with expectations and find consensus among Member States
The White Paper is the European Commission’s contribution to the World Summit in Rome on 25 March 2017, where EU leaders discussed the achievements of the last 60 years and the future of the 27 Member States of the European Union.
White Paper on the future of Europe:
https://iregio.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/bila_kniha_o_budoucnosti_evropy_cs.pdf
