Sustainability 21, Helsinki 5-6 november
European Environmental Advisory Councils | Working Groups & Special Events
"Sustainability 21" on 5-6 November 1999 in Helsinki
The EU's record in promoting sustainable development came under close scrutiny at the Sustainability 21 Conference in Helsinki on 5 6 November 1999. This high-level conference was held in advance of the December Helsinki European Summit, at which EU Heads of State and Government will review Europe's progress towards sustainable development and the integration of environmental issues into other policy areas.
The conference proceedings are available here for download (pdf-Format) and can also be downloaded in German and French at:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/forum/sust21.htm
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Proceedings Recommendations Press Release Background on Organizers Programme |
Conference Recommendations
Sustainability 21 - Transforming Markets
The Sustainability 21 Conference participants, differing in background but united in their desire to advance the objective of sustainable development in the European Union, declare with a view toward the discussion of environmental integration and sustainable development at the European Council meeting of 10-11 December 1999 in Helsinki:
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The European Union, on the threshold of a new millennium, faces the challenge of making the transition to sustainable development and a better quality of life for Europe’s citizens. This is to be achieved by aligning the three dimensions of sustainability: environmental imperatives, economic objectives and social considerations.
There is an urgent need to face this challenge since, as the European Environment Agency reports, ‘unsustainable development’ in certain economic sectors (e.g. agriculture, energy and transport) is the major factor in the declining environmental quality in the EU.
Meeting this challenge requires sustained and coordinated direction from the EU’s political leaders, as initiated by the European Council’s ‘Cardiff integration process’. Meeting this challenge also requires active involvement of consumers as well as leadership from other sectors, such as the business community, which stand to gain markets from this leadership.
The ‘Cardiff process’ correctly identifies integration as a key mechanism for attaining sustainable development.
The European Council has invited various formations of the Council (agriculture, energy, transport, and others) to examine their own work and to identify the measures needed to accomplish the integration of environmental requirements into other policy areas in order to promote sustainable development as required by the Treaty of Amsterdam
The European Council in Helsinki should take a close and critical look at the reports the various formations of the Council have prepared to date. It is clear that the reports are of differing quality and lack a common framework. Further work by these Councils will be needed to turn them into strategies for integration.
The European Council should forcefully express its determination to continue to monitor, evaluate and link the integration strategies of the various formations of the Council.
The European Council should request the President of the European Commission to champion integration within the Commission and to take an active central role in making the integration principle work in practice. The Commission’s group for ‘Growth, Competitiveness, Employment and Sustainable Development’ should be a forum for initiatives for sustainable development.
The transition to sustainability is one of the biggest challenges facing our society. The European Council should resolve now to order the preparation of a ‘Sustainable Development Strategy for the EU’ with a time horizon of up to 30 years to be adopted in time for the Rio + 10 review. A new sixth Environmental Action Programme should constitute a strong environmental pillar of this strategy, alongside social and economic considerations.
Any strategy for integration and sustainable development must include principles and both short and long term targets, timetables, indicators and benchmarks. These elements are crucial for getting the message across to governments, all stakeholders and the general public. Without these mechanisms, there is no way of knowing whether we are on the right track and moving at the right speed.
A common framework of core headline indicators for monitoring progress should be developed to assist the various formation of the Council in their further work on integration. Core headline indicators should be complemented by sectoral indicators which reflect the specific areas of responsibility of each Council formation, as well as by indicators for the social and economic objectives (e.g. competitiveness) of sustainable development. The approach should be pan-European in scope, reflecting the upcoming accession of new member states.
Core headline indicators should address inputs (resource consumption), outputs (emissions, waste streams), responses(market instruments, management tools) and outcomes (human health, social welfare, biodiversity, environmental quality). Core headline indicators should serve as signposts to progress and be expressed in ways the general public can follow (quality of life terms).
Indicators for sustainability should have both a near-term (e.g. five years) and long-term character (e.g. one generation). The indicators should enable the monitoring of progress, e.g. in increasing the efficiency of resource use and the decoupling of resource use and economic growth.
