Sustainable development

The European Commission has put forward its proposal for a major recovery plan. To ensure the recovery is sustainable, even, inclusive and fair for all Member States, the European Commission is proposing to create a new recovery instrument, Next Generation EU, embedded within a powerful, modern and revamped long-term EU budget. The Commission has also unveiled its adjusted Work Programme for 2020, which will prioritise the actions needed to propel Europe's recovery and resilience.

Detailing the elements of the project, presenting the objectives and outputs.

To find out more about what Europe is doing to help the continent's fishing industry cope with the coronavirus pandemic, Ocean's Denis Loctier spoke to Virginijus Sinkevičius, European Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries.

BIOEASTsUP Project is organising online webinar series “Advancing Sustainable Circular Bioeconomy in Central and Eastern European Countries”, where an overview of the BIOEAST initiative and its supporting project BIOEASTsUP will be presented.

The ambitious European Commission strategy to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the EU and achieve climate neutrality by 2050 has recently been set in motion as the European Green Deal. The European Bioeconomy Alliance (EUBA), representing twelve organisations in various sectors active in the bioeconomy, welcomes such a comprehensive policy tool that should ensure alignment and coherence between the different initiatives that are part of the Deal.

APR 7, 2020 - 12:15 PM TO 01:15 PM EDT

A call for papers is launched to collect contributions on good practices, methods, indicators, and data to identify and manage transboundary impacts. The selected papers will be published in a report focusing on the role of OECD Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development framework to support countries in managing the post COVID-19 by coping with Transboundary impacts and long term effects within a sustainable development context in a more resilient society.

Fungi are now being transformed into durable and sustainable materials for outerwear, packaging, skincare, and, of course, incorporated into delicious, nutritious meals. A biotech company is focusing on the root structure of mushrooms—known as mycelium—to build these materials through a process known as biofabrication.

The conference at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Potsdam, Germany, was focused on addressing climate change impacts, as well as the needs for mitigation and adaptation.

The Uganda-Europe Business Forum, which took place 9-10 March in Kampala, Uganda, brought together over 800 private businesses and investors from Uganda, the EU, and other African countries. During this event, the EU and Uganda also signed an €85.9 million support package to help Ugandan products comply to EU standards in order to increase exports.

The EU wants to deliver on the global challenges which are defined in the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. To do so it will integrate the SDG objectives into what is called the European Semester - an annual review of EU member states fiscal books. They pay special attention to economic and employment questions.

The European Commission and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy today proposed the basis for a new strategy with Africa. The communication sets out proposals to intensify cooperation through partnerships in five key areas: green transition; digital transformation; sustainable growth and jobs; peace and governance; and migration and mobility. Based on this document, Europe will engage discussions with African partners towards a new joint strategy to be endorsed at the European Union – African Union Summit in October 2020.

Pioneering regions in Spain, Finland and Germany are taking the lead on promoting sustainable development and decarbonization of our economy with the launch of a new European Bioregions Facility.

The meeting will discuss how rural climate efforts can be proved and demonstrated, in order to be recognised by markets, authorities and the wider society. Building on examples from different parts of rural Europe, the meeting will discuss possible ways of demonstrating rural activities’ contribution to climate action and environmental sustainability. These may include participatory certification schemes, shared sustainability criteria, or territorial climate labels, among other things. The meeting is addressed at National Rural Networks, RDP Managing Authorities, Local Action Groups and any stakeholders involved in bioeconomy value chains or rural bioeconomy initiatives.

In the face of growing concern over the environmental and health costs of land-based food production, it’s high time to put a spotlight on the role that the ocean and blue food can play in the wider food systems transformation.

Novamont, Turin Polytechnic and University of Bologna launched in Rome, ReSoil Foundation, a new tool to boost a real change, starting from soil health and the key concept of territorial regeneration.

The experts cover sustainability subjects from angles such as social and ecologic transitions, sustainable development measurement, innovation policies, higher education, youth, digitalisation, circular economy, governance issues and citizens’ engagement.

The European Union is about to undergo the biggest overhaul of policy since its foundation, with nearly every major aspect of the economy set to be reassessed in light of the climate and ecological emergency. The Green New Deal lays out a grand European plan for tackling climate change.

The European Union is committed to becoming the first climate-neutral bloc in the world by 2050. This requires significant investment from both the EU and the national public sector, as well as the private sector. The European Green Deal's Investment Plan - the Sustainable Europe Investment Plan - will mobilise public investment and help to unlock private funds through EU financial instruments, notably InvestEU, which would lead to at least €1 trillion of investments.

This year's European Green Capital is Lisbon. The Jury felt that Lisbon – that started its journey towards sustainability during a period of economic crisis – can be an inspiration and a role-model for many cities across the EU, demonstrating clearly that sustainability and economic growth go hand in hand.