{"id":2387,"date":"2020-04-05T18:35:01","date_gmt":"2020-04-05T18:35:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greens-efa.eu\/dossier\/?p=2387"},"modified":"2020-10-05T07:55:03","modified_gmt":"2020-10-05T07:55:03","slug":"all-about-the-european-green-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greens-efa.eu\/dossier\/all-about-the-european-green-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"All about the european green deal"},"content":{"rendered":"
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We are <\/em>Ad\u00e9la\u00efde Charlier<\/em><\/strong> and <\/em>Anuna De Wever<\/em><\/strong>. Two climate activists that launched the youth for climate movement in Belgium, and now interns in the Greens\/EFA Group in the European Parliament. We are writing about what we have learned about the European Green Deal, including discussions with policymakers, politicians and activists.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Read Issue 1: All About the Climate Law <\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em>
Read Issue 2: Responding to a Crisis: Climate and Corona <\/em>here.<\/em><\/a>
Read Issue 3: Will COVID-19 Destroy or Empower the European Green Deal here<\/a><\/em>
Read Issue 4: Financing the Green Deal here<\/a><\/em>
Read Issue 5: The EU Recovery Plan here<\/a><\/em>
Read Issue 6: The Mercosur Trade Agreement: A Lose-Lose Deal here<\/a><\/em>
Read Issue 7: Farm to Fork Strategy here<\/a><\/em>
Read Issue 8: The European Climate Targets by 2030 here\ufeff<\/a>\ufeff<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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The European Green Deal is a pact that was launched this year by the European Commission. It aims to make Europe the world\u2019s first climate-neutral continent by 2050. According to the European Commission, the European Green Deal is the most ambitious set of policy measures to combat climate change that has ever been tried in the EU. It should enable European citizens and businesses to benefit from a transition from a carbon-heavy and polluting industry and economy, to one that is both green and sustainable. Their key policies range from ambitiously cutting emissions, to investing in cutting-edge research and innovation in green technology, to preserving Europe\u2019s natural environment.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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This all sounds good on paper, but will it be enough? Already, with the onset of the new coronavirus crisis, the European Green Deal has come under attack from certain voices who argue that we cannot afford the Green Deal and that we should forget about it to focus on relaunching our economy. Nothing could be further from the truth. The people feeling the worst effects of the crisis are the most vulnerable in our society, including the homeless, refugees, the elderly, people with disabilities, and women experiencing domestic abuse. The crisis is also hitting the self-employed, artists and culture-creators and people running small businesses disproportionately. Not to mention workers in our healthcare systems and nursing care homes. The measures taken to protect us are more severe than we have seen in our lifetimes, and, while necessary, the impact is likely resonate through our lives and our society for years to come. After the worst is over, we will need a strong and socially-conscious European Green Deal more than ever. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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In our second blog (read the first one here<\/em><\/a>), we\u2019ll be exploring why Europe needs a Green Deal so badly, how we can use it to recover from the coronavirus crisis and what is at stake for us and for the planet if we fail.\ufeff<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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The link between the coronavirus and climate change<\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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\n\t\t\t Global health crisis? The world shuts down. Climate crisis? Business as usual.<\/em>
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In the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, many governments in Europe and the rest of the world are taking extreme measures. Schools are closed, companies are asking their employees to work from home and cancel meetings, bars, restaurants and cinemas are closed, recreational and sports activities are cancelled, and private events are banned. People in China, Italy, Spain, France, Belgium, the USA and many other countries are living in sudden social and economic lockdown that none of us would have thought possible two months ago.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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So, why is this?<\/em>
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Of course, our leaders heard the urgency explained by scientists and experts, worked together to measure the risks involved and took a decision. And this decision was made fast. The health crisis was urgent. The authorities clearly felt that inaction would be politically, economically and socially worse than enforcing preventive measures. The threat of Covid-19 is serious and it seems that governments and citizens are reacting seriously – and this is a good thing.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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From one day to the next, a large part of the world agreed to change their habits. And while it is tough to live under such restrictions, and governments should be doing much more to support those who are worst affected, we should all take a moment to appreciate the positive, compassionate and socially-inclusive reaction of so many of us in the face of such adversity. Solidarity has never been so present in our society. Community groups are organising meals for the elderly who are stuck in their homes. Citizens are donating to charities to support women trapped with abusive partners at home. Children\u2019s authors are reading their stories online to children who can\u2019t attend schools and nurseries. These reactions inspire hope.