Europe is moving in the right direction

Many European countries, on their own initiative, and the European Union as a whole, are implementing policies that protect the environment. These policies also help to create a stronger, more supportive economy and serve as a reference for other countries on other continents.

Towards sustainable urban mobility

An example of this is the transformation of the mobility system: not so much the way goods are moved or how the population moves, but the amount we have to move. Transporting both goods and people poses a very high risk to the environment. Many European countries are already trying to change this because climate-damaging emissions from the transport sector must be significantly reduced.

The evidence compels us to take measures and there are already many very significant cases where governments at national and municipal level are taking action in this respect.

Cities such as Paris and Oxford are studying how to implement what has come to be called “the 15-minute city”. This is a proposed urban planning approach that aims to design cities where all essential services, such as supermarkets, pharmacies, schools, leisure options and workplaces, are within a 15-minute walk or bicycle ride from people’s homes. Even traditional public transport (bus, metro and tram) would not be seen as an alternative to private vehicles: the important thing is to move without having to consume any kind of energy, except what the person moving can produce.

This is diametrically opposed to what we have become accustomed to over the past few decades, when it did not matter how far our home was from our usual commuting points. With a vehicle, and public transport, anywhere in the city is accessible.

The idea is in no way intended to be used to restrict the area a person lives their life in. Everyone would still be free to go wherever they wanted, but would be offered the chance to save time on potentially unnecessary trips.
It is estimated that the average person spends three hours a day travelling to work, school, supermarkets, leisure activities, and so on. If we avoid the need to make these trips, we will get three more hours of leisure, peace, relaxation, work or whatever each person would like to do, as well as preventing greenhouse gas emissions, of course.

Significant economic growth is also expected, because each area would be revitalised, promoting local, neighbourhood shops, offering the friendly, personal treatment common a few decades ago. The 15-minute city idea would greatly relieve personal and environmental stress in large cities, turning them from megalopolises into small, human-scale towns.

This is an option currently being studied, but other solutions that are easier to implement have already been put into practice to mitigate climate change as much as possible. The idea is to convert one of the motor vehicle lanes in the streets into a cycle lane.

Far from causing chaos for the city, this has brought significant relief in Paris and Berlin. It has been a huge success, even leading to bike jams. The way it has been received shows for certain that cities cannot be designed for cars – they have to be designed for people.

There are other measures which, in time, have gained support, such as closing city centres to road traffic. A clear example of this is Pontevedra in north-western Spain, which managed to reduce its CO2 emissions by 70%. Many groups predicted an economic disaster, but it turned out to be just the opposite.

At first, change is obviously viewed with reticence and even fear, but we must arm ourselves with courage and good arguments so that our planet does not find itself doomed to an unprecedented environmental, economic and human disaster.

The European Green Deal is the plan to make the EU economy sustainable

We achieve our goals by turning climate and environmental challenges into opportunities and making the transition fair and inclusive for all.

The European Green Deal action plan consists of:

Boosting resource efficiency by shifting to a clean and circular economy

Restoring biodiversity and reducing pollution

The plan describes the investments required and the tools available for financing. It explains how to ensure a just and inclusive transition.

Green treaties

Climate change and environmental deterioration are a threat to the existence of Europe and the world. To meet these challenges, Europe needs a new development strategy that will transform the European Union into a sustainable society and a modern, competitive, resource-efficient economy, in which:

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There are zero net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Economic development is decoupled from resource use.

No person or place is left behind.

The European Union will be climate-neutral by 2050

The EU has proposed a European climate law to transform this political commitment into a legal obligation. Achieving this goal will require action from all sectors of our economy, including: