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Letter from Brussels

  • The Tower and the Union - jan2024 Letter from Brussels 13

    14 JAN 2024 · In this Letter: - what the climb up to a medieval tower in the Flemish city of Mechelen reveals; - what Jacques Delors said when the HQ of the European Committee of the Regions was named after him 17 years before he died; - the liberal city taking over the European Capital of Culture title in 2024; - the renovation of the vast site in Brussels that used to house the imperial postal service and Europe's largest railway station for goods; - the inspiring interpreter at the RenewPAC summit in Dakar, Senegal, and the urgent geopolitical need to develop a partnership between Europe and Africa at all levels of government and society; - how the Mayor of Mechelen is connecting his citizens with the European dimension of their identity, and how local leaders can help to boost voter turnout at the European elections of June 2024.
    15m 33s
  • The Puppets and the Scandal - may2023 Letter from Brussels 12

    21 MAY 2023 · - The Theatre of the indigenous Sami people in the Arctic city of Kiruna, and what it stands for in this area of vital economic interests for the EU; - The innovative School of Politics for Young People of the Finnish Arctic city of Oulu; - Why reconstruction of Ukrainian cities cannot wait till the war is over; - The 15th anniversary of the opening of a key street in the divided Cypriot city of Nicosia; - The plans to revamp the Cinquantenaire Park in Brussels ahead of Belgium's 200 years of independence; and - The scandal in a Brussels puppet theatre that had the audience shouting for the curtain to drop.
    14m 16s
  • The attack on the 20th convoy - feb2023 Letter from Brussels 11

    28 FEB 2023 · The extraordinary scenes of President Zelenskyy's visit to the European Parliament. How the city of Timisoara is going digital. How EU regions and cities are helping the victims of the earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria. Why wolves are causing a fierce debate about subsidiarity. The message for Europe from a Ukrainian refugee. The 80th anniversary of the attack by three young men from Brussels on a convoy taking Jewish deportees to Auschwitz.
    14m 50s
  • The year that changed the future - December 2022 Letter from Brussels 10

    20 DEC 2022 · A special edition of Letter from Brussels, episode 10 brings you a few predictions for 2023 in key policy areas, including an analysis of the recent scandal which has rocked the EU, and a journey back to the Brussels of 1908 discovering how events in that year still echo in the present day.
    14m 23s
  • The car that almost changed history - july2022 Letter from Brussels 9

    6 JUL 2022 · The 9th Letter from Brussels takes you west to the middle of the Atlantic with the new President of the European Committee of the Regions; south to one of the EU’s land borders with Africa; and north to the Arctic, which has become of great interest to China. Plus, why the new female vice-presidents of Renew Europe in the CoR are political leaders you need to follow. And the story of the antique car in Brussels which could have helped change the course of climate history. Pictures of the antique car and Sean's recent visit to the Brussels Autoworld Museum can be found at www.reneweurope-cor.eu/podcast
    15m 24s
  • Ukrainian reconstruction and the Aleksandrov ship - may2022 Letter from Brussels 8

    17 MAY 2022 · The 8th Letter from Brussels takes us to Odessa, Ukraine, to hear the story of the Borys Aleksandrov ship and its unusual naming ceremony. This episode also includes President Zelenskyy's inspired plan for reconstruction of Ukrainian cities, news about the city most recently awarded the title of European Capital of Culture, as well as news about the wider Renew Europe political family, and an insight into a EurActiv op-ed article by Renew Europe President François Decoster explaining what would happen if a mayor failed to visit a local school during its refurbishment and how this is relevant to the future of the European Union. (Opening audio credit: EU Neighbours East, EU4EMBLAS video about the ship name change)
    15m 14s
  • The rocket and the rock - February 2022 Letter from Brussels 7

    2 FEB 2022 · The extraordinary precision of Europe's spaceport launching the James Webb telescope; the Royal Belgian Observatory's connection with Webb and a mission in 2022 to crash into an asteroid; the urban rural divide is a challenge to democracy; what cities can do to help prevent a crash in the number of pollinators; the latest on the Conference on the Future of Europe; and the inspiring and courageous Mayor of Cologne who has won the first Pawel Adamowicz award.
    16m 20s
  • The hero and the roof - Dec2021 Letter from Brussels 6

    7 DEC 2021 · "The hero and the roof" features French President Emmanuel Macron at the plenary of the European Committee of the Regions and his 3 objectives to strengthen the Union, proposals by the European liberal youth LYMEC for the European Year of Youth 2022, new approaches to eradicating homelessness, and the Brussels heroes challenging people to spend a night sleeping outdoors.
    15m 6s
  • The crime & the lone crusader - October 2021 Letter from Brussels 5

    19 OCT 2021 · "The Crime & the Lone Crusader" carries highlights of a highly tense debate in the October plenary of the CoR, led by Fianna Fáil's Kate Feeney against homophobic amendments by Viktor Orban's Fidesz members, as well as new proposals by MR's Alexia Bertrand to empower consumers to make climate friendly choices when shopping, and the story of the lone crusader who fought against architectural crimes in Brussels in 1950 and 1964, and who was behind one of the most successful museums of the Belgian and EU capital.
    16m 19s
  • The skeletons, the musicians, & two great cities - Sept2021 Letter from Brussels 4

    14 SEP 2021 · A special extended edition on the occasion of the 2021 World Mayor Awards, profiling two winning mayors, François Decoster of Saint-Omer and Matus Vallo of Bratislava. Packed full of amazing and amusing stories about them as well as of Brussels, find out why there is a change of colour in the pavement of a historic Brussels street, who wrote a letter to a celebrity 18th century composer, and how an unstoppable soprano was stopped by an empty opera house.
    26m 27s

Letter from Brussels is a 15-minute English-language podcast bringing you stories about the European Union’s capital city, and about the leaders transforming local communities across the Union. It is written...

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Letter from Brussels is a 15-minute English-language podcast bringing you stories about the European Union’s capital city, and about the leaders transforming local communities across the Union. It is written and narrated by Sean O'Curneen, Secretary General of the Renew Europe group in the European Committee of the Regions.
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Author Sean O'Curneen
Categories Government , Politics , Places & Travel
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