EU Energy and Environment Ministers meeting in Brussels on 4 and 5 March to discuss the European Commission’s draft long-term strategy “A clean planet for all” added momentum for a climate neutral European economy by 2050.

Today members of the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs and Development Committees brought the EU’s future external investments in closer alignment with Paris Agreement goals. They improved on the European Commission’s proposal by agreeing to increase the climate and environment spending target and to exclude fossil fuels from EU funding going

February 2019   Clean Planet for all: Strategic long-term vision for a climate neutral economy   Dear Energy and Environment Ministers, On 4 March and 5 March respectively you will meet in Brussels to discuss the European Commission’s proposed long term strategy vision for a climate neutral economy – A

As the European Investment Bank (EIB) holds a meeting in Brussels today (25 February) to consult the public on its new energy policy, Wendel Trio reflects on the role the EU’s bank should have in tackling the climate crisis.

In today’s vote on the resolution on the EU’s long-term climate strategy, the European Parliament’s Environment Committee called for increasing the EU’s 2030 climate target to 55 percent emission cuts compared to 1990 levels, and achieving net zero emissions as early as possible and by 2050 at the latest.

Sixteen outdated coal power plants in the Western Balkans are a public health and economic liability for the whole of Europe, with people in the EU bearing the majority of the health impacts and costs, according to the new report by the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL), Sandbag, Climate Action Network (CAN)

Sixteen outdated coal power plants in the Western Balkans are a public health and economic liability for the whole of Europe, with people in the EU bearing the majority of the health impacts and costs, according to the new report by the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL), Sandbag, Climate Action Network

EU Economy and Industry Ministers from ten EU Member States, including Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden and the UK, meeting in Brussels today to discuss the European Commission’s draft long-term strategy “A clean planet for all” expressed their support for building a climate neutral European

In this letter, NGOs Climate Action Network Europe, Carbon Market Watch, E3G – Third Generation Environmentalism, European Environmental Bureau, Sandbag and WWF European Policy Office call upon EU Economy and Industry Ministers to: Endorse the European Commission’s strategic long-term vision for a climate neutral economy and support an EU long-term climate target

A vote today by the Parliament on the future European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Cohesion Funds for 2021-2027 opens the possibilities for continued funding of fossil fuels, in spite of the EU’s obligations to reduce greenhouse gases under the Paris Agreement and its net-zero emissions Long Term Strategy.

Today the members of the European Parliament adopted the Common Provisions Regulation, which sets the principles and common rules on how Cohesion Policy funding should be spent from 2021 to 2027. Civil society groups CEE Bankwatch Network and Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe welcome the agreed climate-friendly provisions, including the

Today the European Parliament’s Committee on Regional Development (REGI) adopted the so-called Common Provisions Regulation, which sets the conditions and principles governing the funding for Cohesion Policy from 2021 to 2027. NGO groups CEE Bankwatch Network and Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe welcome the regulation, which exceeds the European Commission’s

On Tuesday, 22 January, Climate Case Ireland’s legal case hearing starts in the national High Court. The legal case, initiated by the Friends of Irish Environment, argues that the Government’s 2017 National Mitigation Plan is in violation of Ireland’s Climate Act 2015, the Constitution and human rights obligations and also

Today the European Parliament took a disappointing stance on climate when voting to approve the establishment of InvestEU, the EU’s financing tool to attract private investments – say NGO groups CEE Bankwatch Network, Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe, WWF European Policy Office, and Counter Balance. The approved investment package keeps

The World Economic Forum’s Global Risk Report 2019 published today shows that the world’s business leaders perceive the failure to tackle climate change as the number two risk that the world faces over the next decade, both in terms of likelihood and impact.

On 22 January 2019 and in February the REGI Committee will vote on the Common Provisions Regulation (CPR) and on the European Regional Development Fund / Cohesion Fund Regulation (ERDF/CF) respectively. These two pieces of legislation will determine the shape and direction of Cohesion Policy post-2020.

In reaction to today’s Environment Council where EU ministers have for the first time discussed the EU’s draft climate long-term strategy put forward by the European Commission on 28 November, Wendel Trio, Director of Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe said:

Today the European Parliament, Commission and Council have taken a step in the right direction by agreeing to end coal subsidies by 2025, paving the way for a European-wide coal phase out. However the biggest polluters still got to buy some time despite the urgency of climate change. With only

The most polluted capital in Europe, and other stories in this month’s roundup of news.

