Editorial II December 2011
Paolo Pombeni
The crisis affects us too - Our new developments for 2012

The research group responsible for producing these pages lives and works in Europe, as does its generous sponsor, the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Bologna, which has supported us throughout these intense and rewarding years. It is therefore inevitable that a financial crisis which has featured so prominently in our analyses and information should ultimately have an impact on us too. The current financial crisis (which, alas, is far from over) by its very nature affects the resources available to a banking foundation, which in our country sponsors a wide range of public initiatives in support not only of culture but also deprived sectors of society and services generally which are beneficial to the community (we point this out primarily for the benefit of our many non-Italian readers may not appreciate the specific characteristics of these institutions). It was clear, therefore, that at a time when the Foundation was faced with having to revise the scale of its contribution in these delicate and vital areas, it should be forced to make significant sacrifices to activities such as ours, which also provide services, but of a different kind. Contrary to appearances, cutting our budget by two-thirds is not a prejudicial act, but rather affirms the trust that the Foundation has in this project to cultivate a presence in Europe and in the small team that runs it. A less sensitive institution would simply have cut an initiative such as ours, viewing it as a “dead branch”. For this reason, we are grateful to the Foundation which is allowing us to continue our work, albeit, for obvious reasons, not in the same way as before. Every member of our team has evinced personal generosity and a willingness to make the necessary sacrifices. No one has said “never mind, let's end it.” Everyone, including the translators who render these pages into English (an important job for which we are grateful), have accepted significant cuts in their income, demonstrating that this has been not only an important professional engagement, but also an ideal commitment to the cause of Europe. Thus, from next year our readers will see a different website. It will be inactive between 9 and 20 January 2012 to allow the new format to take shape. Users will no longer see the “alerts”, the fortnightly “maps”, the four-monthly “analyses”, because the scale of organisation they required is not sustainable under the current circumstances. The work which has been done so far will of course remain online: maps, analyses and focuses published between 2005 and 2011 will continue to be available in the “Archive” section of the website. Our work over the coming year will be to provide analysis, thereby continuing the work carried out in the focuses, a formula which has been well received by our users. Each month we will publish 15 focuses (one every two days), thereby continuing to provide an up-to-date monitoring of European Union policies, the debates going on in individual countries, the international situation and trends in the European and global economies. Our contributions will be divided into four thematic sections: From Europe – From the World – Economy/institutions – Elections. Our internal analysts and the external collaborators who have been with us throughout these past years will continue their work. Needless to say, given the international scope of our work, the website will continue to appear in both Italian and English. For six years we have maintained our commitment to an unmannered Europeanism in the belief that this new Europe cannot be built on dreams and utopias, but by seeking ways to further the integration of countries with ambivalent histories and identities: on the one hand they are “national”, on the other indissolubly linked to one another in an exchange of cultures and relations which have always joined these regions in networks which are, for better or worse, mutually conditioning. We shall continue on this path, even now that the “community project” is weakened, because this great historical transition in which we are all caught up does not allow us to rest on the laurels of past dreams. On this website, we have always reflected on the particular characteristics of this situation, paying close attention to what “public opinion” in the various countries was producing. Our resolution for 2012 it to keep going, wishing for ourselves and our readers that this will be the year of the rebirth of the “European project”. History may cut our dreams down to size, but this often leads to the birth of concrete new realities.
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