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Policy Insights

Researchers and collaboration partners of Population Europe as well as eminent experts from leading organisations contribute to the debate on demographic developments that are of public interest by providing insights into pressing policy issues.

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Ahead of Mapineq Link – an online interactive geospatial dashboard and database – launch later this year at a hybrid event in Berlin, the Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science at the University of Oxford and University of Groningen team reveal the demographic, socioeconomic, health and lifestyle variables within the database.

Mapineq Link’s interactive dashboard highlights local inequalities and helps to link them with potential drivers like differences in access to high-speed internet, enabling policymakers and stakeholders to visualise and address disparities at both local and national levels.

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Recent crises, from the Great Recession to the COVID-19 pandemic, have sparked a debate among policymakers, politicians, and the public – about the urgent need for crisis resilience. Strengthening the resilience of individuals and communities is expected to reduce the vulnerability of our societies.

Resilience is about adapting through renewal. A resilient system is one that can evolve, by learning to better cope with crises in the future. As our experts point out in this article,  governments can enhance societal resilience, through three key activities.

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Historically, concert attendance increases with age across all generations studied: Older adults were never frequent concertgoers in their youth, indicating that interest in classical concerts develops later in life.

Historically, concert attendance increases with age across all generations studied: Older adults were never frequent concertgoers in their youth, indicating that interest in classical concerts develops later in life. 

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Family policies can have many unforeseen consequences. By examining Sweden’s “speed premium” policy, introduced in 1980, scholars at Stockholm University show that the policy was associated with a 24% increase in premature birth rates over the six years it was in force.

Family policies can have many unforeseen consequences. By examining Sweden’s “speed premium” policy, introduced in 1980,   Sol Pía Juárez and Enrico Debiasi show that the policy was associated with a 24% increase in premature birth rates over the six years it was in force. 

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Fertility trends can be relatively crisis-resilient. Numbers from two recent major crises in Europe show this. However, not all countries were able to stabilise or rebuild their fertility trends. New research by the EU-funded FutuRes project’s team at the SGH Warsaw School of Economics looks into resilience as a core concept for demographic change. Based on a recent review of research literature, they discuss how policies can enhance fertility resilience.

Birth rates have decreased in all EU countries. Multiple crises have aggravated this trend. However, there are signs of crisis resilience in birth rates and family planning, as new research by the EU-funded project FutuRes shows. Read here what this means for policy.

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Contrary to expectations, better gender equality does not seem to directly result in terms of higher fertility rates. Does this mean that the related policy challenges were wrongly framed? There is no doubt that gender equality continues to positively shape the opportunity structures for women and men to have children while pursuing careers.

There is no doubt that gender equality continues to positively shape the opportunity structures for women and men to have children while pursuing careers. Therefore, the push for gender equality is something that policy makers should continue to take seriously. 

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Even when respecting legitimate privacy concerns, the accessibility and use of register data for research purposes could be fundamentally improved in Europe.

Even when respecting legitimate privacy concerns, the accessibility and use of register data for research purposes could be fundamentally improved in Europe. This would not only help European research to stay competitive, but also improve science-informed policy planning.

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Over the working life, parents in Europe contribute on average about one-quarter fewer net taxes than non-parents. However, if taxes, private time and money are all taken into account and measured in comparable units, it shows that parents contribute over two-and-a-half times more than non-parents.