Rethinking Europe is now more urgent than ever. The book Visions d’Europe, published first in its French version by Odile Jacob (Paris), offers some guidance in this regard. It is at the same time analytical and political, combining high-level academic expertise with intellectual passion on key controversial subjects such as democracy and the European institutions; economic, social and cultural integration; Europe’s borders; and the question of a common European historical memory.
The book is the result of a series of international debates and intense academic team work organised by the College of Europe, bringing together leading politicians, intellectuals and researchers from different backgrounds and generations. Some of the exchanges were highly controversial and enriched the final version of the texts which we present here. Visions d’Europe does not pretend to give definite answers or ready-made political solutions, but rather tries to formulate precise references to the key problems that are often blurred by ignorance or short-sighted populism. At another level, this approach helps create, a considerable degree of unity between the diverse and sometimes contradictory contributions. Reconsidering Europe thus becomes a fascinating school of complexity, rich in paradoxes.