The Think2030 conference is back for its third edition! This in-person event, co-organised by IEEP and IDDRI, will centre the discussion on European Green Deal implementation by 2024 and beyond.
This briefing reviews existing evidence on the impact of environmental degradation on European food availability in the long run, if food systems are to remain as they are. It focuses on climate change, biodiversity loss and soil degradation.
The associations between the state of the environment and human health are profound and well-documented. However, it is clear from a number of studies that access to green spaces is not equitable.
Rural areas are impacted by climate change and biodiversity losses. It affects their surrounding ecosystems, their economy, and the well-being of rural populations. Supporting the sustainable transition of these areas is crucial, and the new EU Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas could play a pivotal role.
The French Presidency of the Council announced that reaching an agreement on CBAM will be one of its top priorities. As discussions have intensified both in the European Parliament and between Member States, the Green Trade Network issues this Summary for EU decision-makers highlighting four mutually reinforcing essential principles to be respected to deliver on a robust, effective and ambitious CBAM.
Carbon farming refers to sequestering and storing carbon and/or reducing greenhouse gas emissions at farm level. It offers significant but uncertain mitigation potential in the EU, can deliver co-benefits to farmers and society, but also carries risks that need to be managed.
The new EU Soil strategy offers a policy framework to achieve good soil health in Europe by 2050. To reach this goal, there is a strong need to ensure an effective legal framework for soils coherent with other key EU policies such as the proposal for a nature restoration law, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and the Land Use Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) regulation.
This study and its accompanying analysis explore the climate mitigation potential of restoring the habitats protected under the EU Habitats Directive. As part of this, the feasibility of ranking these habitats based on the climate mitigation benefits of their restoration is evaluated.
The European Commission proposes a complementary Delegated Act to the EU Taxonomy, which would see nuclear power and fossil gas eligible for sustainable finance. IEEP’s Ben Allen gives his account of the discussion.
The 26th edition of the United Nations Climate Change Conference ended in Glasgow on 13 November. In the fallout of the negotiations, Michael Nicholson, Head of UK Environmental Policy at IEEP, gathered experts from two member organisations of IEEP’s Think Sustainable Europe network to try and give an overview of what COP26 meant for global action against climate change.
A political agreement was found for the first step of the EU Taxonomy. This represents a major achievement for the EU’s sustainable finance agenda, yet political decisions and lack of transparency endanger the scientific basis on which the strength of the Taxonomy rests.
Countries joining the Global Methane Pledge have committed to reducing global methane emissions by at least 30 percent from 2020 levels by 2030. But there is a lack of attention on emissions from the agriculture sector, although they account for most of the global methane emissions.
What kind of information does the European Union need to get serious about implementing the Green New Deal? One critical aspect is finding out the impacts that its consumption and production is having on biodiversity, both at home and in other parts of the world: its biodiversity footprint.
Following the release of the Fit for 55 package and the EU Climate Law's promise to create a Climate Change Advisory Board, IEEP and the EEAC network organised a webinar to discuss with scientists and policymakers how scientific evidence can best be used in the context of European climate policymaking.
Halfway through her mandate, President Ursula Von der Leyen today addressed the European Parliament during her second State of the European Union address.
The Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP) and the European Environment and Sustainable Development Advisory Councils Network (EEAC Network) are organising a webinar to discuss the need for science-based policymaking in the EU.
New technical screening criteria for Biodiversity, Water, Pollution, Circular Economy to guide private investments are out for review under the EU Taxonomy framework.
The European Commission’s ‘Fit for 55’ package of proposals would extend EU-wide carbon pricing from around 22 percent of EU greenhouse gas emissions today to over two thirds of EU emissions by 2030, according to an initial analysis by the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP).
This blog by IDDRI, a member of IEEP's Think Sustainable Europe network, evaluates the EU’s current approach to greening its trade policy and considers the use of Trade-and-Environment Agreements (TEAs) as a way forward for more sustainable trade.