Category Archives: All articles

A green proposal for Romania

Posted on: November 6, 2007

Adevarul made a sensational discovery last week – it found a copy of Romania’s post accession strategy. It made for depressing reading. By 2025, the strategy stated, Romania’s population would be decimated, the economy would be on its knees and the level of poverty would be sky high.

But this is not a strategy, at best it could be called an “analysis”. What the authors did was simply take current social and economic trends and project them into the future, coming up with their gloomy prognosis. It lacks the essentials of a strategy: a goal, a target, something to which the country (or at least the politicians) can strive towards; not to mention the public consultation and publicity that accompany similar strategies in normal countries. Continue reading →

Romania’s European Parliament elections

Posted on: October 31, 2007

There are several things that Romania has in common with my home country Britain: the worship of the car and under-investment in railways; slow progress when it comes to tackling climate change and, most noticeably, a feeling of being on the “edge” of Europe. Britons feel closer to America than continental Europe and refer to “the Continent” as somewhere quite distant and remote from their daily concerns. Both populations share a lack of interest in the European Parliament elections. Continue reading →

Bran, the Capital of Kitsch

Posted on: October 27, 2007

Five days after Romania joined the EU I visited Bran Castle. I was sadly disappointed by the incredible kitsch on display in the carpark, the ruination of the village by uncontrolled banner advertising and an interior that has been ruined by bad restoration. What was an intriguing fifteenth century castle has been reduced to a centrepiece of the kitsch capital of Romania. The Habsburg’s asking price of 60 million Euro is laughable; they would be lucky if they could get 10% of that over inflated value. Continue reading →

Mission impossible: Branding Romania

Posted on: October 26, 2007

A lot of money is being invested into the development of a brand for Romania but this can only lead to embarrassment and financial loss. Branding a country requires a level of coordination and trust that is unattainable in Romania. According to Charles Brymer, chairman of Interbrand, “Creating a brand program for a country demands an integration policy that most countries do not possess – the ability to act and speak in a coordinated and repetitive way.” Continue reading →

Romania not interested in European Parliament

Posted on: October 8, 2007

Romania will have an election for the European Parliament (EP) later this autumn but not only are there few candidates prepared to stand, a lot of the population seems to be unaware of the election.

As part of their EU accession obligations, both Bulgaria and Romania must hold EP elections this year. Bulgaria did so in March and the Romanian election will take place on 26 November. Continue reading →

How I became green

Posted on: October 5, 2007

Ever since my history teacher explained about global warming I knew we were in trouble. But it was too depressing to worry about. What could I do about global warming, pollution and the preservation of the countryside? Like most people, I assumed there was nothing I could do; I put the issue to the back of my mind, went traveling and got on with my life. Continue reading →

Romania becoming a desert

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The climate is changing in Romania. The land is being dried up by increasingly hot summers, torrential downpours are becoming the norm and the side-effects of rapid economic growth are damaging the environment.

Parts of eastern Romania have become so arid that farming is impossible and in other areas, over-grazing threatens to destroy all plant life and usher in an era of desertification. Continue reading →

Invest in education for Roma minority

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A massive investment in education is the only way that the huge Roma minority in Romania can emerge from grinding poverty and marginalisation. If better educated, the Roma people could fill the gap created by the country’s falling population and provide future generations of entrepreneurs, scientists and skilled workers. Continue reading →