AUTHORS: Emma Bergeling and Antoine Oger (IEEP), and Taube Van Melkebeke (GEF)

This briefing provides policy-makers and other stakeholders with ambitious and actionable policy tools and recommendations to foster sustainable and inclusive wellbeing in the EU. The publication is the fruit of a series of knowledge community meetings organised by the Green European Foundation in collaboration with the Institute for European Environmental Policy held between May and November 2024 with experts from EU institutions, think tanks, academia, and NGOs. These meetings focused on advancing political and public debates towards a green and socially just Europe by establishing lasting networks of knowledge production, exchange and dissemination.

The Treaty of the European Union sets out that “the Union’s aim is to promote peace, its values and the well-being of its peoples”. The EU recently undertook significant steps toward a just and green transition notably under the European Green Deal. Yet, the ongoing triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution warrant further efforts in the speed and scale of action to get the EU economy back within a safe operating space, and thus in line with its own treaty.

This briefing first acknowledges the scale of the challenge to accelerate our sustainability efforts in a fragmented geopolitical environment and in a context of perceived widespread defiance against any further “green” legislations. This so called “green backlash”, even though it may not necessarily align with reality as European population remain overwhelmingly supportive of increased climate action, still largely shapes the current reality of EU policy making. The briefing looks at countering this narrative that systematically opposes wellbeing objectives on the ground of economic growth and short-term financial profits. It rather insists on the need to reconcile necessary ambitious sustainability actions and the assurance that this does not occur at the expense of the most vulnerable groups in our societies to ensure societal acceptance.

The briefing ultimately promotes the transition to a wellbeing economy as a coherent and holistic strategy for the EU to achieve a socially just, economically competitive and environmentally sustainable society.

Our objective is to inform the debate on how best to foster such wellbeing economy concepts throughout EU policies, deep diving into themes of interest. This work is the result of a one-year long exchange within a knowledge community of more than 50 experts to map the main challenges and provide recommendations to inspire the European institutions in the delivery of their ambition to work toward the wellbeing of its peoples.

This briefing highlights the state of play and problem identification, as well as EU level solutions, reflections and recommendations for six interrelated thematic clusters for an EU wellbeing economy.

In conclusion, the briefing recommends EU policy makers to:

1. Advance a critical understanding of means and ends for a wellbeing economy within planetary boundaries. While progress has been made, increased pace and scale of efforts are required as the EU’s consumption footprint is far from within planetary boundaries. GDP growth should not be pursued as a goal in and of itself: the economy needs to respect the finite limits of our planet to support wellbeing economy, why a growth agnostic approach should be adopted by EU policymakers.
2. Centre equity aspects and a just transition to reach social goals and create prerequisites for an ambitious transition. This includes increased accountability to future generations in EU governance, advancing citizen’s participation, aiming for regenerative and distributive policies, and exploring inclusive ways of meeting social needs.
3. Measure what matters and ensure that the many recent and ongoing initiatives to develop concrete and actionable wellbeing economy indicators and metrics are integrated at the core of the EU policy making.
4. Make sure policy modelling practices are rooted in a wellbeing within planetary boundaries economic paradigm by increasing plurality and complexity, revisiting underlying assumptions, and embracing a wider notion of value.
5. Acting in a complex and interconnected global context. The EU must consider (e.g. quantify, monitor and act upon) the global economic, social and environmental impacts of its production and consumption patterns. The EU and its partners may then codesign and implement meaningful partnerships providing both partners with the policy and financial space to pursue their own strategic priorities to achieve a wellbeing economy within planetary boundaries.
6. Redirect and streamline monetary flows towards wellbeing within planetary boundaries. Support key economic actors in business and finance in a systemic shift to align their deep design – relating to goal and purpose and notion of value – with wellbeing within planetary boundaries.

Did you miss the launch event? You can replay it here.