Now’s the best time for a Green New Deal

A“Green New Deal” has become the talk of the town in many of the world’s capitals. Having recently emerged in the United States, the idea pays tribute to the visionary economic-recovery program launched by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933. But Europe can – and must – deliver it as well. Europe has long been committed to the environment, introducing its first joint program back in 1972. In 2005, the European Union established the first emission-trading scheme, which remains the world’s largest carbon market. And in 2015, the EU took the lead in negotiating the Paris climate agreement, and committed to cutting its own greenhouse-gas emissions by 40% from 1990 levels.

But these steps, though important, do not address the scale of the challenge now facing the world. Bees and other insects are disappearing, while microplastic pollution has become ubiquitous. Rising temperatures could cause ice to disappear from the Arctic by 2050, and will worsen the fires, droughts, and floods Europe is already experiencing. And as air pollution increases, so will deaths from respiratory diseases.

And yet there are also grounds for optimism. More and more people are willing to act and to adapt their lifestyle, like the students and others taking to the streets of Stockholm, Prague, Brussels, and Milan every Friday. Businesses also increasingly see the benefits of the new green economy. It is politics and politicians, both national and European, that are lagging behind.

Now is the time to build on grassroots momentum and make Green Europe the number-one priority for the coming years. Doing so requires focusing on three main areas.

First, Europe must become a carbon-neutral economy by 2050. If we want to limit global warming to 1.5°C relative to the pre-industrial era, we have no other choice: EU net carbon-dioxide emissions must come down to zero by mid-century. That means investing massively in future mobility, energy-efficient buildings, and renewables, and in key technologies such as hydrogen batteries, new generations of solar panels, and green chemistry. It also means applying strict CO2 emission limits to new passenger cars, public transport, and commercial sea and air transport. And it means making Europe, together with our car industry, the first electric-vehicle continent by 2030.

Second, Europe must take the lead in the responsible use of resources and become a truly circular economy that minimizes waste. Today, eight billion tons of materials are processed into energy or products annually in the EU. Only 0.6 billion tons – a mere 7.5% – originate from recycling. We must do much better. In addition to delivering on ourplastics strategy, we should focus on four priorities: food waste and the bio-economy, textiles, construction, and fastmoving consumer goods.

Third, we must do much more to protect biodiversity. According to the World Wildlife Fund, wildlife populations havefallen by an estimated 60% globally since 1970. Next year’s United Nations conference on biodiversity in Beijing will be decisive. Once again, the EU should lead the way. We need to strengthen EU legislation on the protection of species, as well as an ambitious plan for the blue economy and the preservation of our seas. And we must launch a real debate with – and not against – our farmers, reviewing our standards and modernizing the Common Agricultural Policy to accompany this green transition. This massive shift will not happen if its costs fall disproportionately on those least able to bear them. All EU measures should therefore be designed to minimize social costs. At the same time, we need to keep pushing for effective global cooperation, while protecting ourselves from unfair competition.

The three objectives could become the pillars of a Sustainability Pact at the heart of the EU’s new policy cycle. Massive investments will be required, too. The European Commission estimates that the EU will need $203 billion in additional investment each year to meet its commitments under the Paris agreement. This is an achievable target. For such a transformative green program to succeed, we must set aspirational goals and embrace “moon-shot missions.” At the same time, we will need to agree on detailed roadmaps. Not everything can be done overnight. But we can no longer close our eyes and lungs to what is happening to our environment. The best time to launch a Green EU Deal was years ago. The next-best time is now.

This massive shift will not happen if its costs fall disproportionately on those least able to bear them