A new report gives a clear pathway for the ECB to be playing a much bigger role in making the green transition affordable. It suggests alternative steps that would speed up and key actions that are needed to fight climate change on a larger scale. The report also warns that the EU’s new Omnibus legislative package – which weakens corporate sustainability reporting – could reduce the availability of high-quality green data. This would make it harder for the ECB to run the most ambitious version of a green refinancing programme.
The EU has made circularity central to its critical raw materials strategy, with the Clean Industrial Deal and forthcoming Circular Economy Act as key instruments. Four policy pillars show real ambition — but blind spots persist: recycling faces structural limits, international partnerships remain underdeveloped, and export restrictions risk a "circular divide" between wealthy and developing economies. Our new e-paper by Cláudia Azevedo analyses what the EU is getting right, and where it must go further.
The MFF proposal sidelines climate and the environment, inflates green spending claims, and weakens safeguards through flexibilisation and programme mergers. This paper assesses the spending target, the Do No Significant Harm principle, and climate and environmental provisions in the proposal’s two largest programmes.
The English edition of the Water Atlas, published by Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, presents the complexity and urgency of global water issues in a visually compelling, accessible format. It provides facts, trends, case studies, and political context to inform public discourse and shape policy. From the unequal distribution of water and industrial pollution to climate-linked water insecurity and geopolitical tensions, the Atlas aims to sharpen understanding and support action toward more sustainable and equitable water governance.
The EU aims to be the first climate-neutral continent by 2050 and cut emissions 55 % by 2030. But it still hasn’t set the 2035 and 2040 targets required by the Paris Agreement and its own Climate Law. This publication answers 10 key questions and offers five proposals for a “net-zero package” to strengthen and build on the current Fit-for-55 measures.
The Digital Services Act (DSA) is now in force, but climate disinformation is not explicitly recognised as a “systemic risk”. With this regulatory gap in mind, we set out to examine how platform responses to climate disinformation evolved or failed to evolve between 2023 and 2025, and what their policies look like in practice.
What will happen with key European Green Deal key files in the new EU legislative cycle? We take a closer look at the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS).
What will happen with key European Green Deal key files in the new EU legislative cycle? We take a closer look at the EU Emissions Trading System 2 (ETS2) covering fuels used in buildings and road transport.
The Europe Sustainable Development Report 2025 provides an independent quantitative assessment of the progress of the European Union, its member states and partner countries towards the Sustainable Development Goals. This sixth edition identifies SDG priorities in a context where the new EU leadership, including the European Commission, Parliament and Council of the EU, has recently been established for 2024-2029 mandate.
Will the EU-US Trade and Technology Council shape a resilient future or succumb to geopolitical rifts? This in-depth exploration of scenarios, challenges, and opportunities for transatlantic collaboration on trade, tech, and climate action outlines possible futures.
As the EU enters a new five-year cycle, its ambitious Green Deal targets and European Climate Law face growing uncertainty due to concerns over industrial competitiveness and economic growth. Additionally, backlash against the EU’s climate policies, fuelled by farmers’ protests, could hinder the promise of a just green transition. Yet, as the planet warms rapidly, climate change will continue to affect EU economic sectors, including agriculture and food. Greater climate variability and extremes will impact global food systems, posing supply chain challenges and heightening food insecurity. These trends highlight the need to invest in sustainable agri-food systems as part of climate mitigation and adaptation.
The Soil Atlas 2024 not only highlights the consequences of the global loss of fertile soil, but also shows the potential of sustainable and fair land use for climate protection and biodiversity.
The choice at the US ballot box will be a stark one for climate policies. This paper explores how the EU and its member states could adjust their climate policies, depending on the outcome of the US election.
The fourth edition of the European Green Deal Barometer, the annual survey by the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP), gathers sustainability experts’ views on the progress of the European Green Deal’s implementation. The 2024 EU elections are considered by sustainability experts to negatively impact the European Green Deal implementation. However, these experts believe the agenda will be maintained by the new European Commission.
It is very clear that if the EU wants to make a fair contribution to the effort to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C, it will need to follow the recommendation of UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and aim for achieving net-zero GHG emissions by 2040 rather than by 2050. This means the new EU 2040 target should become a net-zero target. It makes sense for the EU to set a very ambitious 2035 target of around 95% net GHG emission reductions at the same time.
This factsheet delves into platforms’ policies on climate change misinformation, focusing on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X/Twitter and YouTube and their actions are currently in place to limit the impact of such content.
The Peatland Atlas 2023 highlights the consequences of the destruction of these unique habitats, but also the potential of wet peatlands for mitigating climate change.
As part of the “European Green Deal”, the European Commission committed to introducing a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) in late 2019. It tabled the legislative proposal in summer 2021. The measure is controversial, and many questions remain. What is the right timeframe for its implementation? How to use the generated revenues? What about climate justice considerations?
El transporte y la movilidad sostenibles son fundamentales para hacer frente a la crisis climática y alcanzar los objetivos del Pacto Verde Europeo. Sin embargo, el transporte hoy representa casi el 30 por ciento de las emisiones de CO₂ dentro de la Unión Europea. ¿Cómo puede la UE reducir sus emisiones de transporte y movilidad al mismo tiempo que conecta a los ciudadanos, crea empleos verdes y lidera la innovación en el sector?
