Accelerating the Energy Transformation of Central and Eastern Europe and Learning from the German Experience

This project is completed. It aimed to strengthen the role of civil society in increasing the climate ambition in CEE countries.
Many Central and Eastern European (CEE) Member States of the European Union have been reluctant to commit to more ambitious EU climate goals because they emphasise the cost of climate action over the need and the benefits of a low-carbon transition.
Civil society action has been instrumental in increasing the ambition level in climate policy through publishing different studies, advocacy strategies for legislative action in individual CEE Member States, monitoring the implementation of EU climate and energy policies and engaging in successful legal action against coal power plants.
However, when compared with other regions, notable gaps exist in the organisation and influence of clean energy stakeholders in a number of CEE countries.
Post-industrial museum Zollverein in Bochum, Germany. Photo by Berber Verpoest, CC BY-SA 3.0
The partners strived to make the need for a low-carbon transition and its benefits more visible at all levels of decision-making and to gain commitment for a long-term solution of the issue in the CEE region. Specifically, the project has:
Collaboration between a CEE-based NGO network (Bankwatch), an environmental think tank (E3G) working on EU level, and a German NGO (DUH) ensured that all levels of expertise and the German experience with Energiewende were reflected in the process.
Updated: May 2021
Countries: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia
Project duration: 09/17 - 02/20
Funding: 918,062 €
Target groups: Civil Society, Experts, Governments, Journalists, NGOs, Regional governments
Implementing organisation:
CEE Bankwatch Network
Project Partners:
Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH), E3G – Third Generation Environmentalism
Website:
bankwatch.org
Organisation: CEE Bankwatch Network
Address: Bankwatch Prague Office
Heřmanova 1088/8
170 00 Praha 7
Czech Republic
Tel: +420 777 995 515
The European Climate Initiative (EUKI):
This project is part of the European Climate Initiative (EUKI). EUKI is a project financing instrument by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK). The EUKI competition for project ideas is implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. It is the overarching goal of the EUKI to foster climate cooperation within the European Union (EU) in order to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.
For more information on the EUKI: www.euki.de