The Commission, with the support of the European Environment Agency, should be requested to play a leading role in helping to develop and apply these headline and sectoral indicators, together with appropriate targets, timetables and independent monitoring systems to produce yearly progress and trend reports. Priority formations of the Council for action continue to be agriculture, transport, energy fisheries, trade and, in particular ecofin and internal market.
The European Council should also emphasise the need for each institution of the EU to use and further develop mechanisms for integration (e.g. environmental appraisals, integration procedures) appropriate to its role. One such mechanism could be a ‘Red Flag’ for unsustainable policies or measures. The European Council, for its part, should commit itself not to support any major policy initiative with significant environmental impacts unless it has been accompanied by satisfactory environmental appraisal and an analysis of its contribution to sustainability.
The European Council should seek to inspire a new spirit of governance, giving priority to the enabling of innovation and partnership and drawing on citizen and stakeholder involvement as called for by the Aarhus Convention with its rights of access to information, public participation and access to justice.
Promoting sustainable development will also require renewed efforts to improve environmental education and communication with the public. A strategy for sustainable development must address the influencing of personal behaviour and choices in consumption, including the provision of information which enables consumers to make sustainable choices.
Similarly, local and other levels of government and other sectors, including the business sector (both large companies and smaller enterprises), should be encouraged to examine their own role in sustainable development and to develop benchmarks and other mechanisms to improve environmental performance.
European Sustainability Kinsale 04-Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development in EU 20, 15-16 April 2004
European Sustainability Kinsale 04 - Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development in EU 25
Enlargement of the European Union to 25 member states presents new challenges and opportunities for revitalising and refocusing sustainable development policy. At EU level, there has been a commitment to review the European Union Sustainable Development Strategy (SDS); at the same time, many member states have reviewed, or are reviewing, their national strategies in the light of the outcomes of the World Summit on Sustainable Development and developments at EU level. Accordingly, now is the time to forge stronger and closer connections between national and EU policies to make sustainable development more of a reality.
Against this background, and as part of Ireland’s EU Presidency, the Irish Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and Comhar, Ireland’s National Sustainable Development Partnership, hosted a conference on sustainable development in April 2004. The theme of the conference will address the challenges and opportunities for sustainable development in an enlarged EU. It will build on the outcome of the Vienna workshop and expert meeting in The Hague with a view to contributing practical perspectives for the purposes of the SDS review, and further explore ways of linking national strategies and strengthening coherence with a reviewed SDS.
ProgrammeParticipants Summary
Conference Papers:
Speech by Martin Cullen T.D., Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government
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In the course of the Kinsale conference the representatives of EEAC councils agreed on a document to be known as the ‘Kinsale Challenge’ making a number of specific recommendations to the EU and the Member States about the Lisbon and the EU Sustainable Development Strategy Review, particularly requesting that the Lisbon process should take account of the EU SDS review so that the sustainability dimension can be better reflected in it. The Kinsale Challenge. Reinforcing Sustainable Development in the European Union
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Focal Point Communication and Internet Seminar, The Hague 16 April 1999
European Environmental Advisory Councils | Working Groups & Special Events
Focal Point Communication and Internet Seminar
in The Hague, 16 April 1999
A one-day seminar was held at Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and Environment (MinVROM) in Den Haag, hosted by the VROM-Raad, to familiarize Councils with how to make most effective use of the Focal Point website. The seminar covered briefly the general understanding of the Internet and then concentrated on the use of the Homepage as an essential tool for communication through the Focal Point.
