What began over the past month as localized walkouts in Paris, Athens, Milan, and Madrid over decaying university facilities, severe teacher shortages, and skyrocketing rents has erupted into one of the most coordinated youth protests in Europe in over a decade. From student union blockades in France to tent encampments spanning Lisbon’s public plazas, tens of thousands of young people are sending an unmistakable message to European governments: the foundational social contract binding public education to generational mobility has completely shattered. For decades, European higher education was heralded as a cornerstone of social equity—a system anchored by low tuition, state subsidies, and accessible public housing. Today, for a vast majority of students, that promise is unrecognizable. In Milan, where ruthless rent hikes have forced students to commute hours each day or sleep in makeshift camps outside campus buildings, young people describe a daily existence defined by financial dr...
Bikash Bhandari is a contemporary writer, social thinker, analyst. He shares insights on philosophy, recent happenings and encouraging readers to reflect upon on this ever-changing world. His recent book launched and published was "Exploring Beliefs Amidst Chaos"