Towards 2030 – Assessment of key environmental actions to be included in the annex to the 8th Environmental Action Programme to better anchor environmental policy in society

Key points

The EESC:

• calls for political commitment and action rather than a new annex to the 8th EAP, stressing that the focus should be on implementing existing measures and integrating environmental, social, and economic dimensions into a coherent sustainability strategy;
• reiterates its demand for an EU Sustainable Development Strategy 2050 to replace the fragmented Green Deal approach, which insufficiently addresses social justice in the transition;
• warns that sustainability policy remains too abstract for many and underlines the need to communicate clearly what systemic change means for citizens, workers, and businesses in practical terms;
• points out that the European Commission itself acknowledges several planetary boundaries have already been crossed, yet the consequences remain abstract for most people. At the same time, the EESC criticises the use of the 1.5°C target as a political benchmark in climate policy, arguing that it lies beyond planetary boundaries and risks creating a false sense of security and reducing the urgency to act;
• stresses the importance of significantly increasing public and political awareness of planetary boundaries and their consequences, and of grounding climate targets in scientific thresholds;
• urges the EU to move beyond GDP as a measure of prosperity and launch a political debate involving economic and finance ministers on how to assess wellbeing and long-term sustainability;
• highlights the urgent need to phase out environmentally and health-damaging subsidies and calls for better targeting of financial incentives, especially in agriculture, to reward the provision of public goods;
• emphasises that existing EU environmental legislation is often poorly implemented and calls for stronger enforcement, improved use of existing tools, and better allocation and monitoring of funding;
• insists on structured and inclusive civil society participation in shaping environmental policy to ensure fairness, legitimacy, and stronger public support, particularly at local level;
• criticises the EU’s slow follow-up on citizen engagement commitments and calls for the rapid implementation of participatory frameworks such as the Citizens Energy Package and community-led initiatives;
• recommends building on successful examples like the Circular Economy Platform and national strategic dialogues to better integrate bottom-up knowledge and bridge the gap between institutions and society.