The Paris Agreement is rightly seen as a milestone in the fight against climate change as it is the first such convention to be legally binding under international law.  Europe played no minor role in putting the necessary pressure to clinch this deal. But the 177 signatures of heads of states and governments alone won't be enough. Now it is time for Europe to take the lead again and implementing the necessary policies. This, however, will only be successful with the full involvement of European citizens ....

The Exploratory opinion on "More sustainable food systems" (Rapporteur: Mindaugas Maciulevičius), requested by the Netherlands presidency of the EU, was adopted by the EESC at its plenary session on 26 May 2016. The opinion calls for the development of a comprehensive food policy in the EU and for an ...

Waning resources on the one side and growing mountains of waste on the other side are calling for a rethink of the way we live today, and, in particular the way how we manufacture, use, and deposit our products. We need to switch from a linear "extract-transform-use-throw-away" economy to a circular economy, i.e. an industrial economy which not only avoids waste and pollution but reuses, repairs, remanufactures and recycles. In its opinion on the "Circular Economy Package" ...

The EESC welcomes the fact that the European Commission has made it a priority to simplify the implementation of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Increased transparency and legal certainty should go hand in hand with a reduction in red tape for farmers, other beneficiaries, producer organisations and national administrations. A simplified CAP needs to be implemented as soon as possible and farmers should be provided with necessary information and education-based support. For the EESC, it is particularly important to look into the consistency of current requirements, including their impact on the environment, food safety, food availability and job creation.