Current situation
The EEB has made a thorough assessment of the European Commission's Communication 'A Sustainable Europe for a Better World' (May 2001). This was published in its final form in July 2004. The assessment looks at:
- whether the Commission received the political support of the Member States for its proposals, in Gothenburg in June 2001, or later
- whether the Commission has taken action to implement its proposals
- the quality of such action
- the apparent or expected impact on the environment.
We have not been able to assess all the actions at this stage. We will continue to work on this and produce a more complete and updated assessment in July 2004, as input into the public consultation the Commission is to organise from the end of May 2004.
What is the EEB doing?
During the Swedish Presidency in 2001, a Sustainable Development Strategy for the EU was adopted. The Goteborg Summit agreed on some concrete steps that need to be taken to "green the economy", and that, from now on, the EU will assess annually whether it is moving in the right direction. From 2002 on, the Spring Summits are to discuss progress on sustainable development, looking at social, economic and environmental parameters. The EEB considers these Spring Summits as yearly reference point for making comments on progress on Environmental Performance of the EU, in its own region and globally.
In 2004, the Commission will review the effectiveness of the Sustainable Development Strategy. It will organise a public consultation on its findings in the summer. The new Commission is to adopt a new/revised Strategy, hopefully integrated with the formulations of its Strategic Objectives for its term of office (2004-2009).
The EEB has developed a high profile on this issue for many years and from 2000 it worked in co-operation with organisations outside the environmental movement. In early 2002 it started to work closely with the European Trade Unions Confederation and the Platform of European Social NGOs to increase the pressure on the Spring Summits. This led to joint declarations and joint conferences. In 2003 the three organisations launched the "Investing in Sustainable Development" campaign, aiming to deliver concrete proposals for the Spring 2004 Summit.
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For more information, please contact:
John Hontelez
email: hontelez@eeb.org
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