Shortly before Germany launches its "green week", Lower Saxony's conservative agriculture minister, Barbara Otte-Kinast (CDU), raised the issue of introducing a meat tax, again, which is something animal welfare activists have been demanding for years. EURACTIV Germany reports.
With Coca Cola and BMW sponsoring Romania and Finland during their respective EU Council presidencies last year, it would appear that member states have no qualms with private sector funding. But the European Ombudsman finds that this tarnishes the EU's reputation. EURACTIV Germany reports.
All EU member states should have submitted their climate protection plans for the coming decade to the European Commission by 31 December 2019. But some missed the deadline, including Germany. EURACTIV.de reports.
The Green Deal presented by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday (11 December) avoided two controversial agricultural issues: genetic engineering and pesticide limits. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Within the framework of the current COP25, 24 Turkish cities and municipalities committed themselves to the Paris Climate Agreement yesterday (9 December). Turkey is the only G20 country that has not yet ratified the Paris Agreement. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) officially elected Saskia Esken and Norbert Walter-Borjans as the new chairmen at a national conference on Friday (6 December). There was no vote about remaining in the Grand Coalition with the CDU/CSU conservatives, but the new leadership appears to have 'declared war' on them. EURACTIV Germany reports.
With thousands of fans travelling to matches and giant stadiums being built, football has a considerable climate impact. Some clubs are increasingly aware of this and try to limit their carbon emissions. A club from the small city of Mainz has been leading the movement for a decade.
Following the ongoing protests by farmers in recent months, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Agriculture Minister Julia Klöckner (CDU) were invited to attend an agricultural summit yesterday (2 December). They intend to reinforce dialogue with the agricultural sector, once again. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Since the German government abolished the mother sheep premium in 2005, shepherds have been suffering financially. But given that 22 other EU member states still award such a premium and since Germany could reintroduce such a bonus at any given time, shepherds continue to protest. EURACTIV Germany reports.
After Ukraine's new President Volodymyr Zelenskyi agreed to hold elections in the separatist regions on the Russian border, peace talks with Moscow are regaining momentum. With the assistance of France and Germany, the two countries will return to the negotiation table on 9 December.
Germany has pledged to play a more active role in NATO with Chancellor Angela Merkel promising to raise military spending to 2% of the country’s GDP by the beginning of the 2030s. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Tens of thousands of farmers protested in Berlin on Tuesday (26 November) against the government's new agricultural policy. They complained about increasing environmental protection requirements and falling product prices, which are increasingly damaging their business. EURACTIV Germany reports.
From 2021, the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is intended to be more closely linked to environmental requirements. But this could lead to large conventional farms facing existential threats. EURACTIV Germany reports.
In East Germany, young farmers are finding it increasingly difficult to purchase land because significant investors are not acquiring land for agricultural purposes and because former GDR cooperatives are being privatised. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Proposals to introduce a minimum distance of 1,000 metres between wind turbines and buildings have attracted fierce criticism from the German environment ministry, which said the draft new rules would derail the country's plan to boost renewable energy by 2030. EURACTIV Germany reports.
At a Berlin conference to prepare for the UN's annual climate summit (COP25), Environment Minister Svenja Schulze and Foreign Minister Heiko Maas stressed the EU's responsibility in closing the Paris Climate Agreement's remaining gaps, particularly by raising the targets at EU level. EURACTIV Germany reports.
European Commission President-elect Ursula von der Leyen and German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed European policy issues and Germany's Council Presidency in 2020 during a meeting in Berlin. Von der Leyen promised to end the deadlock in asylum negotiations soon with a new proposal. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Europe's railways stretch over 217,000 km and its motorways total about 77,000, while 329 major harbours and just as many airports are in operation. How can such a vast infrastructure network be turned into a transport system that will make mobility completely climate-neutral by 2050 at the latest? EURACTIV Germany reports.
In an interview with EURACTIV Germany, Matthias von Randow, the Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Association of the German Transport Industry, spoke about carbon-neutral aviation fuels and the difficulties of rolling them out on a mass scale.
The EU says it wants to get out of fossil fuels and become climate neutral as soon as possible. But the European Commission's latest list of energy projects eligible for EU funding nevertheless includes 32 gas projects, including the construction of new LNG terminals, EURACTIV Germany reports.
In Europe, the day before All Saints Day, often termed Halloween, pumpkins are everywhere, as millions of Europeans decorate and place them in front of their doors. For its Halloween special, EURACTIV Germany has put together a few (very European) statistics about the beloved orange fruit.
German businesses are nonplussed with the new Brexit extension, thanks to the uncertainty it preserves. But export forecasts are nonetheless seeing an increase, something which has more to do with Donald Trump than with the UK's pending EU exit. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Increasing environmental regulations and fierce competition from renewable energies are increasingly making coal-fired power operate at a loss. According to a British think tank, coal-fired power plants are losing billions of euros every year, but energy companies say this is nonsense. EURACTIV Germany reports.
On Monday (21 October), the European Parliament voted in favour of using funds from the Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) in the event of a hard Brexit to help workers of the remaining EU-27 who will have lost their jobs as a result of the UK's withdrawal. EURACTIV Germany reports.