Seminar Programme
09:30–09:45 |
1. IntroductionWelcome and opening words by Hubert Wiggering and Ingeborg Niestroy, Focal Point Information Service, Umweltrat. (15 min) |
09:45–10:30 |
2. The Focal Point – for Whom and Why?An introduction to the "Focal Point" network: Has international collaboration improved with the Focal Point? (30 min + 15 min discussion)
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10:30–11:30 |
3. The Focal Point Web Site – a New Tool for CommunicationHow has international collaboration changed since we have gone on the Internet? (45 min + 15 min discussion) 3.1 The Focal Point Goes Online
3.2 The Focal Point Web Site – an Information Source on Individual Environmental Advisory Councils and Their Activities in Europe
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11:30–12:30 |
4. Tools and Tricks of the Trade – an Essential Introduction to the Internet4.1 Technical Basics and Requirements for the UserNot technical equipment and connectivity needed to have access to the Internet ("hardware"), but an overview on the "software" needed to go online and how to configure it properly; terminology haunting you. (30 min incl. discussion) 4.2 Using the Internet – EfficientlyWhat you do, when you are online, to make the most efficient use of the Internet and get to see what you are looking for. (30 min incl. discussion) |
| 12:30–13:30 | Lunch break |
13:30–14:30 |
5. How to Use the Focal Point Web SiteWhat it looks like and how it works. What you find where on the web site. How you find your colleagues and how you get in touch with them. (60 min incl. discussion) |
14:30–15:15 |
6. Communication via eMailContact your colleagues fast, easy, and at low cost – individually or altogether. Don't fax – go digital: eMail! (45 min incl. discussion) |
15:15–15:45 |
7. General DiscussionDoes the web site work for you? Is it adequate for communication on the European Council level? Do we need other ways to communicate? (30 min) |
15:45–16:00 |
8. After the SeminarIndividual talks and demos – questions and problem solving (on request) |
The seminar was prepared and held by This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
EU Sustainable Development Strategy 2001
European Environment and Sustainable Development Advisory Councils | Working Groups & Special Events
EU Sustainable Development Strategy 2001
In 2001, the European Union issued its first Strategy for Sustainable Development. At their annual conference held at Sesimbra in June 2000, EEAC identified this Strategy as an issue of vital and fundamental importance. Internationally, it formed the contribution to Rio + 10. It will also flesh out the concept of 'sustainable development', which is still one of the EU's formal objectives and the key goal of the environmental integration duty contained in the Treaty.
As a follow up of the ad-hoc group on the 6EAP EEAC established a Working Group to contribute to forming the EU Sustainable Development Strategy, and consider what must be done to move the EU towards a more environmentally sustainable path.
At the moment of its setting, the members of the Working Group Sustainable Development were:
- Danish Nature Council (chair)
- Belgian MiNa-Raad
- Belgian FRDO-CFDD
- German SRU
- German WBGU
- Portuguese CNADS
- Swedish MVB
- English Nature
- RCEP, UK
- SNH, UK
The Working Group aimed at contributing to that process with the special expertise of independent advisory councils for environmental policy and sustainable development which are rooted in member states.
In particular the following questions were dealt with:
- Which existing EU policies are obstacles for national S.D. strategies?
- What are best practice examples on national and regional level?
Greening Sustainable Development Strategies is the statement the Working Group produced, following initial meetings with European Commission officials, and in consultation with all the advisory councils that make up the EEAC network: A draft statement was circulated among the EEAC participants for comments, which were considered and, if possible, incorporated in the text. Special thanks from the drafting group go to David Lewis with the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution (UK).
The EEAC statement analyses the concept of sustainable development, and proposes changes in the European Union institutions and procedures. It contains examples of national initiatives, and highlights some critical areas of policy where changes are needed. Some would argue that the Strategy should also cover the European Union relationship to the Third World. The focus of this statement, however, is deliberately on European Union policy-making because that lies within the expertise of the EEAC.
The underlying message is that, in the longer term, a healthy environment is fundamental to economic development and human welfare. If European citizens, including the candidate countries, are to move towards sustainability, the procedures and policies of the European Union are in urgent need of fundamental change. A crucial problem is the lack of coherence in EU policies in different fields, especially with respect to their long-term effects. The EU needs to move to a new and more sustainable concept of development.
