Statement by EES President Dr Ingo Friedrich, August 18th, 2025

Where is the Good News?

If you follow the media, the following messages are essentially getting across:

Young people are afraid of the future. The radical parties are gaining ground. Ukraine is losing the war. Russia is winning the war. The US is no longer predictable. The economy is stagnating. Europe is merely a spectator of global politics.

This list of bad news could certainly go on. But does it accurately describe the true reality of today? Or is the following list not also correct:

Young people in fact have more opportunities today than in the past. The radical parties have been stagnating for years. Ukraine is becoming a Western country. Russia has dramatically lost its global image and influence under Putin. The US is undergoing a difficult but necessary adjustment process. The economy has begun to adapt to the new challenges. Europe has gained immense influence compared to the Reagan-Gorbachev summit in 1986.

It is the old glass-half-full or half-empty debate, where we humans are practically in love with negative news.

A little more of a glass-half-full perspective would do us good, because psychology and success are closely linked. A little more optimism would also make success easier.

Dr. Ingo Friedrich