As the COP24 climate summit comes to an end, it is clear that governments have failed to adequately respond to the catastrophic impacts of climate change that were highlighted in the landmark IPCC report on 1.5°C. Based on a now widely operational Paris Agreement the next two years need to

As the COP24 climate summit draws to a close, negotiators are still struggling to agree on a significant commitment to strengthen all countries’ climate pledges by 2020.

Today EU heads of state and government meeting at a European Council had a discussion on the timing, but less on the content of the next long-term EU budget. In the context of COP24 in Katowice, all Member States must rapidly step up and agree on a budget that is

Today at the COP24 climate summit in Katowice, Poland a coalition of countries, including the EU, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom, committed to increase their climate targets by 2020. The commitment is a response to the findings of the landmark IPCC 1.5°C report.

Today Austria won the shameful Fossil of the Day Award from Climate Action Network (CAN) International. Austria was given this dubious award because it is failing as the president of the EU to end subsidies to coal power plants in the current EU electricity market negotiations, while the the bloc

Commenting on the US delegation side event promoting coal at COP24 today, Joanna Flisowska from CAN Europe said:

The Climate Change Performance Index 2019 (CCPI), published today at the climate summit COP24 by Germanwatch, the NewClimate Institute and Climate Action Network (CAN) shows that three years after the adoption of the Paris Agreement, none of the 56 evaluated countries nor the EU are doing enough to achieve the

As the first week of this year’s climate summit COP24 draws to a close, a unique gathering of businesses, investors, local authorities, trade unions and NGOs are calling upon EU Ministers arriving at the COP next week to commit to significantly increase the current EU climate commitments by 2020, in

Updated on 8 December 2018, 1.30am: Just before Zanna was put on the train back to Vienna, the Polish government recognised its mistake and allowed her to enter Poland. At the moment, we dont have information about the other activists who have been denied entry and/or deported. CAN Europe’s Climate Ambition

Germany won the shameful Fossil of the Day Award from Climate Action Network (CAN) International today. Germany received this dubious award because it gave up on its national 2020 climate target, failed to quit coal and to support higher 2030 EU climate target, in spite of the alarming IPCC 1.5°C

EU legislators have once again failed to agree on electricity market rules that would lead to zero-emissions energy systems. Instead, under the Austrian Presidency consent, some Member States are still trying to secure massive subsidies through so-called ‘Capacity mechanisms’ to polluting and uncompetitive coal-fired power plants.

At the end of a year that has seen an increase in climate-related litigation cases globally, plaintiffs, lawyers and campaigners representing six cases made clear at the UN climate talks in Katowice today that governments can no longer escape from their responsibility to protect the citizens from runaway climate change. In

The host of this year’s UN climate summit COP24, Poland won the shameful Fossil of the Day Award from Climate Action Network International today. The dubious award was handed down to Poland for promoting coal interests and turning a blind eye to the need to ramp up climate pledges by

One day after the EU Commission published its Long-Term Climate Strategy aiming at net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and just a few days before the the COP24 UNFCCC climate negotiations, which just started in Katowice, Poland – the ministers of Western Balkan countries which are parties to the

This joint letter from CAN Europe and development NGOs outlines recommendations on EU external action in the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), specifically on Heading VI (Neighbourhood and the World).

EU leaders of Austria, Finland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Spain attending the climate summit COP24 have recognized that further climate action is necessary to reach the 1.5°C temperature goal set out in the Paris Agreement.

More than 25 NGOs working in Turkey released a joint statement urging Turkish decision makers to focus on raising ambition, and reaping the benefits of a low-carbon just transition at COP24.

Through this letter sent to Ministers of Finance we demand that the 10 countries negotiating the world’s first regional Financial Transactions Tax do not abandon the talks at a European finance ministers’ meeting on December 4th. By walking away from the talks, we could lose out on billions that could

Success requires EU leadership On 2 December, government leaders will gather in Katowice, Poland, for the COP24 climate summit, where all countries of the world, including all EU Member States, need to commit to adopting higher 2030 climate targets by 2020; agree on the Paris rulebook, which will govern how

Progress in the Long Term Strategy for 2050 and at the climate conference in Katowice will be for nothing if European ministers allow disputes over the size of the next EU budget to roadblock important moves towards funding a zero-emissions energy transformation, write Raphael Hanoteaux and Markus Trilling.

