Introduction The economic crisis in Europe shares with the environmental crisis and societal concerns the same root cause, namely a narrow pre-occupation with short-term gain at the expense of long-term sustainability. With this report, Worldwatch Institute Europe wishes to highlight a path to tackle our multiple crises, suggesting different ways on how to build a green and living economy. Why action is needed. In 1992, government leaders from all over the world met in Rio de Janeiro for the first Earth Summit on sustainable development. Twenty years have passed by and though some progress has been made, many critical goals have been left unmet. Climate change is looming, biodiversity loss continues, and natural resources get scarcer. These are the challenges we face. What to do. Triggered by the interest and hope among Europeans for a more sustainable future, we have conducted a survey in order to harvest ideas, hopes, and incentives. Representatives from business, science and civil society provide their opinion on what are the most important concerns and how these should be tackled. By adding these voices from Europe to the process of developing concrete strategies, new goals can be set in the move toward building living and green economies. How to do it. As the need for change engages actors across institutional frameworks, we wish to demonstrate with a number of examples how environmental challenges are being tackled across Europe. The vision is a culture of diversity, with processes supported by broad values and organised in a system linking the environment, society, and the economy.
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Voices from Europe - Worldwatch Institute Europe