From Crisis to Hope in Europe
By George Soros
![Title image from “From Crisis to Hope in Europe: The Opportunity Is Now.” George Soros and other experts on Europe discuss the current situation and opportunities to recapture the spirit of open society in the European Union. Title image](https://opensocietyfoundations.imgix.net/uploads/898e8cda-d3c7-41e7-8647-a740c2c02f23/crisis-hope-europe-20140117.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=430&q=80&rect=%2C%2C%2C&w=760)
The European Union is in my view the shining example of an open and free society. That is why the current crisis is so personal to me. I am very concerned about Europe’s future and the potential dissolution of its open society.
In the run up to World War I or in the Weimar Republic, people did not think all those terrible things that followed could happen. But I have a particular sensitivity to these matters, because I lived under both Nazi and Soviet occupation. And I would hate to see a repeat of dark times in Europe.
I believe in finding European solutions for the problems of Europe; national solutions make matters worse. So I am hoping for some kind of pro-European political alliance emerging.
I believe in the European Union and the principles of open society that originally inspired it, and I should like to recapture that spirit.
George Soros is founder and chair of the Open Society Foundations.