{"id":2040,"date":"2022-01-21T17:14:09","date_gmt":"2022-01-21T16:14:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greens-efa.eu\/opinions\/?p=2040"},"modified":"2024-03-12T10:19:58","modified_gmt":"2024-03-12T09:19:58","slug":"people-want-a-greener-europe-with-better-healthcare-for-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greens-efa.eu\/opinions\/people-want-a-greener-europe-with-better-healthcare-for-all\/","title":{"rendered":"A greener Europe and better healthcare – recommendations from the Conference on the Future of Europe"},"content":{"rendered":"
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An independent and randomly-selected panel of EU citizens has called for better climate protection and equal access to healthcare systems at the Conference on the Future of Europe. <\/em>The recommendations<\/em><\/a>, agreed last weekend, will be presented to politicians and decision-makers today. Greens\/EFA MEPs, Eleonora Evi<\/strong> and Mich\u00e8le Rivasi,<\/strong> ask that these demands be taken seriously.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>

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EU citizens are being asked to help decide on the direction of the EU for the coming years in a project called the Conference on the Future of Europe (COFE)<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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A panel of 200 participants has clearly shown a marked desire for change. Many of their demands are in line with the issues that the Greens\/EFA have been pushing for a long time. The EU must now deliver on the people\u2019s demand for European democracy, climate protection and a better quality of life. Read on to find out what their demands are.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Farming and Food: We need a complete overhaul, European citizens say<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div>
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The people at the Conference on the Future of Europe have asked for more small organic farms, more non-intensive farms and farms with short supply chains. Further, they are also in favour of more subsidies for organic farming and organic pesticides. They want a complete reversal of the EU\u2019s current agriculture rules, known as the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).<\/p>\n<\/div>

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The citizens at the conference made clear that they want food to be made locally and to be more affordable. They felt that current prices don\u2019t reflect the low impact of local, sustainable, food on the environment. For the same reasons, the Greens\/EFA made exactly the same proposals on sustainable agriculture<\/a> during the last reform of the CAP.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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People at the conference insisted that everyone in the EU should have the right to good, seasonal food in schools, and they called it \u201ca question of social -justice\u201d. They want food production to be a part of education. Governments should promote urban gardening and gardens in schools.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Energy Production: EU citizens want more renewables and less greenwashing<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div>
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When it comes to energy, the people at the Conference on the Future of Europe have asked for more financial investment to explore new eco-friendly sources of energy. These recommendations come at a time when the European Commission is trying to label fossil gas and nuclear power as \u201cgreen\u201d by adding them to the EU\u2019s list of sustainable investments in the so-called EU taxonomy<\/a>. (Sign our petition against the greenwashing of gas and nuclear energy<\/a>.) Jen, from Sweden, says:<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\n My main goal from the beginning was to talk about as many topics as possible but due to time limits I chose energy. I was more pessimistic about the EU before I came to the Conference on the Future of Europe.\n