Marek Grzegorczyk

Poland has spent decades championing coal despite Europe’s increasingly urgent battle against climate change. Now, in a twist of atomic ambition, Warsaw wants to power past its sooty legacy and switch on its first-ever nuclear plant, with American help—and a mountain of state support.

While Silicon Valley had its PayPal Mafia, Estonia came to pride itself on a Skype Mafia—an influential circle of ex-Skypers whose successes have defined the modern Estonian tech landscape.

Landfills once defined Central and Eastern Europe’s approach to waste management, but today a wave of policy reforms, tech-savvy start-ups, and canny investors is building a different legacy: an economy that prizes reusing, recycling, and reinventing yesterday’s rubbish into tomorrow’s resources. 

Nearshoring has evolved from an appealing notion to a strategic imperative for many international firms, propelled by supply-chain disruptions, shifting cost calculations, and geopolitical uncertainties.

A major new report from Emerging Europe suggests that governments and businesses should embrace technology-driven solutions to drive reinvention to ensure that no community, especially those in rural and remote areas, is left behind.

E-commerce platforms with a track record of agility, such as Allegro or eMag, have shown that adaptation can be a formidable bulwark against even the largest global competitors.

From remote Bulgarian villages to Estonian islands, a silent revolution is underway—one that promises to reshape not just healthcare delivery, but the very geography of medical access.

After decades of departure, a growing wave of professionals is returning to emerging Europe, attracted by rising wages. Furthermore, they are being joined by talent from around the round which once eschewed the region's opportunities.

Armed with lower operating costs, well-educated workforces, and supportive local governments, secondary cities are becoming unexpected magnets for talent and investment. 

Emerging Europe this week named the winners of its 2024 awards programme, the seventh edition of an initiative first launched in 2018 that highlights best practice, innovation, reinvention, and courage across the region.