Reforming the EU: Climate Policies as the New Trade Mark of the EU

Project

The project aims to make energy and climate policies a central issue of the EU reform debate. To pursue the project’s objective, the project will convene opinion leaders of EU reform and climate policies through workshops in Tallinn, Sofia and Bucharest. Bringing together knowledge and expertise from high-level stakeholders across Member States will inform the policy analysis and recommendations on (future) reform proposals.

The first workshop took place in Tallinn, Estonia, on December 4, 2017, with participants from parliament, embassies, ministries, NGOs and industry associations. The roundtable style allowed for in-depth discussions. A discussion paper framed the workshop. The next workshops will take place in in Sofia, Bulgaria, and Bucharest, Romania.

A background paper will explore the interlinkages between EU reform and climate and energy policies including latest developments in the EU reform process. A final workshop in Berlin in February 2019 will conclude the project.

Background

A strong EU is an essential element of successful climate and energy policies – not only as an advocate of international climate protection, but also as an important driver for ambitious policies in Europe. Climate and energy policies – policy fields that require close cooperation between Member States – can help support EU reform. For these reasons, the discussions on the future of the EU have important implications for EU energy and climate policies, and vice versa.