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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What we can learn from this is that when faced with a crisis – whether climate or corona – people will work together and do the seemingly impossible to overcome it. To fight climate change, we need to fundamentally change our society: the way we consume, how we travel, how we produce and dispose of goods, how we power our lives. Some people will be affected more by this kind of large-scale change, and we need to make sure the right support and funding is put in place to protect those people. As with the coronavirus crisis, no-one should be left behind. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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This is where the European Green Deal comes in. A real Green Deal has to be much more than just policies for climate and environmental protection, transforming our industry and investing in clean, green technology. We need it to be a catalyst for social transformation that tackles inequality. The changes we need to make our economic system sustainable will affect us all differently, and the European Green Deal should be there to balance this out. It should be an engine for social justice, equal opportunities, increased public financing and excellent social security for all. With this in place, the Green Deal would also provide security and stability for any further crises like the one we are currently facing.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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We now know that if people are well-informed and understand the measures taken, if we are included in the solution, if we are not left by the side of the road, we will accept significant changes to our lives and lifestyles in order to face a crisis together.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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The climate crisis is looming. Urgent action must be taken now. The coronavirus crisis has shown us that governments who are in denial or who are taking a soft approach so they don\u2019t disturb the economy and people\u2019s lives are simply wrong. It\u2019s time they took the climate scientists just as seriously as they do the health experts, and were honest with their citizens about the severity of the situation we\u2019re all facing. Governments need to show solidarity and take decisive climate measures.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\t

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\n\t\t\t So let\u2019s investigate the climate crisis and why we need a European Green Deal in the first place. <\/em>
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Is climate change a new crisis?<\/em><\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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In 1979, the Charney report commissioned by the White House announced that the globe was warming and that human activities were impacting our climate. Telegrams and warnings were sent between the United States and United Nations on climate change. Warning signals were sent out by the United Nations at the First World Climate Conference in Geneva in 1979 addressing a \u2018warming trend\u2019, disasters for food production and extreme weather events that could be caused by burning fuels. In 1988, The New York Times showed a graph of global temperature rise since 1880. As earlyas 1965, The New York Times published an article on the effects of greenhouse gas emissions. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Nothing in all new studies published in the next 40 years contradicted those conclusions. The IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ) only confirmed the analysis. And, although experts and scientist have warned us about climate change for decades, it is only now that the world is starting to take it seriously. Now that we only have 8 years in our carbon budget to stay below the 1,5 degrees of climate warming!
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So why is climate change only now seen as a crisis?<\/em><\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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It makes us angry to read these things. How come the Charney report was forgotten? 40 years ago, scientists accurately predicted climate change. How come proof of global temperature rise didn\u2019t ring any alarm bells? It could have saved us a lot of time and it would have given us a much higher chance of having a safe future. It is very clear that, since the 1980s, the oil and gas and conservative lobbies have spared no efforts to make the debate as confusing and insignificant as possible.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Every year, the world\u2019s five largest publicly-owned oil and gas companies spend approximately $200 million on lobbying designed to control, delay or block binding climate-motivated policy.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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The media were also very slow with reporting on climate change. Except for a few scattered news reports, it has only recently been deemed worthy of being front page news.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Even today, there are huge social media campaigns financed by lobbies that want to keep the fossil fuel industry running.The biggest polluters and the most powerful world leaders minimize climate change. This makes it easier for everyone to follow and turn a blind eye to the real problem. Climate change is really big and hard to grasp. It is the \u2018inconvenient truth\u2019 people don\u2019t want to be reminded of or confronted with.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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What are the consequences of this inaction?<\/em><\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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Extreme weather events<\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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Since 2015, we\u2019ve been experiencing the hottest years measured globally since the mid-19th century:<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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