The Heads of Government of Member States have a decisive role, in that they will approve the Strategy and determine measures for its effective implementation. The Lisbon Process initiated by Heads of Government in 2000, provides a mechanism for judging EU policies against economic and social indicators. At the very least, the environment needs to be integrated into that process.
Based on this statement the Working Group responded to the Commission's "Consultation paper for the preparation of a EU strategy for sustainable development" (SEC (2001)517, 27 March 2001), which had been endorsed by the Stockholm summit on 27 March 2001. This response to ten question the Commission had raised is available for download.
EEAC response to consultation paper, 24.04.01
"Greening Sustainable Development Strategies" conference, 23 February 2001
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The Swedish Environmental Council hosted this conference in Stockholm at which the EEAC councils discussed the statement with key actors involved in the development of the EU S.D. Strategy, representatives from national governments, business and NGOs. Altogether around 130 participants attended this event. |
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| Presentations for download are available here |
Download: Programme |
 Press release 20.02.01
Press coverage
EEAC greening statement final 28.02.01 (executive summary) EEAC greening statement final 28.02.01(report)
Executive Summary |
  Dutch and Portuguese.
The EEAC are sufficiently independent that they do not lightly sign up to common statements. It is therefore very significant that the general orientation of this statement has been formally endorsed by the following 23 advisory councils in 15 countries:
For different reasons the following councils are not able to endorse the statement (but contributed to its elaboration): - Belgian Council for Sustainable Development (FRDO-CFDD) - Finnish National Commission on Sustainable Development (FNCSD) - State Environmental Council of Poland (PROS) The themes identified in this statement will be taken forward by EEAC members individually and in our future collaboration. A further major theme will be how all elements in civil society can become fully engaged in moving towards sustainability. We look forward to continuing a wide-ranging and productive dialogue on these subjects with the European institutions and with other actors. The EEAC councils from the following countries and regions sent the statement to their Heads of Government, to selected Ministers and some also to Parliament: Austria, Denmark Finland, Germany, Lithuania, The Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden, United Kingdom; Flanders, Scotland, Wales. Greening sustainable development strategiesProposals by the European Environmental Advisory Councils for the EU Sustainable Development Strategy
EXECUTIVE SUMMARYThe European Union urgently needs to commit itself wholeheartedly to sustainable development. Adoption of a Sustainable Development Strategy for the EU will therefore mark a major step forward. This must be a substantial and influential document, which will provide a framework for integrating environmental considerations into EU policies in every sector. The national and regional advisory bodies which make up the network of European Environmental Advisory Councils (EEACs) are putting forward detailed proposals for the scope and content of the EU Sustainable Development Strategy, drawing on the experience of putting sustainable development into effect already gained in Member States. EEACs acknowledge that sustainable development must fulfil economic, social and environmental objectives. Because survival of the natural environment is crucial for economic and social development in the long run, they have focused on the environmental dimension of sustainability. Many current trends are not sustainable. They include the rising level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere; other forms of pollution from diffuse sources; the effects of congestion and pollution on the quality of life for people in towns and cities; disruption of the water cycle; degradation of soils and terrestrial ecosystems; increasing concentrations of hazardous chemicals in the environment; increasing quantities of wastes for disposal; losses of biodiversity, and of natural and cultural landscapes; and over-exploitation of marine ecosystems. These environmentally unsustainable trends are driven by the high, and increasing, use of basic natural resources that results from traditional patterns of economic growth. The basic principle of sustainability, EEACs believe, is that the natural environment has critical and unique values that can seldom be substituted by, or traded for, the economic or social products of civilisation. Sustainable development can be achieved only if the EU adopts a new concept of development, involving far-reaching modifications in patterns of both production and consumption.This new concept of development will acknowledge economic needs and social aspirations, but accept protection of the environment and natural resources as fundamental. By