Dear Minister, You have been invited to adopt Council Conclusions on Carbon Farming at your next Agriculture and Fisheries Council meeting on the 7th of April. Members of Climate Action Network Europe support the efforts to improve carbon removal capacity in the land sector, but we have identified a number

POLICY BRIEFING Mobilising EU financial instruments and policies to accelerate the phase out of the EU’s dependence on fossil fuels Background This policy briefing builds on CAN Europe’s recommendations for an accelerated, secure and Paris compatible energy transition in the context of the invasion of Ukraine  by further detailing measures

US-EU LNG deal a scandal endangering both the EU’s and USA’s climate targets EU leaders missed an opportunity to include quick wins on energy efficiency and savings, as well as a strong push to renewables   Brussels, 28 March 2022 – The European Council’s measures presented last Friday to reduce fossil

Lack of ambition and solidarity from Member States risk derailing the Social Climate Fund’s potential to deliver transformative change and a Just Transition for all. The Social Climate Fund (SCF or Fund), which the European Commission (EC) proposed as part of its Fit for 55 package in July 2021, has

Istanbul, 23 March 2022 –  A new report published today by Europe Beyond Coal and its partners shows that approximately half of Turkey’s open-cast coal mines are suitable for conversion to solar farms. Taken together, they would boost the country’s solar capacity by 170 percent, and produce enough electricity to

MANIFESTO FOR A GREEN, JUST AND DEMOCRATIC EUROPEAN ECONOMY FEBRUARY 2022 > Click here to sign << FR: Version française ici DE: Deutsche Fassung hier ES: Versión en español aquí PL: Wersja polska tutaj EL: Ελληνική έκδοση εδώ We are civil society organisations, think tanks, trade unions and employers supported

Life Unify Consortium launches a new report  highlighting key recommendations to strengthen and improve the EU Effort Sharing Regulation March 2022   The LIFE Unify Consortium has launched a new report titled “Implementing the Effort Sharing Regulation at the national level. Lessons learned and recommendations from the LIFE Unify project”.

During the Extraordinary Summit in Versailles, on 10 and 11 March, European Union heads of state meet to discuss consequences and response to the war in Ukraine, and potentially the need for increased military spending of European Union Member States. CAN Europe believes this may be a game changer in

  The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) must be linked to the EU  Emissions Trading System discussions so as not to undermine the integrity and ambition  of the Fit for 55 package   Civil society organisations express concerns about the agreement reached in COREPER II on a  CBAM compromise text that

  ‘REPowerEU’ needs to go further to cut off fossil fuel imports and to phase out fossil fuels A full scale mobilisation of EU funds is required to end the EU’s dependence on fossil fuels partly funding and exacerbating the war in Ukraine Brussels, 08 March 2022 – Although today’s

On 21 February, EU Foreign Affairs Ministers met in Brussels and adopted the conclusions “EU Climate Diplomacy: climate diplomacy: accelerating the Implementation of Glasgow outcomes”, alongside with a press release issued specifically on that matter. This comes 100 days after world’s governments met in Glasgow for the 26th UN climate

  As a joint alliance of leading environmental and human health civil society organisations at EU level, representing millions of EU citizens, we hereby share our main expectations as to the review of the EU’s framework for the prevention and control of industrial pollution (the EU Industrial Emissions Directive 2010/75/EU

We, the undersigned organisations, welcome the European Commission’s proposal for a new EU regulation on deforestation-free products. This proposal represents an essential step forward in global environmental governance and a huge opportunity to minimise the EU’s impacts on people and planet in line with its commitments on climate, biodiversity and

PRESS RELEASE Brussels, 3 February 2022 – Genuine efforts by Member States to direct spending from the EUR 672 billion Recovery and Resilience Facility towards climate action are being undermined by investments that are likely to harm the environment and climate, finds a new report by CAN Europe and CEE

REPORT The Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) entered into force in February 2021. It has financed reforms and investments in Member States from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and will continue to do so until 2026. To finance a proportion of it, the European Commission, on behalf of the

LETTER Dear President von der Leyen, We are writing to you in light of the Commission’s upcoming publication of the Taxonomy Complementary Delegated Act on 2 February 2022 to express our grave concern at the proposal that fossil gas and nuclear energy be included in the EU Taxonomy, a prospect