As part of the proceeding of the People’s Climate Case – the case challenging the EU’s 2030 climate target for its insufficiency to protect the citizens and their fundamental rights-, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU have submitted their first defence to court. The EU Institutions ask

The proposal to upgrade the EU’s long-term target to net zero emissions by 2050 included in the draft Long-Term EU Climate Strategy released by the European Commission today is an important step forward, but it is likely not enough to achieve the Paris Agreement’s goal to limit global temperature rise

Statement from the Board of Climate Action Network Europe, regarding allegations of inappropriate conduct within the management of the Climate Action Network International Secretariat:

The European Commission is expected to publish its proposal for a long-term EU climate strategy on Wednesday, 28 November. This proposal will set the stage for negotiations among European governments about how much the EU should reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and what action it should take to make sure

Just ahead of the world’s foremost summit on climate change, COP24, 16 European leaders have called upon all countries of the world to commit to review the levels of ambition of their Paris Agreement pledges by 2020, in light of the findings of the IPCC Special Report.

The Polish Ministry of Energy presented today its draft national energy policy 2040, whose orientation obviously stands in the way of the Paris Agreement as well as EU’s energy targets by 2030. It also turns a blind eye on the ever decreasing costs of renewable technologies, wind power in particular.

This briefing concerns the draft EU Long-Term Strategy. It explains that while setting a net zero by 2050 target would be a clear improvement as compared to the current roadmap, it would likely not be sufficient to meet the EU’s fair share of efforts to keep temperature rise below 1.5°C.

The transport and industry committees of the European Parliament voted today on the future Connecting Europe Facility after 2020. While this EU fund should enable infrastructure that connects Europe’s citizens with clean energy and sustainable transport, MEPs turned a blind eye on the need to exclude fossil fuel subsidies from

Today, the Climate Vulnerable Forum – a forum of countries who are most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change – are holding the first Virtual Climate Summit of Heads of State and Government. Several European leaders are joining the 24-hour event, adding momentum for urgent climate action ahead of

Shifting financial flows is crucial to global efforts to combat climate change. The European Commission claims that its proposals for the post-2020 EU budget are in line with the Paris Agreement. However, support for fossil fuels remains in the pipeline of future budget negotiations, as revealed today in the ‘EU

The Polish electricity grid operator has just published the official preliminary results of the first capacity market auction in Poland to award contracts to power plants from 2021 onwards. Capacity mechanisms, which are supposedly intended to ensure supply in case extra power is needed, are often used as backdoor subsidies

In a letter to the European Commission sent last week, environment ministers representing 10 EU Member States have called upon the EU’s executive to clearly support a target of reducing emissions to net zero by 2050 and propose a higher 2030 target in the draft long-term climate strategy to be

European coal companies including RWE, EPH, and PGE, continue to push the cost of dirty energy onto society, with air pollution from their coal plants burdening people across Europe with both health problems and billions in costs, according to modelling detailed in a new report.

The General Court of the European Union has decided today to annul the European Commission’s decision not to raise objections to the aid scheme establishing a ‘capacity market’ in the United Kingdom. The ruling puts into question many capacity mechanisms in place across Europe, including the Polish capacity market which

The European Parliament has called today in its plenary session for a larger long-term EU budget than that proposed by the European Commission. They also ask for the share of the EU’s budget dedicated to climate action to increase from 25% to 30%.

Today, the Luxembourg NGOs -ASTM, Greenpeace, Mouvement Ecologique and natur&ëmwelt- together with Wemove.eu and Climate Action Network Europe, showed their support to the families and young people who are suing the European institutions for their failure to adequately prevent harmful climate impacts by delivering a petition to the plaintiffs of

As negotiations on the EU’s new electricity market enter their crucial trialogue phase, the bloc faces a litmus test for the credibility of its climate ambition. With only two trialogues left, the fate of coal subsidies is still not sealed while COP24 is approaching, writes Joanna Flisowska.

Today at an Economic and Financial Affairs Council, EU ministers discussed their commitments to international climate finance ahead of the climate summit in Katowice (COP 24).

