European Economic and Social Committee
On 11 December 2019, the European Commission launched the European Green Deal reinforcing the EU’s commitment to tackling climate and environmental-related challenges that is this generation’s defining task. The objective of the European Green Deal is to transform the EU into a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy, ensuring:
To deliver the European Green Deal, the EU is carrying out a comprehensive package of initiatives, including policy and legislative proposals and the development and modernisation of financing instruments.
The EESC has been calling for a "Green and Social Deal", stressing the close link between the Green Deal and social justice. It is essential to hear the voice of all stakeholders in order to foster the sustainable and competitive companies of tomorrow in a healthy environment.
The European Green Deal placed a strong emphasis on investment and the financing of the green and sustainable transition. The Green Deal is Europe’s lifeline out of the COVID-19 pandemic. One third of the 1.8 trillion euro investments from the NextGenerationEU Recovery Plan, and the EU’s seven-year budget finances the European Green Deal. This boost in funding opportunities aims to turn the crisis into a transformational opportunity for the future of Europe.
The EESC plays a crucial role in monitoring the implementation of the European Green Deal initiatives and actions. The EESC prepares opinions and organises activities (see side menu on the left of this page) to ensure the EU institutions take into account the views of organised civil society and the Green Deal initiatives are coherent with the economic, social and civic circumstances on the ground.
Due to the transversal and all-encompassing nature, the European Green Deal is covered by all EESC Sections and CCMI.
On 2 May 2023, the Liberal Professions Category of the EESC held the 7th edition of the Day of the Liberal Professions in Brussels. This annual event brings together key players from Europe's liberal professions, as well as key policymakers from the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Member States. This year's event was entitled Fostering skills and delivering the Green Deal.
The transition towards a low-carbon economy is a fundamental priority. But the green transition will fail without social dialogue. This represented a general agreement among the discussions during the meeting, particularly if climate policies were not made also socially sustainable and did not take into account the needs and worries of working people, of citizens. Key points raised during the debates included the fact that real wages were decreasing with the soaring inflation, the complementarity of fighting climate change and protecting social rights, and the fundamental role of involving Trade Unions in the design and implementation of policies within the Green Deal.
Academia, local civil society organisations, representatives of regional and national authorities and members of the European Economic and Social Committee met at a conference in Dolni Vítkovice, a former industrial area for coal mining and steel production in Ostrava, on 11 October 2022. The conference on Reinventing the Moravian-Silesian Region in search of a socially just transition was organised by the EESC's Civil Society Organisations' Group as part of the Czech Presidency of the Council of the EU.
In its resolution on the involvement of organised civil society in the implementation and monitoring of the National Recovery and Resilience Plans (NRRPs) the European Economic and Social Committee calls for clear rules to effectively involve social partners and civil society organisations in the Member states' strategies to bring the economy back on track.
