Citizens' Dialogue online in Austria with Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius
You can watch it recorded here
Summary
With the European Green Deal we were the first to make this journey. Many others will follow in our footsteps. Also the US are again on board.
Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius
Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius and Austrian Climate Minister Leonore Gewessler held an online Dialogue, live-streamed from a virtual studio in Vienna, on the topics of EU Green Deal and Next Generation EU. Live on screen, 15 participants from all regions of Austria and all ages were asking questions to the Minister and the Commissioner. Viewers were also invited to pose questions on Facebook and to take part in the discussion.
Questions from participants touched upon various topics, from how to achieve climate neutrality to plastic waste reduction and the protection of the oceans. Several participants addressed the role of cities and municipalities in implementing the Green Deal, with one of them asking how to ensure a better alignment of climate targets at the regional, national and EU levels in the future. “There is currently a certain mismatch between the different levels. Municipalities also report that they struggle to meet their regional targets,” said the participant.
On the increasing use of renewable energy sources, one participant asked which strategies were in place to ensure that biodiversity is not left behind when increasing energy from renewable sources. Also on the topic of renewables, another participant wanted to know how the energy safeguard can be ensured with solar and wind energy, adding that “energy supply that depends on the weather cannot be deployed as flexibly as conventional energy.”
The involvement of citizens in this transition was also raised by participants, who wanted to know how they could change their behaviour at home to protect the environment. Other participants mentioned the need for targeted awareness raising initiatives aimed at all age groups.
Support from the industrial sector to the green transition and the link between the Green Deal and the Common Agricultural Policy were other topics participants raised during the debate.
