culture

Is the Visegrad Group still relevant? Is it expereiencing its renaissance after Péter Magyar\'s win in Hungary? What is the relationship between the Visegrad countries and Ukraine? What types of projects does the International Visegrad Fund foster and what is their relevance in terms of cultural cooperation? And can civil society funding be considered as part of democratic infrastructure?

Art as a tool for understanding the world. Collaboration and community as a response to the tensions that affect us all. I am looking forward to the 25th anniversary edition of the Fotofestiwal in Lodz, Poland.

Economists have been fascinated by the question of the origins of prosperity since the very beginning of their discipline. Today, we know much more about it than Adam Smith did 250 years ago when he wrote The Wealth of Nations. In the mid-20th century, economist Robert Solow developed a model explaining economic growth through capital accumulation and population growth.

What is the relation between culture and populism? What should we know about EU cultural policy? And what is the role of philanthropy in shaping modern culture?

Hundreds of tones of dead fish have recovered from the Oder river. First dead fish were spotted already in late July. In early August, some anglers and local politicians from Lower Silesia alarmed regional authorities. There was no reaction. The mass die-off was detected when locals came across thousands of fish corpses near the village of Widuchowa on 11 August.

The civic legislative initiative “Legal abortion without compromises” was rejected by the Sejm. The draft law assumed legalization of abortion in Poland up to the 12th week of pregnancy. After this period, termination of pregnancy would be possible in the case of a threat to the life and health of the mother.

Sejm has approved removing the Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court, a body used by the PiS government to sanction outspoken independent judges, and which has drawn condemnation from the European institution.

Polish administration announced plans to end the import of Russian coal within two months and of Russian oil by the end of this year. The government approved legislation to introduce a ban which may contravene EU trade rules.

In this episode, Leszek Jażdżewski welcomes Alicja Bachulska, a MapInfluenCE China analyst in Poland and a member of China Observers in Central and Eastern Europe (CHOICE). They talk about the impact of the Russian aggression in Ukraine in a more global context - with the focus on China.

Mobilization of Polish society to help refugees is beyond all expectations. Facebook groups where ordinary citizens offer their help have mushroomed in recent days, gathering hundreds of thousands of users.