Tag: Sustainable Development Goals

New EULawSD Webinar on the Precautionary Principle Announced

Posted on by dariopiselli in Events and Opportunities

We are pleased to announce a third session of the 2020 EULawSD webinar series, which will take place on 13 July 2020 at 2pm CEST. Alessandra Donati, Senior Research Fellow at the Max Planck Institute Luxembourg for Procedural Law, will join us for a dialogue on ‘The Precautionary Principle Under EU Law: a Brake or a Lever to Sustainable Development?’. The webinar will be visible on EULawSD’s YouTube channel and at this link.

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About the webinar

Set forth by Article 191 § 2 TFUE and embedded in several EU directives and regulations, the precautionary principle is a principle of anticipated action that requires the competent authorities to anticipate the traditional time for the adoption of a measure to protect the environment and public health. This means that decision-makers shall not wait until the risk is certain, from a scientific point of view, but shall act before when the risk is only uncertain.

From this perspective – by preventing the occurrence of majors risks for the environment and public health – the precautionary principle can be considered as a corollary for the achievement of the objective of sustainable development under Article 3 § 3 TUE. Despite its importance for the attainment of sustainable development, the precautionary principle has not been mentioned by the EU Commission in the 2016 communications identifying the framework for the implementation under EU law of the SDGs, and for the time being, is not included in the EU Green Deal. Likewise, the EU institutions have neglected the precautionary principle when dealing with some of the major risks – like pesticides and endocrine disruptors – which could have an impact on the attainment of sustainable development.

Against this backdrop, can we consider that the precautionary principle is a brake or a lever to sustainable development under EU law? To answer this question, and based on the most recent legal texts and case law, the webinar will identify the main advantages and disadvantages of the application of the precautionary principle to the benefit of the present and future generations..

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About the Speaker

Alessandra Donati is a Senior Research Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Procedural law in Luxembourg. She obtained her PHD at the University Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne with a thesis on the precautionary principle under EU law. Alessandra holds a degree in law from the Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi (Milan) and in economics from the Università Politecnica delle Marche (Ancona). She also holds an LL.M. in French and European Law from the University Paris 1- Panthéon Sorbonne. Alessandra is a member of both the Italian (Milan) and French (Paris) Bar Association.

Before joining the Max Planck Institute as a research fellow, Alessandra practiced law for several years as an attorney in Milan at Chiomenti Studio Legale and in Paris at Castaldi Partners law office. Alessandra is currently teaching at SciencesPo (campus of Nancy) and at the University of Luxembourg. She specializes in European Union law, and namely in EU environmental and food law.

Riccardo Pavoni to Hold ELSA Italy’s Webinar on the European Parliament

Posted on by dariopiselli in Collaborations and Partnerships, Events and Opportunities

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The EULawSD staff is pleased to announce that on Tuesday, April 7th (11am CEST time) our coordinator Riccardo Pavoni will hold a webinar on the powers and functioning of the European Parliament in the context of ‘ELSA Italy for European Constitution‘. The initiative constitutes the first International Open Legislation simulation hosted by the Italian branch of ELSA, the European Law Students’ Association.

During the webinar, Riccardo will also discuss the role and actions taken by the European Parliament to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agreed by the United Nations in September 2015 and more broadly promote sustainable development in the European Union and beyond.

To register or learn more about the webinar, which is open to all ELSA Members, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/882465718871702/.

More information on ‘ELSA Italy for European Constitution’ is also available on ELSA Italy’s website here: https://www.elsa-italy.org/blog/news/openlegislation/.

 

New EULawSD Webinar with Brenda King on EU Civil Society and the 2030 Agenda

Posted on by dariopiselli in EULawSD Module, Events and Opportunities

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The academic staff of the Jean Monnet Module in European Union Law and Sustainable Development is honoured to announce the third webinar of the 2019 EULawSD Webinar Series. On October 7th (12.00pm Central European Summer Time), we will host Brenda King MBE, Chief Executive of African and Caribbean Diversity and Former President of the Sustainable Development Observatory of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), for a lecture on “Civil Society Engagement in the EU Sustainable Development Agenda“. The webinar will reflect on existing multi-stakeholder approaches in the sustainable development policies of the European Union, as well as on possible models for greater civil society involvement in SDG implementation.

The webinar will be visible live on our YouTube channel and will be embedded at the bottom of this post.

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About our speaker

Brenda King is the Chair of the nonprofit African & Caribbean Diversity and a UK representative on the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) since 2002. She served as the President of the EESC’s Sustainable Development Observatory (SDO) until 2018, and remains one of its leading members. She is rapporteur of an EESC report putting forward recommendations for civil society involvement in the implementation, monitoring and review of the sustainable development agenda in the EU. She was also part of the core team of three members who undertook an impact study in six member states on the EU Renewable Energy Directive.

From 2010 to 2013, Brenda chaired the EU-African Caribbean Pacific subcommittee where she successfully campaigned for 2015 to be the European Year for Development and Cooperation. Between 2006 and 2008, she was President of the EESC’s specialized section in employment focusing on job growth and quality employment. For over 10 years, Brenda has overseen the successful delivery of a youth development programme that has been recognised and awarded in the UK.

