Author: Kontrast.at

Tech billionaires Peter Thiel and Elon Musk are financing Donald Trump’s authoritarian political project—and in return, they receive lucrative government contracts. High-tech companies like Palantir, Anduril, or the Israeli NSO Group are taking over ever more responsibilities within the state’s security and surveillance apparatus. “Security policy,” meaning state surveillance, is increasingly outsourced to private firms, […]

By 2040, a train ride from Vienna to Berlin should take no longer than a long movie night: four and a half hours. Today, the journey takes over eight hours. The EU wants high-speed trains like these to become the new normal — bringing Europe’s cities closer together than ever before. To achieve this, it […]

In Norway’s parliamentary elections in September 2025, the social-democratic Labour Party emerged as the winner — partly because it campaigned to preserve the country’s wealth tax. The Scandinavian state demonstrates how a tax on the richest can function effectively. Norway has had a wealth tax for over 130 years The formuesskatt (wealth tax) has existed […]

To Abd’s Mother, Rahmeh. It‘s been 22 years. It‘s been two years. It’s been 22 years since your son, Abd, committed an act of terror against civilians. He was 18 years old and had his whole life ahead. On June 11, 2003, news articles say that Abd was studying for an English exam when he […]

Good news from the stratosphere: the ozone hole is smaller this year than it has been in many years – and well below the long-term average. Forty years ago, the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol laid the foundation for banning ozone-depleting substances. Back then, countries around the world made a collective decision for climate […]

In recent decades, China has massively expanded its influence on the global stage—with the goal of reshaping the international order. But what exactly lies behind this claim, and what consequences does it have for Europe, the global power USA, and global power distribution? Kontrast spoke with sinologist Doris Vogl, who analyzes different facets of this […]

Vered Berman grew up in West Jerusalem, has lived in Berlin for 22 years, and has been committed to peace since her youth. In 2003, she lost her mother in a Hamas suicide bombing. Twenty years later, she wrote a letter to the attacker’s family. In this interview with Kontrast, she shares what moved her […]

They cook and bake, clean, and set the table for their husbands – and millions of people watch them do it. Tradwives – short for “traditional wives” – have taken social media by storm in recent years. Their message is clear: nothing fulfills a woman more than being a housewife devoted to her husband and […]

The bicycle industry is booming. But how are the bikes that help reduce traffic and protect the climate actually made? Major brands like Bianchi, Canyon, Centurion, Giant, and Merida accept exploitation in pursuit of profit. As uncovered by an investigation by Le Monde Diplomatique, thousands of migrant workers in Taiwan’s factories are subjected to forced […]

Solar energy could have changed the world long ago. The technology was discovered in the 19th century – but it took almost two centuries to become widely used. This is the history of solar energy: why it was ignored for so long – and what finally led to its global breakthrough. Humanity has known how […]