Ecology

Two years after Fukushima, global nuclear power generation continues to decline. If it were not for the World Nuclear Industry Status Report we probably would not know.

Buen Vivir is a Latin American concept which can be understood in three differing ways, but mainly as a critique to the Western way of development. The equivalent school of thoughts in Europe is based on the, the Green New Deal, which proposes a strategy to confront the challenges of global warming, finite resources and etc. Despite this connection, the Green New Deal it is not a goal in itself, it is just a tool, differing from a political philosophy like Buen Vivir.

Buen Vivir is a criticism of what could be described as an ideology or cultural aspect of development. This paper will briefly touch upon the three different interpretations of the complex Latin American concept of Buen Vivir and then compare it to the European New Green Deal.

The Raw Materials Initiative may represent a first step for Europe to less resource dependency, but the question arises as to whether it also appropriately addresses climate challenges and provides a basis for a resource efficient and responsible environmental policy.

There is a broad consensus that apart of investing our energy in a certain fuel quality a fundamental change in transport politics is necessary in order to save more fuel and consequently Green House Gas emissions. In this regard the EU can also be a role model encouraging efficient transport policies.

One by one, Germany’s farms are dying off. One in every two farms was run as a sideline: the majority of the household’s income came from activities other than agriculture. For many, that is a worrying trend. But to fight it, society must agree on what the future of agriculture should look like. 

Europe’s agriculture is part of many international value chains. It influences global commodity markets and thus the prices, products, income and diets in developing countries. Disagreement exists as to whether the area payments have a negative effect on developing countries.

French agricultural policy has been guided by an agroecological project since 2014. But these good intentions are not refl ected in the implementation of the Common Agricultural Policy. It is high time to put the focus on agroecology. 

Rising demand for organic products in Europe is a market opportunity for producers and the food industry. But farmers need help to switch from conventional to organic, and to stay organic in face of market pressures inducing them to switch back. The Common Agricultural Policy offers some support – but not enough.