In 2015, the European Parliament's Directorate-General for Parliamentary Research Services (DG EPRS) broke new ground with its publication 'Ten technologies which could change our lives - potential impacts and policy implications', with each chapter highlighting a particular technology, its...

This horizon scan has identified a selection of technology-related topics with a high presence in social media and news. Further, a scan was conducted to measure controversy on social media, which constituted an initial controversy ranking of 24 technology-related topics: controversy between...

The EU is a unique endeavour involving more than 500 million citizens sharing about 80 different languages, and while multilingualism is a key feature, it is also one of the most substantial challenges for the creation of a truly integrated EU. Language barriers have a profound effect on...

Drug disorders are complex social and health problems that affect millions of people in the EU. In the last two decades, we have witnessed an extraordinary growth in computer and mobile technologies available to the general public. Researchers in the field of drug addiction have started to...

The aim of this study is to illustrate the different ways in which the current EU legislative framework may be affected by the digitisation and automation of farming activities and the respective technological trends. The study analyses the issues that might have to be dealt with, identifying...

This STOA study explores waste management in the EU. Around one third of EU municipal waste was sent to landfill in 2012. To turn waste into a resource, waste management objectives must be aligned with the goals of a circular economy transition. This report highlights progress and challenges...

Despite the significant EU action and cooperation that has taken place, the rights and detention conditions of those suspected of committing a crime and serving a sentence in the Member States continue to fail to live up to international and EU standards. Judicial cooperation within the EU is...

This paper aims to provide an overview of planned and ongoing evaluations of EU legislation and spending programmes carried out by each European Commission directorate-general (DG). The general overview and state of play on the public availability of evaluations is completed by a rolling...

It is estimated that by 2050, 67 % of the world's population will live in urban areas. Increasing concerns over food security coupled with concerns over climate change have helped to promote interest in urban agriculture and the role it can play in respect of food security. The present paper...

Directive 2012/29/EU establishing minimum standards for the rights, support and protection of victims of crime is an instrument of harmonisation that sets basic standards to be applied across the EU. It makes important procedural provisions regarding, for instance, the right to be heard, to...