Joint press release by CAN Europe, Klima-Allianz Deutschland, Germanwatch and WWF Germany  The planned EU Emissions Trading System for the buildings and transport sectors (ETS 2) can only be a complementary climate action instrument and so far lacks clear regulations on socially acceptable compensation. These are the findings of a

– Joint NGO statement to FR-CZ-SE Trio EU presidencies-   Six years after the ratification of the Paris Agreement by the European Union, the world is still far from “on track” to reach the +1.5°C goal. According to all submitted Nationally Determined Contributions, temperatures would reach +2.7°C in the year

BLOG POST The EU’s statistical office of the European Union Eurostat just published its statistics on the share of renewable energy sources in the electricity, heating & cooling and transport sector in 2020. With a 22.1% share of energy consumed from renewable sources in 2020, the EU has reached its

BLOG POST The EU Taxonomy complementary Delegated Act tabled by the European Commission is incompatible with limiting global warming to 1.5°C and with the EU’s 2030 climate targets The EU taxonomy – a classification system aiming to determine which activities genuinely contribute to the green transition – was meant to

OP-ED By Mirjana Jovanović (Belgrade Open School), Mirko Popović (Renewables and Environmental Regulatory Institute) and Viktor Berishaj (CAN Europe) Busting the myth: the chronology of coal use in Serbia 28 December 2021, Belgrade – The recent collapse of the coal based energy system in Serbia, debunks the popular myth of

Op-Ed By Edoardo Concari Coppola, Buildings Policy Coordinator, CAN Europe, first published in Social Europe on 15th December 2021 There are fears the revised directive on energy performance due from the European Commission will not be adequate to the task. The revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD),

OP-ED By Olivier Vardakoulias, Climate Action Network Europe, and Christophe Jost, CEE Bankwatch Network,  first published in the EU Observer on 22 December 2021 Where is the transparency in the EU €2 trillion recovery? Two trillion euros, in fact. Such huge financial injections into EU economies can come with well-documented risks of embezzlement,

POLICY CONCLUSIONS Reflections and way forward into 2022  The Ministerial Council of the Energy Community Treaty paved a long road for energy transition and climate action The negotiations to amend the Energy Community Treaty remain in a deadlock, after the last Ministerial Council of the Energy Community, held on November

To: Ursula von der Leyen, President European Commission Cc: Frans Timmermans, First Vice President European Commission 17 December 2021 Dear Commission President, Despite additional commitments made at the recent UN Climate Summit in Glasgow, the world is still alarmingly off track to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C. The UN

PRESS RELEASE Brussels, 15th December 2021 – The 2nd part of the ‘Fit for 55’ climate and energy package unveiled today by the European Commission doesn’t deliver on the pathway needed to reach the 1.5°C target and climate neutrality by 2040. Specifically, the set of legislative proposals related to gas

Dear Minister of Environment,  We are writing to you ahead of your next meeting on the 20 December 2021, where you will discuss the  progress on the Fit for 55 package and exchange views on the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), Effort  Sharing Regulation (ESR), the LULUCF Regulation and the

Brussels 14 December 2021 To: Vice President Frans Timmermans With the news of the passing of the first climate taxonomy Delegated Act, and while awaiting the complementary climate taxonomy Delegated Act, the undersigned would like to take this opportunity to remind the European Commission of its dedication to a broad

Societies and businesses face increasing uncertainty due to more frequent and intense extreme weather events, instability in global energy and commodity markets, and unclear climate commitments by key international partners. The European Green Deal potentially provides a broad and strong suite of policy tools that have the power to create

While countries in Europe and the EU are stepping up their climate action with more ambitious policies, there is a treaty which provides legal protections for investments in fossil fuels. The Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) is a little known but highly controversial international trade and investment agreement which is a

LETTER Dear Executive Vice-President Timmermans, Dear Commissioner Simson, We, the below-signed NGOs, are writing to you regarding the EU’s upcoming “hydrogen and gas decarbonisation package”. Based on the information that is currently available, we are concerned that in its current format, it neither serves the EU’s efforts to achieve its