The European Commission claims that the next EU budget should tackle common challenges, including climate change. But unless the EU climate-proofs the entire EU budget, it will continue to prop up fossil gas and contribute to global warming. The ‘EU Toxic Funding Awards’, launched today, unveil the worst EU funding

The real price we all pay for Turkey’s coal is too high, shows CAN Europe’s new study “The Real Costs of Coal: Muğla”. The research is a case study on one of the country’s oldest coal power infrastructures with numerous lignite mines and three coal-fired power plants in Muğla city.

Ahead of ECOFIN Council of 6 November, this letter calls on EU ministers to adopt an ambitious position on climate finance at the UNFCCC COP24.

Preliminary estimates published today in the European Environment Agency (EEA)’s annual ‘trends and projections’ assessments show a 0.6% emissions increase in 2017 from 2016. IPCC scientists have made a call for bold and faster climate action to limit global warming to 1.5°C, and the EU must wake up now.

In today’s vote on the European Parliament’s position on December’s COP24 climate summit, MEPs called for increasing the EU’s 2030 climate target to a 55 percent emission cuts compared to 1990 levels. This would bring European efforts closer to what is required for keeping temperature rise below 1.5oC, in line

In response to the landmark IPCC report on global warming of 1.5°C published last week, 28 EU Heads of State and Government have called upon all countries of the world to commit, at the upcoming COP24 climate summit in Poland, to review the levels of ambition of their Paris Agreement

Ahead of the trilogue meeting on the Electricity Market Regulation on 18 October 2018, 31 networks and organisations representing citizens from across Europe urge EU ministers to ensure that capacity mechanisms remain a last resort solution and that they no longer subsidise the burning of fossil fuels, coal in particular.

Despite their unprofitability and their harmful impacts on our climate, environment and health, coal power plants still receive massive public subsidies. This is why more than 115,000 Europeans have signed the petition “Let’s move beyond coal!” to call on EU leaders to stop pouring taxpayers’ money into coal through so-called

This open letter, signed by 101 organisations and sent today to EU ministers of European and Foreign Affairs ahead of the General Affairs Council meeting of 16 October, demands a dramatic improvement of climate action spending in the future EU budget.

Ahead of the General Affairs Council meeting on 16 October, business associations, think tanks and civil society urge EU ministers to align the next future EU budget with the Paris Agreement and the UN development goals.

15 EU environment ministers called today for increasing the EU’s climate target to limit warming to 1.5°C. The other ministers did not support such a commitment, turning their backs on the landmark IPCC report published yesterday.

The plaintiffs of the People’s Climate Case published an open letter to the EU Environment Ministers gathering today to discuss the EU climate policies; Their message is simple: The impacts happening to us, as the result of a mere 1C of average temperature increase, is already more than what we

In a draft long-term EU climate strategy leaked by the media today, the European Commission proposes three options for the EU’s long-term target: 80% emission reductions by 2050, reaching net zero emissions by 2070 and reaching net zero emissions by 2050. None of these targets reflect the urgency of action to

On June 14th 2018, the European Commission (DG DEVCO and ECHO) and the European External Action Services (EEAS) launched their proposed Regulation for external action funding in the next EU Multiannual Financial Framework.

On June 14th 2018, the European Commission (DG DEVCO and ECHO) and the European External Action Services (EEAS) launched their proposed Regulation for external action funding in the next EU Multiannual Financial Framework.

One day ahead of the EU Environment Ministers meeting expected to adopt the EU’s position for the upcoming UN Climate Summit COP24, the world’s leading body of climate scientists gave strong scientific evidence for the need to keep temperature rise to 1.5°C. The new IPCC report, ordered and endorsed by

CAN Europe members agreed by consensus to regard the Paris Agreement’s goal to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C as the only acceptable goal for all policy making and planning aimed at averting dangerous climate change.

A unique coalition of businesses, associations, investor groups, local and regional authorities, and civil society organisations have called upon EU Environment Ministers to step up Europe’s climate commitments.

