This year’s EconPol Europe Conference takes place from November 7-8 in Brussels and examines Europe´s Competitiveness and the Rise of China. The annual conference was established in 2017 and brings together economists, politicians and stakeholders from civil society from all over Europe.

Austria is a country with strong parties and associations. Political participation happens first and foremost through party-dominated elections - forms of political protests are rare. Is this image of the country still accurate?

A shortage of skilled labour occurs when there is a higher demand for labour than the supply of labour in an area or occupation that requires technical training or qualification, i.e. when the vacancies cannot be filled.

Public sector innovation is widely seen as a key for "doing things better". However, innovation per se will not necessarily lead to "the better" nor define what "the better" actually is.

Post originally published at OECD Observatory of Public Sector Innovation

Education Poverty is noticeable in Austria and becoming a substantial problem, especially in certain population groups. What are the causes of the uneven distribution and what possible solutions are there?

Fighting Educational Poverty is one of the strategic goals of Europe 2020. In Austria the problem is bigger than it appears at first glance.

Technological change, especially the disruptive process of digitalisation has allocated a new role to the educational system. Over the past centuries it was designed to prepare the youth for the existing society - today it is supposed to prepare them for a future society that is yet unknown to all those involved.

The threat of climate change has been hanging over us for some time; however, the 2018 UN report suggests that action is urgently needed to avert disaster. The latest scientific analysis gives us just twelve years to limit global warming to 1.5 degree Celsius above pre-industrial levels by 2100. Unless we slow that rate, no one will be safe from the consequences of climate change.

The European Social Survey (ESS) is an academically driven cross-national survey that has been conducted across Europe since 2001. The survey measures the attitudes, beliefs and behaviour patterns of diverse populations in more than thirty nations.

The term sustainable development has been around for 35 years - but outside of the debate not much else has happened since. Events like the "Growth in Transition"-Conference aim to foster the discourse.

For almost 20 years now, the idea of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) has been an emerging priority of the European Research Arena. The new proposal for the budget framework that will follow Horizon2020 cuts the funds for specific RRI programs like NewHoRRIzon. Has the concept outlived itself?