POLICY BRIEF Methane is a potent greenhouse gas and has contributed to 0.5℃ of global warming. Its concentration in the atmosphere has more than doubled since pre-industrial times, and there is strong evidence that this is due to growth in anthropogenic emissions. Methane emissions from fossil fuels account for roughly

BLOG POST Some weeks after the COP26 concluded in Glasgow, CAN Europe summarised a few major outcomes focusing on mitigation and finance, what this means for the EU going forward, and how it can implement agreements in a way that is Fair for 1.5°C. “Keeping 1.5°C within reach”: more ambition

To: European Commission – Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans Subject: Sustainable carbon cycles Dear Executive Vice-President Timmermans,   We are writing to you in the context of the anticipated Sustainable Carbon Cycles Communication.  We believe it has significant merits, but risks seriously undermining its own declared purpose of  climate ambition.  First, the

In July 2021, the European Commission launched its “Fit for 55” package which aims to reach at least 55% net greenhouse gas emissions reduction by 2030 and to achieve climate neutrality in line with the European Green Deal. Part of the package is a proposal for amending the Renewable Energy

BLOG Originally posted by Europe Beyond Coal The Polish government wants to launch a massive rescue mission for the country’s loss-making hard coal mining, with the hope that State aid will keep it on life support until 2049 – one minute to midnight for the EU to become net zero.

With discussions at the Energy Council due to take place on the 2nd of December 2021, EU Energy ministers will take stock of the first round of examinations by governments of the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) recast proposal and the proposed amendment of the Renewable Energy Directive (RED) that have

The spotlight that was shining on the COP26 summit may have faded but the lack of breakthrough achievements that are desperately needed to halt dangerous climate change are still glaring. Despite  commitments made by different countries, including the EU, in Glasgow, current policies and targets are projected to be widely

Dear Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans, Dear Commissioner Kadri Simson, The alarming effects of climate change are before our eyes every day and science has warned us that the impacts will become ever more devastating unless urgent and bold actions are taken across all sectors. Being the single largest energy consumer in

In October 2021, the European Commission launched the public debate on the review of the EU’s economic governance framework. Citizens, organisations and public authorities are invited to submit their contributions by 31 December 2021. CAN Europe believes that the reform of the EU economic governance framework should serve the EU

In July 2021, the European Commission launched its recast proposal for a revised Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) within the “Fit for 55” package, which aims to reach at least 55% net greenhouse gas emissions reduction by 2030 in line with the European Green Deal. The recast proposal is being now

On July 21, 2021 the Regulation on a European Climate Law, a legally binding obligation upon which the European Union purports to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, entered into force. The law sets out to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030 compared to 1990. Below is a Turkish translation of the European Climate Law. It is

Massive public and private investments in climate mitigation and adaptation are urgent to avoid runaway catastrophic climate scenarios. As noted by the European Central Bank (ECB), “there are clear benefits to acting early: the short-term costs of the transition pale in comparison to the costs of unfettered climate change in

CAN Europe welcomes the European Commission’s Strategic Dialogue on the forthcoming  proposal for a Council Recommendation on addressing the social and labour aspects of the just  transition towards climate neutrality, as well as the possibility to share inputs in writing.  See here the link on European Commission website and download

CAN Europe responds to the consultation on the draft scenario report for the Ten Year Network Development Plan (TYNDP) 2022. This masterplan of European energy infrastructure planning is prepared every two years by the European transmission system operators for electricity and for gas, ENTSO-E and ENTSOG. Although CAN Europe generally

The Recovery and Resilience Facility has been the first major EU funding stream to apply the “do no significant harm” (DNSH) principle, a concept initially introduced by the EU Taxonomy regulation. While the principle that no EU-funded projects should harm environmental objectives is certainly a positive step in theory, the

LETTER Olaf Scholz Federal Minister of Finance and Vice Chancellor 11016 Berlin Germany Please save the Green Deal: Take action to prevent nuclear energy and fossil gas from being labelled as green   Berlin/Brussels, 15 November 2021 Dear Federal Minister, We are extremely concerned by the announcement of the European

