Dithering on the Edge of Europe

Rich and Carola have accepted the fact that the EU will probably implement their whole Green Deal before the Dithering Team finishes reviewing it. But undaunted by the extensiveness of the deal, they soldier through two policy areas which should be so much more at the heart of any green economy than the Green Deal makes them out to be: Building & Renovation, and Sustainable Mobility.

However, Carola and Rich are not impressed by these two expressions of policy-oriented interventions. If the EU Green Deal is supposed to shift behaviour of member states to chose more green solutions for mobility (and area that represents 70% of green house gases), or initiate that lauded “renovation wave”, as discussed in the EU policies, these policy areas and their targets are so humble that Carola wonders if the EU really means business or if it’s caught in that ever enduring tension between sovereignty and unity. It poses the question of whether ‘politically doable’ is just not enough to save the planet. As Rich says, “We just got to get real!”

The EU Green Deal covers 9 policy areas, and in the last 3 episodes, Carola and Rich covered the areas of 

 And in this episode they cover

 Upcoming in the next episode is a big one:

• Climate action

 

Key Resources 

• European Green Deal, Wikipedia Entry - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Green_Deal 

• A European Green Deal. Striving to be the first climate-neutral continent - https://ec.europa.eu/info/strategy/priorities-2019-2024/european-green-deal_en 

 Infographics:  

• EC (Dec 2019), The European Green Deal - Building and Renovating -https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/api/files/attachment/859198/Building_and_Renovating_en.pdf 

• EC (Dec 2019), The European Green Deal - Sustainable Mobility -https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/api/files/attachment/860070/Sustainable_mobility_en.pdf 

• EC (2011), Charging of heavy good vehicles in the EU - https://ec.europa.eu/transport/sites/transport/files/modes/road/road_charging/doc/hgv_charging.jpg 

• BBC / BEIS/DEFRA Greenhouse Gas Conversion Factors (2019), Emissions from different modes of transport - https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/16D76/production/_108485539_optimised-travel_carbon-nc.png

 

In this third of four episodes, Rich and  Carola explore sustainable industry, as part of the EU’s Green Deal? As Carola says,  faffing time is done.  They talk about digital agriculture, algae, sweat, bioenergy, the textile industry,   electronics and reusability, plastics, waste policy,   and yes, running naked and other green tips. (Wasn’t there a film with that title?). And is there a market advantage to be the market leader in green solutions? Also, a long discussion on how to make cement and steel sectors more sustainable.  

In this episode we will cover 

 This deal covers 9 policy areas, and in E32, Carola and Rich covered the areas of 

 And in the next episodes we will cover

Union’s Green Deal was announced by Ursula von der Leyen back in 2019 and voted in by the European Parliament in January of this year. In this second of three (or will it be four?) episodes, Rich and  Carola explore EU's Sustainable Agriculture, they explore policies in this area and what exactly is digital agriculture?

This was a very long episodes, so we cut it in two. This one covering only Sustainable Agriculture, leaving Sustainable Industry, and another long discussion on cement and steel, for the next episode.  This deal covers 9 policy areas, and in E32, Carola and Rich covered the areas of ·       Clean Energy ·       Farm to Fork·       Biodiversity In this episode we will cover ·       Sustainable Agriculture
And in the next episodes we will cover·       Sustainable Industry·       Eliminating Pollution·       Building and Renovation·       Sustainable mobility·       Climate action 

Key Resources 

• European Green Deal, Wikipedia Entry - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Green_Deal 

• A European Green Deal. Striving to be the first climate-neutral continent - https://ec.europa.eu/info/strategy/priorities-2019-2024/european-green-deal_en 

 
 

(now correct upload) Union’s Green Deal was announced by Ursula von der Leyen back in 2019 and voted in by the European Parliament in January of this year. In this first of three episodes, Rich and  Carola touch on the politics of getting to this point and explore three policy areas of the deal: Clean Energy; Farm to Fork; and Biodiversity. Time to get foxy. Who is the pain-in-the-butt nation that the EU is glad to see the back off? And will there be a time again where we can fly without guilt? 

This deal covers 9 policy areas, and in this episode we will cover 

 And in the next episodes we will cover

 
 

This is the third part of their exploration of the UK Labour Party’s “Green Industrial Revolution”, which was part of their 2019 Manifesto. Rich and Carola give their thumbs up and thumbs down for various policy sections. Bringing back essential services into public ownership and going big on renewables get a big thumbs up, but funding seems to be the missing link. 

This manifesto sections covers (Green Industrial Revolution):

This episode, concluding our look at Labour’s GND document, contains Environment and Animal Welfare. 

Key Links and Resources

 Mentioned Resources

This is the second part to their exploration of the UK Labour Party’s “Green Industrial Revolution”, which was part of their 2019 Manifesto. Rich and Carola give their thumbs up and thumbs down for various policy sections. Bringing back essential services into public ownership and going big on renewables get a big thumbs up, but funding seems to be the missing link. 

This manifesto sections covers (Green Industrial Revolution) -          Economy and Energy-          Transport-          Environment-          Animal Welfare 
 Because the section on economy and energy took up a whole episode, this episode only contains transport. The next episode will cover the last two sections.

In their journey to find the perfect Green New Deal, and having put the bar high with the Green Party’s GND covered in the last two episodes, they move on to the Labour Party’s vision for a Green New Deal. The UK’s Labour Party integrated their “Green Industrial Revolution” into the 2019 Manifesto pledges,  and Rich and Carola give their thumbs up and thumbs down for various policy sections. Airport expansion and HS2 get a firm thumbs down, but the commitment to various public ownerships get a thumbs up. There is also that thing about football pitches….

This manifesto sections covers (Green Industrial Revolution) -          Economy and Energy-          Transport-          Environment-          Animal Welfare 
 Economy and Energy is covered in this episode.
Key Links and Resources

 Mentioned Resources

Recording this on Super Saturday, and not going to the pub, Carola and Rich are exploring the second half of the GND of England and Wales, and although they cannot agree on whether the six headings represent ‘pillars’ or ‘categories’, they agree on what is their favourite aspect of this GND.

This deal covers·       ENERGY·       HOUSING·       TRANSPORT·       INDUSTRY·       FORESTRY AND FARMING·       INCOME The last three are covered in this episode.

Links

• Green Party of England and Wales, Manifesto 2019
  https://www.greenparty.org.uk/assets/files/Elections/Green%20Party%20Manifesto%202019.pdf

• The Green New Deal Group, The Green New Deal : A Bill to make it happen
  https://greennewdealgroup.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/GND_A_Bill_To_Make_It_Happen.pdf 

 
 

Carola and Rich are exploring the GND of the Green Party of England and Wales.  It is so comprehensive that they had to  discuss this over two episodes. 

This deal covers

 The first three are covered in this episode.

 Links

In this episode: Could Britain move from a Furlough in lockdown to a Universal Basic Income (UBI) ending up in a green economy? It seems to solve so many weaknesses of the current schemes, especially considering our climate catastrophe just around the next corner.

Sources