First two webinars of the 2019 EULawSD Webinar Series announced

Posted on by dariopiselli in EULawSD Module, Events and Opportunities

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The academic staff of the Jean Monnet Module in European Union Law and Sustainable Development is honoured to announce the first two webinars of the 2019 EULawSD Webinar Series. On April 4th (at 3pm CET), we will host Marianne Kettunen, Principal Policy Analyst and Head of the Programme on Global Challenges and SDGs for the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP). Kettunen will discuss the current prospects for SDG implementation in the European Union in the light of the recent Reflection Paper ‘Towards a Sustainable Europe by 2030‘, published by the European Commission in order to highlight different strategies and priorities for the further incorporation the 2030 Agenda in the policies and actions of European institutions and the Union’s member states.

On April 26th (at 12pm CET), Gabriela A. Oanta, Associate Professor of Public International Law at Universidade da Coruña and Director of its University Institute for European Studies, will instead deliver a lecture on whether the European Union’s current approach to negotiating Fisheries Partnership Agreements with third countries can contribute to (or undermine) global efforts to achieve SDG 14 on ‘Life Below Water’.

Both webinars will be visible live on our YouTube channel.

Riccardo Pavoni joins Global Strike for Future’s Siena event

Posted on by dariopiselli in EULawSD Module, Events and Opportunities

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The Jean Monnet Module in European Union Law and Sustainable Development is pleased to announce its support for the Global Strike for Future, taking place on 15 March 2019 thanks to the efforts of thousands of students and young climate activists from around the world.

On that occasion, coordinator Prof Riccardo Pavoni will join students from the Siena chapter of the Fridays for Future movement and participate in a public panel in which he will discuss the actions that the European Union needs to take to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and mitigate climate change by 2030.

You can learn more about the Siena event at the following link: https://www.facebook.com/events/4729152600771646/.

European Commission’s Reflection Paper on a Sustainable Europe by 2030 is out!

Posted on by dariopiselli in EU News and Info, Sustainable Development Goals

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On 30 January, the European Commission has finally presented its long-awaited reflection paper on implementing the 2030 Agenda in the EU, which was originally expected in the first half of 2018. The paper, titled ‘Towards a Sustainable Europe by 2030‘, discusses the key policy foundations and horizontal enablers needed to achieve a sustainable Europe by 2030. In addition, the paper presents and analyses three possible scenarios that could shape a Union-wide strategy on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and namely: (i) an overarching SDG strategy to guide all the actions of the EU and its member states; (ii) a continued mainstreaming of the SDGs in the policies of the Commission, without enforcement at the member states’ level; and (iii) a consolidation of existing policies, coupled with an increased focus on the SDGs in the external action of the EU.

In its preliminary assessment of the paper, the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP) has welcomed the urgency and wide scope of the Commission’s work, while also emphasising that only the adoption of the first proposed scenario would be able to deliver on the EU’s commitments by 2030. Moreover, the IEEP recommended a series of concrete policy actions that would be required to implement (and improve upon) the policy foundations and horizontal enablers identified by the Commission.

Publication of ASviS Report 2018

Posted on by dariopiselli in Sustainable Development Goals

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On October 4th, the Italian Alliance for Sustainable Development (ASviS) launched its 2018 Report on “Italy and the Sustainable Development Goals” during a public event hosted by the Chamber of Deputies of Italy.

The Report has four main components. First, it presents an update of the international efforts that are currently being promoted at the United Nations and European level in order to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Second, it assesses Italy’s progress towards the achievement of the SDGs, discussing the recent policies of the Italian government, the ongoing evolution of the legislative framework, and the wide range of initiatives proposed by civil society. Third, it focuses on the sub-national dimension of SDG implementation, suggesting the need to more effectively localise the Goals and analysing current progresses and challenges at the level of cities and regions. Lastly, it highlights ASviS’s proposals to accelerate Italy’s transition to a sustainable development trajectory through cross-sectoral and systemic actions.

With respect to the European Union, the Report introduces a set of composite indicators (first presented in July 2018) to collate data from EUROSTAT’s monitoring reports and more immediately illustrate the situation of SDG implementation in the EU. In doing so, the Report shows that moderate or significant progress across nine Goals has gone hand in hand with a worrying negative trend for Goal 15 (Life on Land) and Goal 10 (Reduced Inequalities), affecting the chances of the EU and its member states to achieve the 2030 Agenda in its entirety.

SDGs 15 and 10

Even more importantly, the Report suggests that European institutions have so far failed to accelerate the pace of change, in a wider context characterised by geopolitical insecurities and rising clashes between EU member states. According to ASviS, the periodic announcements of the European Commission have not yet translated into an expected EU-wide strategy for achieving the SDGs, despite positive developments including the newly-adopted European Pillar of Social Rights, the 2018 Circular Economy Package, and the actions taken to implement the recommendations of the High-level Expert Group on Sustainable Finance.