PRESS RELEASE GLASGOW, 13th November 2021 – While the EU and European countries helped to secure some advancements on emissions reductions at COP26, it failed to step up and secure a comprehensive package to support climate vulnerable countries. The EU now needs to get behind solutions on finance to address

PRESS RELEASE Regional leaders need to put their political pledges into action and commit to a robust Green Agenda for the Western Balkans. The destructive effects of climate change, coupled with all present toxic air pollution, have been felt across the region with people bearing the cost of ineffective and

PRESS RELEASE GLASGOW, 9th November 2021 – COP26 must deliver on climate ambition and Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe is calling on the EU to play a leading role in the final days of climate talks to deliver robust COP26 outcomes. The EU is a key international player at the

Brussels, November 5, 2021 To: President Ursula von der Leyen Cc: Executive Vice-President Timmermans, Commissioner Simson, Commissioner Vălean, Commissioner Breton, Mr Kurt Vandenberghe, Mr Maggi, Ms Marquez Uriarte and Ms Chapuis, Mr Joan Canton, Ms Juul-Jorgensen, Ms Mechthild Wörsdörfer Hydrogen production for industry and efuels for transport need to come

MEDIA ADVISORY   Join CAN Europe’s litigation event at COP26 [Saturday 06/11 at 18.30 GMT in Strangford Lough, in the Blue Zone] and meet the people behind successful cases in bringing governments to court, in Australia, Korea, Poland, France, Belgium, Germany, COP26 co-host Italy and in front of the European

REPORT ISTANBUL, 2 NOVEMBER 2021 – Turkey can be coal free by 2030. How? Fossil fuel companies must be made financially responsible for their externalities in line with the ‘polluter pays’ principle, and the government must end subsidies for coal – shows the new report published by Europe Beyond Coal,

BLOG POST Rich countries are off track on a cornerstone of the Paris Agreement. The commitment to mobilise $100 billion climate finance annually between 2020-25 for poorer countries was first made back in 2009, and reiterated in the Paris Agreement. Climate finance helps those countries deal with devastating climate impacts

OP-ED Article by Chiara Martinelli, Director at CAN Europe, posted on Euronews   COP26 is just around the corner. Although it’s tempting to see it as just another climate summit, the reality is that this year, COP is exceptional. With a global pandemic as a backdrop exposing vast inequalities and

PRESS RELEASE Brussels, October 27th 2021 – Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe urges European countries and the European Union at the upcoming summits of the G20 and the Climate Conference in Glasgow (COP26) to deliver on the Paris Agreement commitments to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C by 2030 in

PRESS RELEASE The UN Environment Emissions Gap Report 2021: The Heat Is On released today reminds countries across the world the urgent need to accelerate emissions cuts to avoid heading towards catastrophic climate change. Brussels, October 26th 2021 – Less than a week before the Climate Summit in Glasgow (COP26),

PRESS RELEASE Chiara Martinelli is taking up the position of director of Europe’s leading NGO coalition fighting dangerous climate change, Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe, this 25 October. With over 180 member organisations active in 38 European countries, CAN Europe represents over 1.500 NGOs and more than 47 million citizens.

BLOG POST No doubt that 2021 leaves another mark in people’s commemoration that the climate crisis is no longer abstract science, it has become very real and even life threatening in every corner of the Earth: horrifying wild and forest fires in the Northern hemisphere in Yakutia (Russia), California (USA);

BLOG Originally published by Balkan Insight Regional policymakers are making a mistake if they use soaring energy prices in the EU to justify a continued commitment to fossil fuel, and divert from energy transition commitments. The energy crisis in Europe is sending a clear worldwide message: fossil fuel dependency must

PRESS RELEASE Brussels, 20 October 2021 – The European Union released yesterday its annual enlargement country reports on the progress of the Western Balkan states on the road towards joining EU members. Focusing on climate change, the joint message for all countries is that progress is limited and more needs

Addressing the structural shortcomings of European buildings, given there substantial contribution to greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption, is a stepping stone towards the achievement of the climate goals. Therefore, a paradigmatic shift in the building sector is needed to improve its overall energy performance, to move away from the

Emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, have far too long remained overlooked. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports that anthropogenic methane emissions are likely responsible for 0.5 °C of warming. It also concluded that reaching a sustainable mitigation pathway to 1.5 °C can only be achieved with

