Climate Change

The third Sustainability Forum took place under the auspices of the Energy Community in cooperation with Balkan Green Foundation, Heinrich Böll Foundation and The Nature Conservancy on 27 June 2019 in Vienna. Here is the Forum's agreed statement.

The success of the energy transition in the Western Balkans and Ukraine is a question of political will in those countries. But the EU can help set up the conditions for a successful modernization, writes Robert Sperfeld.

According to data obtained by the CINS, between 2013 and 2017, EPS was the primary recipient of state funds for electricity produced by small hydro, while in second place were companies owned by Nikola Petrović or his business partners, with more than €10 million in income. Petrović is a former director of “Elektromreža Srbije", and godfather to President  Aleksandar Vučić.  

Coalition 27's latest shadow report, entitled "No-Progress Report" calls for much higher investments, hence more political will in the field of environmental and climate policies. Serbia has yet to open negotiations on Chapter 27 of the EU accession process.

Compared to COP21 where the EU had a decisive bridge-building role between developed and developing countries in leading a strong climate coalition, in Marrakesh Europe appeared silent and divided. Despite the urgency for concrete and immediate actions to bend the curve and win the race against the clock, the negotiations in Marrakesh seemed to be moving in a parallel universe.

It is unrealistic to expect that several public servants have superhuman abilities and capacities to every now and then, deliver visionary documents which should guide us in a completely new direction in a completely novel way. Including stakeholders in the process of public policy development is a key tool for enhancing transparency, quality and effectiveness of policies. 

Improving energy efficiency of wood burning stoves could not only significantly contribute to improving comfort and health but also to significant savings which could cumulatively exceed one hundred million Euros annually. This money could be spent on something else, thus creating much needed demand for goods and services which is the only way to sustainably increase employment. 

How did two engineers, with the help of a local self-government, start from scratch and made a well-rounded system which cares for the public spending on energy; how much did they save in their municipality and the problems they faced. 

Kosovo cannot absorb additional lignite-exploitation without fundamentally endangering its living environment. EU perspective of Kosovo dictates climate and energy policy framework and direction that is to a large extent incompatible with the current developments

Coalition 27 report on progress of Serbia in Chapter 27 - Environment and Climate Change, for 2015

Globally, political leaders are lauding the acceptance of the global and legally binding Paris Agreement on Climate Change at COP 21 as a historical moment. It achieves a goal long believed unattainable. However, judged against the enormity of the challenge and the needs and pressure from people on the ground demanding a global deal anchored in climate justice (“system change, not climate change!”), the Paris Agreement can only be called a collective failure and disappointment. Read a critical assessment by hbs colleagues from around the world.

"When you're stuck in a hole, the first rule is to stop digging. We can't solve the climate crisis if we're still digging more and more coal, oil and gas out of the ground. It's time for regulators to take climate risk seriously and push fossil fuel companies to show how their business plans comply with the global goal of limiting warming to below 2°C. Fossil fuels have always been a bad bet for our planet, they're now an increasingly bad bet for our investments, as well." (May Boeve, Executive Director of 350.org)  

The article is considering sustinable mobility in Belgrade and Serbia and the Foundation's work in the field of climate change and sustinable urban moblity, particularly in Belgrade. 

WWF reports on environmental issues surrounding recent floods in Serbia examines the UNDAC report (United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination) and, based on environmentally sustainable disaster recovery and reconstruction approaches, highlights other environmental impacts and opportunities for intervention.