taking the lead in technological and social innovations that decouple economic development from resource use and pollution, the EU can not only improve the quality of life for all its peoples, but also increase the competitiveness of its industries and stimulate employment. There are many barriers to achieving such a new concept of development. One major barrier is a general lack of coherence in the EU’s existing policies, especially with respect to long-term effects.Notable examples include perverse subsidies given under the Common Agricultural Policy and Structural Funds. Fundamental transformations in policies will therefore be required. EEACs identify the essential elements for success. A sustainable development strategy must have both wide political support and strong backing at the highest levels of government. It needs to be supported by approaches to learning which make full use of people’s experiences and creativity. It must look at least 20-25 years into the future. It must address the most important long-term environmental problems, and establish clear objectives for resolving them, utilising quantified indicators and targets. It has to bridge the gap between global and local levels, and incorporate carefully designed mechanisms that will ensure effective implementation. A sustainable development strategy should have a strong research base. Once it has been adopted, its effectiveness must be monitored continuously and it must be reviewed at regular intervals. The EU Sustainable Development Strategy must have tangible content. There must be significant changes in the procedures of all European institutions. EEACs believe that:
EEACs also propose far-reaching changes to policies in particular sectors. These include:
EEACs will draw on the present paper in giving advice to their national and regional governments. They also intend to use it as the basis for a continuing dialogue with the European institutions and other actors about the best ways of moving towards sustainability.
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European Sustainability Berlin 07-Linking Policies, Implementation and Civil Society Action 3-5 June 2007
European Environment and Sustainable Development Advisory Councils | Working Groups & Special Events
European Sustainability Berlin 07 (ESB07) - Linking Policies, Implementation, and Civil Society Action
The German Federal Government asked the German Council for Sustainable Development (RNE) to host of the main sustainability event in the context of the German Presidency of the EU. ESB07 follows the line of Conferences on Sustainable Development initiated by the European Member States in The Hague and Vienna in 2002 and 2003, respectively, and linked to the EU Presidencies in Kinsale, Windsor and Salzburg the years after. ESB07 is supported by the recently established European Sustainable Development Network, ESDN. The Conference also continued the involvement of the EEAC network.
On national as well as on the EU and international level to better link policies and implementation is a crucial key that will be addressed by ESB07. This goes along with the topic of how to “mainstream” Sustainable Development Strategies in the national political contexts.
Programme
Conference documentation
Discussion papers:
Discussion Paper I
"Linking Politics and Administration"
prepared by Reinhard Steurer & Gerald Berger
The ESDN Office Team at RIMAS - the Research Institute for Managing Sustainability
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Discussion Paper II
"Stimulating informed debate: Sustainable Development Councils as an organised form of civil society"
prepared by Ingeborg Niestroy
European Environment and Sustainable Development Advisory Councils (EEAC)
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[PDF, 189KB] |
EEAC Working Group Sustainable Development:
Background Paper
"Stimulating informed debate: Sustainable Development Councils as an organised form of civil society"
A compilation of tasks, capacities, and best practice
prepared by Ingeborg Niestroy
European Environment and Sustainable Development Advisory Councils (EEAC)
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Speeches:
"Linking Policies and Implementation: Making SD Strategies a case for Parliamentary activities"
Dinner speech by Dr. Günter Krings,
Member of the Bundestag
(Berlin, 3 June 2007)
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"Brundtland Report: A 20 Years Update"
Keynote speech by Dr. Volker Hauff,
Chair German Council on Sustainable Development
(Berlin, 4 June 2007)
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[PDF, 53KB] |
Closing remarks on the first day of the European sustainability conference in Berlin 2007
Astrid Klug, Parliamentary State Secretary
(Berlin, 4 June 2007)
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[PDF, 41KB] |
Dinner Speech by Bjorn Stigson
President WBCSD
(Berlin, 4 June 2007)
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"Sustainability 2007 – The Federal Government’s Perspective"
Keynote speech by Peter Tempel,
Abteilungsleiter im Auswärtigen Amt
(Berlin, 5 June 2007)
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