OP.ED. The EU’s economic governance must drive climate action for a just transition, not austerity, writes Isabelle Brachet. This op. ed .was first published in Euractiv. On 19 October, the European Commission will launch the review of the EU economic governance framework, which includes the common rules limiting Member States’

Back in May, UK COP26 president Alok Sharma called on all countries to abandon coal power and make this year’s UN climate talks the moment the world “consigns coal to history”. Given the urgency for bold climate action, next month’s Climate Summit must move the World to another level where

PRESS RELEASE A new report by Climate Analytics shows that there are several decarbonisation pathways that can put the EU and its Member States on track for meeting the climate goal of limiting the global temperature rise to 1.5°C by the end of this century. All of these pathways entail

LETTER  13 October 2021, Istanbul, Turkey World leaders gathered at CBD COP15 between 11-15th of October, with the aim to halt the catastrophic  global biodiversity loss. We are asking the leaders: Why is China constructing a coal-fueled power plant on the endangered green turtle nesting area in Turkey?   Since the

Together with its members, CAN Europe is organising a high level event to discuss how the ‘Fit for 55’ package and national plans (such as National Energy and Climate Plans and National Long-Term Strategies) can pave the way for 1.5°C compatible policies in Europe. Diederik Samsom, Head of Cabinet for

PRESS RELEASE Brussels, 8 October 2021 European climate, environmental and health NGOs have sent an open letter to the European Commission urging it to ensure that bloc-wide guidelines on energy subsidies do not allow taxpayers’ money to be used for bailing out fossil fuel operators. The world is watching and

PRESS RELEASE The EU WB Summit presented another opportunity to reaffirm political commitment towards EU integration, and to set an action plan on how to deliver the recently signed Sofia Declaration. It is now critical that the governments convert their political declarations into concrete actions, setting clear targets for coal

Brussels, 4 October 2021 – In light of the worsening climate crisis and global inequities, CAN Europe is calling on EU ministers to take a ‘Fair for 1.5’ approach to COP26 and the ‘Fit for 55’ Package in this week’s Council meetings, ensuring scaled-up support for climate vulnerable developing countries,

LETTER Brussels, 1 October 2021 Dear Finance Minister, CAN Europe recommendations on ECOFIN Council Conclusions on Climate Finance   On Tuesday 5 October 2021 you will adopt Council Conclusions on climate finance at Economic and Financial Affairs Council. The EU and each of its Member States should get behind a

According to the Governance Regulation, Member States are required to prepare national long-term strategies to present their climate and energy transition pathway with a perspective of at least 30 years. Despite the deadline for submission being 1 January 2020, still seven countries’ national strategies are missing and the timeline for

Letter Brussels, 29 September 2021 To: President and co-president of the Union for the Mediterranean, Secretary General Mr Nasser Kamel, Deputy Secretary General on Energy & Climate Action Mr Grammenos Mastrojeni, Representatives from Member States, Senior Officials, Mediterranean energy, gas, and climate policies Dear sirs/madams, The publication of the International

Letter   Brussels, 27 September 2021   The EU’s positions for COP26 including the Pre-COP must ensure that the EU and each of its Member States get behind a political outcome at COP26 that advances a fair approach to 1.5°C (Fair for 1.5°C). COP26 is an essential moment which must

BLOG POST Disclaimer: this blog post has been written by Youth and Environmental Europe (YEE), a CAN Europe member, on the occasion of the Global Youth Climate Strike on September 24th. All views and opinions expressed are the organisation’s own.   During the past year and a half, the world

MEDIA ADVISORY *Corrections made on 24/09/21 at 14pm CEST: 1) it is not 40 but 61 coal-fired power plants that currently benefit from the ECT’s extensive investment protection provisions, according to IISD reports; 2) not only 8 but 16 coal-fired power plants would be protected under the ECT if the

MEDIA ADVISORY Next Monday, September 27th, the European Parliament’s Industry and Energy Committee (ITRE) will adopt its position on future energy infrastructure rules, known as TEN-E regulation. The deal that is currently being finalised with a view to be adopted by the majority of the political parties will not help