Looking at Europe's populist parties A better understanding of different types of populist party organisations in western Europe is possible thanks to an EU-funded project. Along with that, new insights into the similarities and differences between their positions towards the EU are brought to light. Industrial Technologies © Thinkstock Populism and its implications for national and European governance has been a major topic of European research in recent years. The 'Eurosceptic populist party organization and representation: A comparative study' (PROREP) project spanned nine Eurosceptic populist parties from western Europe as related to key developments in European politics, particularly around the May 2014 European Parliament elections. The work entailed interviews with party representatives of all the parties included, which took place in their own countries as well as in EU institutions. The work offers a better understanding of contemporary Eurosceptic populist parties. Findings are planned for release in one or perhaps two books, in addition to numerous journal articles. The scope is to show that populist parties need to be looked at in a different light, including their position on European integration. Highlights of the work have been addressed at academic workshops and conferences across Europe as well as in the United States, reaching beyond the academic realm. Keywords Populist party, western Europe, Eurosceptic