From this perspective, ASviS also recalls the resolution of the European Parliament of May 31st, which criticised the failure to effectively integrate the SDGs into existing proposals for the next Multiannual Financial Framework (2021-2027). At the same time, however, the Report highlights the wide range of initiatives being undertaken by civil society organisations and businesses (including through the work of the Multi-stakeholder platform on SDGs), and notes the fundamental role that these actors can play in pushing the EU on the sustainable development trajectory required to implement the 2030 Agenda.

Read the ASviS Report (Italian)
Read ASviS’s Press Release (Italian)
Watch the launch event on Facebook

2018 EUROSTAT Monitoring Report highlights mixed progress on SDGs

Posted on by dariopiselli in EU News and Info, Sustainable Development Goals

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On 18 September, EUROSTAT issued the 2018 version of “Sustainable Development in the European Union“, its monitoring report on progress towards the SDGs in an EU context. The Report is complemented by a range of additional materials, including a short brochure providing a visual summary of the Report’s findings, the “SDGs & Me” digital publication, a series of Statistics Explained articles on individual SDGs, and a revamped EUROSTAT’s website section dedicated to the Goals.

The 2018 Report highlights significant progress on Goal 3 (“Good Health & Well-being”, Goal 4 (“Quality Education”) and Goal 7 (“Affordable and Clean Energy”), as well as moderate progress for eight additional goals. However, the Report also underscores a worrying shift away from a sustainable development trajectory for Goal 10 (“Reduced inequalities”), owing to the ongoing rise of income inequality within EU member states.  Moreover, EUROSTAT continues to be unable to track trends for Goal 6 (“Clean Water and Sanitation”), Goal 13 (“Climate Action”), Goal 14 (“Life Below Water”) and Goal 16 (“Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions”), due to the conspicuous absence of reliable data over the past five years. Lastly, broad progress on a Goal is in some cases hiding insufficient progress, or even negative developments, for specific areas within that Goal.

Overall, the EUROSTAT Report follows the evidence presented in July by the 2018 SDG Index & Dashboards Report of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), suggesting that the EU is not on track to meet all 17 SDGs by 2030 and that the level of ambition should be raised on the part of both EU member states and European institutions.

 

ASviS hosts high-level event on SDGs, Climate Change and the Future of Europe

Posted on by dariopiselli in EU News and Info

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On May 31st, ASviS (the Italian Alliance for Sustainable Development) will host a high-level international event on “SDGs, Climate Change and the Future of Europe” as part of the 2018 edition of the Italian Festival of Sustainable Development (#FestivalSviluppoSostenibile).

The event, which will take place at UniCredit Pavilion in Milan, is organized in collaboration with several other EU civil society actors. Thanks to the participation of  leading EU practitioners and policymakers, it will seek to explore the future of the European Union and its role in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, at the crossroads of the Union’s traditional stance as a “sustainable development champion” and the risks of new isolationist tendencies.

  • You can watch the livestream here or on the Facebook page of ASviS, at this link.
  • To read more about the event, it is also possible to visit the dedicated page on ASviS’s website here.
  • To read the full calendar of events for the #FestivalSviluppoSostenibile, click here.

Sustainable Development in the EU: 2017 monitoring report

Posted on by dariopiselli in Sustainable Development Goals

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On 20 November, the Statistical Office of the European Union (EUROSTAT) published the 2017 edition of “Sustainable Development in the European Union“, its monitoring report on the state of the EU progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Report is the first to come out since the European Commission adopted its Communication (COM(2016) 739) on “Next Steps for a Sustainable European Future“, which maps the alignment of current EU policies with the SDG framework and provides for regular monitoring of progress. EUROSTAT has selected a subset of SDG indicators (100 out of 232) which are closely linked to the Communication, as well as to the accompanying document “Key European action supporting the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals“. For those indicators (16) to which a current EU policy target is associated, the Report explores the EU progress towards that target, whereas all other indicators are monitored according to the direction and speed of change. Progress at the goal level is then measured as an average of progress of individual indicators under the specific SDG.

According to the Statistical Office, in a five-year time span the European Union has made progress towards all SDGs, even though instances where the member States have moved away from a sustainable development trajectory are also evident within individual goals.  In particular, significant progress has been achieved for SDG 3 (Good Health and Wellbeing), SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG 15 (Life on Land).

This does not necessarily indicate that the status of the goal has already reached a satisfactory level for the EU. For example, progress on the conservation of terrestrial ecosystems under SDG15 does not mean that ecosystems and biodiversity across the member States are in good health. In addition, there have been only moderate advancements for eight SDGs, with SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) lagging far behind the others. Finally, for four SDGs (including SDG 6, Clean Water and Sanitation, SDG 13, Climate Action, SDG 14, Life Below Water, and SDG 16, Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions), EUROSTAT concludes that it has been impossible to evaluate trends due to insufficient data, something which is particularly worrying in the context of fundamental challenges such as climate change, degradation of marine ecosystems, and a rising authoritarian wave in the European continent.

To read all the key trends and statistics from the Report, download it here.