Daniel Eck
Germany’s pre-UN food summit talks criticised for ignoring ‘most marginalised’
In the run-up to the UN Food Systems Summit in September, Germany's agriculture ministry launched its preparatory process at a conference this week where politicians, agriculture and health experts exchanged their views on future food production. However, the dialogue was criticised for missing the voices of marginalised people. EURACTIV Germany reports.
France wants faster implementation of EU batteries regulation
France is eager “to get results quickly” on the EU's proposed battery regulation and would even like the implementation schedule to be brought forward by a year, which would take it to 2024, France’s ecological transition ministry told EURACTIV France.
‘Most eco-friendly’ Euro championship to date will see players, fans travel continent
The European football championship starts on Friday (11 June) and teams will face each other in 51 matches in 11 cities across the continent. Despite the travelling, UEFA has pledged that it will be “the most eco-friendly championship to date”. EURACTIV France reports.
MEPs call for binding measures to protect Europe’s forests
EU lawmakers approved a report on the EU's 2030 Biodiversity Strategy on Tuesday night (8 June), calling for legally binding measures to protect nature and biodiversity. A heated debate was sparked by amendments calling for forest protection to be weakened, which were eventually rejected.
Europe’s first digitalised chip plant opens in Dresden
German engineering and technology company Bosch opened a new semiconductor factory, fully networked with 5G mobile technology, in Dresden on Monday (7 June). The production facility was funded with €140 million as part of a joint European project.
France moves to become a nation of ‘large tech companies’
"We were a start-up nation, we are going to become a nation of large technology companies," Economy Minister Bruno le Maire told a conference on Monday (7 June), adding that “France has a vocation to be one of the nations writing the 21st century”. EURACTIV France reports.
European Commission proposes ‘digital identity wallet’
The European Commission has introduced a legislative proposal for an EU "digital identity wallet" that would allow numerous services like opening a bank account or filing tax returns to be done purely digitally.
French company proves recycling PET plastics can be profitable
French company Veolia is demonstrating that companies can introduce recycled petroleum-based plastics (PET) plastics into their production chain and still be successful. EURACTIV France reports.
Civil society, tech giants oppose Germany’s state Trojans plans
Companies and civil society organisations in Germany have opposed a planned expansion of the surveillance of sources and communications which provides for a more stringent application of the so-called state Trojan in an open letter published Thursday. EURACTIV Germany reports.
French minister’s CAP reform approach an ‘insult’ to organic farmers
Organic farmers protested in Paris on Wednesday (2 June) against a potential cut in aid for organic farmers in the future CAP. But the French agriculture minister insists their calculations are “biased”. EURACTIV France reports.
Communist candidate in French 2022 election: ‘We are very different from Mélenchon’
In an interview with EURACTIV France, Communist Party candidate in the upcoming presidential elections, Fabien Roussel, said he wants to be the candidate for the youth and the working man and criticised Europe for pitting the French worker against the Polish one.
EU faces €5-10 billion investment gap on AI and blockchain – report
The EU is not investing enough in artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain to keep up with the US and China and it should start investing €5-10 billion each year but also strengthen its eco-systems in order to be competitive, a report said.
EU renovation wave needs ‘major changes’ to be successful
"Major changes" are needed to ensure the decarbonisation of buildings in the EU if the bloc is to make a success of its energy transition and comply with the Paris Agreement, the European Academies' Scientific Advisory Council (EASAC) said in a report published on Wednesday (2 June). EURACTIV France reports.
French MEPs: Council mostly to blame for failed CAP talks
French MEPs are blaming the EU's agriculture ministers for the failure of "super-trilogue" talks to reach an agreement on the future Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) last week, warning that it will now be difficult to break the deadlock. EURACTIV France reports.
Europe’s bathing waters may not be as good as EU assessment suggests
With just a few weeks to go before the summer holidays, the EU's environment agency (EEA) and the European Commission have presented quite satisfactory results for the bloc's bathing areas in 2020. However, some environmentalists have warned that this does not reflect "the true reality of our waters"
Cohesion policy: Uphill battle to halt growing regional and social inequalities
The COVID-19 crisis has increased social inequalities across Europe, from access to education, to work, medical treatment, and housing. The widening gap goes hand in hand with regional disparities, and this dangerous downward spiral is something the EU's cohesion policy aims to put a stop to. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Gaia-X cloud infrastructure project close to becoming operational
The European flagship cloud project Gaia-X, which aims to ensure Europe has its own trusted data and cloud infrastructure, came one step closer to becoming operational after the first specification round of the Federation Services was completed on Wednesday. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Athletes join forces to make sports greener in Europe
Sporting events should be given an environmental red card given the amount of energy they consume and waste they generate. To back the sports world in its ecological transition, athletes got together at a conference organised by the European Surfrider Foundation on Tuesday (25 May). EURACTIV France reports.
French farmers split over agri-minister’s ‘status quo’ approach to CAP reform
France is set to stick with the status quo when it comes to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), a stance widely welcomed by trade unionists but criticised by others for its lack of ambition on social and environmental matters. EURACTIV France reports.
Manufacturers urged to remove pre-installed apps on new phones
As the EU debates its Digital Markets Act, calls have grown louder for manufacturers to remove all applications pre-installed on new phones in order to combat the oligopoly of "gatekeepers" such as Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft. EURACTIV France reports.
Poor infrastructure stops France from exploiting alternatives to fuel-guzzling cars, trucks
Although 90% of all goods in France are transported by road compared to the EU average of 75%, more eco-friendly alternatives, like rail and river transport, cannot fully be exploited due to the poor infrastructure currently in place.
France to buff up COVID-app to ensure gradual reopening ‘as secure as possible’
French citizens will be able to use the "TousAntiCovid" app from 9 June, the day sports halls and the interior of bars and restaurants are to reopen, to report their presence in establishments open to the public - and to be contacted if they have come across a person infected with COVID-19.
EU Commission greenlights German initiative to eradicate ‘dead spot’ problem
The European Commission approved on Tuesday (25 May the German government's plan to invest almost €1.1 billion in expanding its network in order to finally get to grips with the smouldering problem of so-called 'dead spots'.