By David Wisner I have been on a quest over the past several months. I am looking for a vision of active citizenship suitable for our times. I admit to suffering from a bit of unease in this quest. In fact, the relative certitude I felt about the classic Anglo-Saxon model of public service I […]
By Maria Patsarika A lot of gloominess in Asteris Houliaras’ note in Protagon this morning. The piece purports to offer analysis of a table representing “Attitudes to being rich.” The empirical evidence supports the feeling of gloom: Greeks have one of the lowest “mutual trust” indicators among western societies and active citizenship ratio in relation […]
A public service announcement from our friends at Greek Reporter. “Insured workers who have worked in Germany will be able to contact the Goethe-Institut of Thessaloniki from April 16 to 19 to find answers to questions concerning them about their pensions. The information will be be given by the Deutsche Rentenversicherung, the German Pension Insurance […]
The European Commission has designated 2013 as the European Year of Citizens, to commemorate the creation of European citizenship 20 years ago. In an interview with Deutsche Welle today Justice and Citizenship Commissioner Viviane Reding explained, “As Europeans, we have to hold on to our specific roots, and that’s exactly what we do. That should […]
By Efi Stefopoulou Regulatory policy may be defined broadly as an explicit, dynamic, and consistent “government-wide” policy to pursue high quality regulation. Greek regulatory policy has been subject to a long-lasting reform effort that has just recently reached a major milestone. A law has just been enacted setting better regulation principles and prescribing the procedures […]
By Edward Scicluna, Minister of Finance, Malta There is nothing more undignified than the sight of a bankrupt person begging for assistance. The contrasts between the cosy and sometimes sumptuous living before the event and the state of helplessness and destitution soon after are stark indeed. While generous persons may come forward to offer their […]
By Panagiotis Karkatsoulis Politis wanted to post the names of those ministers who recently tried to amend legislation agreed to by the Greek government in exchange for the next tranche of aid from the Troika. When we could not find what we wanted online, we approached internationally renowned expert Panagiotis Karkatsoulis, who responded as follows. […]
The Michael and Kitty Dukakis Center for Public and Humanitarian Service and Ianos Bookstore Cordially invite you to a presentation of Greek Urban Warriors: resistance and terrorism 1967-2014 by John Brady Kiesling Athens: Lycabettus Press, 2014 Monday, March 2, 2015, 7 PM Ianos Bookstore, Aristotelous 7, Thessaloniki Moderator: David Wisner The event will take place […]
I first saw this illustration on Facebook early this past Monday morning, after I had read initial accounts in the Greek press on voter turnout in the September 20 general election. My first reflex was maybe to share it with awi tty caption. To be truthful, I experienced an odd combination of emotions when I […]
The Michael and Kitty Dukakis Center for Public and Humanitarian Service at the American College of Thessaloniki presents An Inspiration Exchange! workshop in nonprofit communication, community partnerships, and engagement strategy with Lansie Sylvia Director of Engagement, Here’s My Chance, Philadelphia Wednesday, April 20, 4 PM, Municipality of Pilea-Hortiatis, Panorama Cultural Center, Litsa Fokidi Hall “Here’s […]
By Maria Patsarika Is there a second chance for democracy, as Nikos Marantzidis claimed in Protagon last week? For one to be able to identify a positive orientation for populism in politics is a fresh, however risky, perspective on democratic renewal. When this is accompanied by concrete suggestions, however, the argument becomes even more robust […]
We have an expression in the US. “Vote early and often.” Lest you think I am encouraging you to commit voter fraud, I actually have something else in mind. If you vote when young you are likely to continue to want to vote whenever you have the opportunity. Make it a habit. Just look at […]
By Paschos Mandravelis Most people look back on their college years with nostalgia. Those were carefree and uncomplicated days, but three times a year, the sensation of nonchalance was brutally interrupted. In late May, early September and mid-January, the backgammon board, students’ favorite pastime, would slam shut. Traffic at students hangouts would halt. Students would […]
By Tom McLaughlin Our first prime minster, Sir John A. Macdonald, said “A public man should have no resentments.” His seething successors demonstrate that this adage is in desperate short supply in Canadian politics today. Faithful to the partisan glue binding them to their parties, our political class is doing everything possible to diminish, demean, […]
Thousands of runners who never finished the Boston Marathon last month, along with bombing victims and spectators, gathered in the rain on May 25 to run the OneRun, a one-mile road race that spanned the last mile of the Boston Marathon. The race started at Kenmore and ending at the finish line in Copley Square. […]
“Men with guns I’m used to. But kids without books, teachers or classes for a long time — that’s trouble. Big trouble. “ — Thomas Friedman
By Byron Tau Voter trust in political information from Facebook, Twitter and other social media services is now on par with that in traditional news sources, according to a new survey shared with POLITICO. Recent years have seen candidates increasingly devoting time and resources to developing their social media presences, with President Barack Obama’s reelection […]
By Politis We live in Greece. Most of us are Hellenes, a few others foreigners who reside here by choice; we have all lived and studied abroad. We have different ideological preferences. Some of us work for public entities, others in the private sector. A few of us run our own businesses, trying to keep […]