CAN Europe, has applied to the European General Court to intervene in the People’s Climate Case – a case in which families and youth have challenged the EU in order to protect their fundamental rights from  the insufficiency of the EU’s 2030 greenhouse gas emission reduction target. Through this intervention,

Polish utility Enea gave today the green light to build the new coal power plant ‘Ostrołęka C’, despite the unprofitability of the project and protests of environmental groups. Poland plans to use capacity mechanisms to make up for the projected economic loss, a stunning example of why reformed EU capacity

Today, CAN Europe, has applied to the European General Court to intervene in the People’s Climate Case – a case in which families and youth have challenged the EU in order to protect their fundamental rights from the insufficiency of the EU’s 2030 greenhouse gas emission reduction target. Through this

During a General Affairs Council meeting today, EU ministers exchanged their views on the long term EU budget for the period 2021-2027. While they focussed on the size of future EU funding in view of traditional policies such as the Common Agricultural Policy and Cohesion Policy and of new priorities

Reacting to the State of the European Union speech given by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker today, Wendel Trio, Director of Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe said:

Tomorrow’s State of the European Union address is a perfect opportunity for European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to reveal the progress so far in the development of the new EU long-term climate strategy. Stating his support for reducing emissions to net zero at the latest by 2050 and keeping temperature

This policy paper identifies the main shortcomings of the current proposals regarding the next long term EU budget for the period 2021-2027 (Multiannual Financial Framework) and makes recommendations to ensure that the EU budget becomes fully climate-friendly.

Ahead of the next trilogue on the Electricity Market Design on 11 September, France, UK, Italy, Greece, Hungary, Ireland and Poland have just issued joint comments on the new rules regarding capacity mechanisms, which stand in stark contradiction to their commitment to fully implement the Paris Agreement.

In May 2018 families from Portugal, Germany, France, Italy, Romania, Kenya, Fiji and the Swedish Saami Youth Association Sáminuorra sued the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union for the inadequate climate target for 2030. The lawsuit claims that the Union’s climate target fails to protect their human

In a statement released today the EU and China reaffirm their unequivocal commitment to the implementation of the Paris Agreement and establish a closer partnership on climate action and the clean energy transition.

The EU’s current Adaptation Strategy was launched in 2013 with the intention to scale up the European Union’s resilience to the growing impacts of climate change that it is facing.

In November 2016, the European Commission, as part of the ‘Clean Energy for all Europeans’ package, published a set of four legislative documents that were meant to set out the structures and rules of a more integrated future energy market, the so-called market design files.

MEDIA ADVISORY The Polish grid operator PSE conducted the general certification procedure earlier this week, thereby prequalifying electricity producers for capacity mechanism payments. The certification is an obligatory first step and conclusions sum up how much and what kind of capacities can take part in the bidding process for the

Member States gathering yesterday at the European Council discussed the next Multiannual Financial Framework, which sets out EU’s spending priorities after 2020. While they committed to reach a deal as soon as possible, they remained silent on how to make the long term EU budget fit for the Paris Agreement.

Paris-proof coalition expands and pushes for much more climate action Environment Ministers of Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom meeting in Luxembourg today have called upon the EU to make significant further efforts to fight climate change, over and above

The high-profile Ministerial on Climate Action (MoCA), taking place on 20-21 June in Brussels and co-convened by the EU, China and Canada is one of the most important moments for global climate diplomacy this year. The three hosts, together with ministers representing more than 30 other major powers, are expected

The EU and China have to live up to their responsibilities on climate change and use every opportunity to support the Western Balkans and Turkey to move beyond coal. This means renewable energy sources and energy efficiency, not new coal, argue Elif Gündüzyeli and Igor Kalaba.

After reaching yesterday a deal on the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED), early this morning the European Parliament, Council and Commission agreed also on the new Governance Regulation for the period 2021-2030. Like the 2030 renewable energy target, the agreed 2030 target for energy efficiency of 32,5% and the agreed rules

The vast majority of European countries are missing the mark and failing to increase our chances of achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement. Too few of them are advocating for ambitious climate and energy targets and policies, and too many are lagging behind in reducing carbon emissions at the

The aim of this publication is to examine which EU Member States are willing to increase their climate action and tackle the gap between the goals of the Paris Agreement and current greenhouse gas emission reduction efforts in the EU.

The European Commission published today its proposal for financing international development and neighbourhood cooperation after 2020. The proposed instrument falls short of meeting the climate finance needs of the EU’s partner countries, while failing to guarantee that EU financing for international action is fully climate proof and compatible with the

The European Parliament, Council and Commission have reached a final agreement on the Renewable Energy Directive for the period 2021-2030. The EU agreed to increase its 2030 renewable energy target, but the level of ambition of the revised directive still falls way short of what is needed to comply with