Media-Web, April 2013
Is green reporting facing a hostile business environment? | The Haaretz (13 March 2013)
“It can be said that global media coverage of environmental topics entered into a decline just at the time that they were really coming into their own. Even as such reporting is continually shrinking and even disappearing because of the general crisis in journalism, its level of professionalism is increasing as it delves into greater depth on environmental issues to include their socioeconomic aspects. Because of these circumstances, green journalism in some instances is forced to make compromises and adjustments that challenge journalistic ethics.”
EU in "denial" that sick economy costs lives, health experts say | Reuters (17 March 2013)
“Europe's financial crisis is costing lives, with suicides and infectious diseases on the rise, yet politicians are not addressing the problem, health experts said on Wednesday.”
Renewable energy losing its shine in Europe; Debt crisis makes it harder to justify - or afford - subsidies| Electric Light & Power (22 March 2013)
“The cost of trying to change the climate has become too much to bear for other European nations mired in debt or hobbled by overspending.
As austerity measures take hold from Spain to the Netherlands, governments have been rushing to cut the subsidies for green energy they once eagerly waved through to help the infant sectors grow.”
EU falters with UN targets as development aid drops 4.3%| Euractiv (4 April 2013)
“Brussels has called on member states to honour their aid commitments as their contributions to the world’s poorest countries fell by €2.3 billion in 2012, according to an Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) report published yesterday (3 April).
This was the second consecutive yearly drop in overseas aid, sparking fears that the EU may fail to meet its 2015 United Nations commitment of allocating 0.7% gross national income (GNI) to aid.”
Crisis has hit companies’ social responsibility, poll suggests | Euractiv (5 April 2013)
“Many Europeans appear to have lost trust in the corporate world, with a significant proportion believing that companies are paying less attention to their impact on society and the environment than they were 10 years ago, says a Eurobarometer poll.”
Carbon bubble will plunge the world into another financial crisis – report | The Guardian (13 April 2013).
“The world could be heading for a major economic crisis as stock markets inflate an investment bubble in fossil fuels to the tune of trillions of dollars, according to leading economists.”
No Nature, No Business: The Costs of Climate Change & the Financial Crises, by Amy Larkin | CSR wire (15 April 2013)
“No Nature, No Business is the underlying assumption that must guide all financial regulations and international climate treaty negotiations. I can imagine buy-in actually coming from a majority of both the world’s businesses and governments as a new level playing field is built.”
Europe Faces a Crisis in Energy Costs | The New York Times (17 April 2013)
“The signs are everywhere. Britain has been unable to reach a deal for its first new nuclear power station since the 1990s. Spain, once a clean-energy enthusiast, has slashed its backing for wind and solar power. Even the European Union’s flagship environmental achievement of recent years, its Emissions Trading System for carbon dioxide, is beset by existential doubts. On Tuesday, the European Parliament batted away an effort to bolster anemic carbon prices on the E.T.S.”
Egyptian ministries take steps to rationalize spending | Al-Shorfa.com (17 April 2013)
“Several Egyptian ministries have introduced initiatives to rationalise public spending and reduce the burden on the state treasury.
The Ministry of Environment's financial, administrative, and services departments, as well as its regional branches and environmental protection agency, started preparing for the new measures following the decision, executive director of the ministry's Environmental Affairs Agency, Fatima Abu al-Shok, said.”
China climate chief says EU CO2 crisis will not hurt domestic plans | Reuters (18 April 2013)
“The crisis facing the European carbon market will not deter China from plans to establish its own emissions trading platform or its other climate pledges, the senior official responsible for climate change said on Thursday.”
Money, money, money – the growth in the power of finance around the world | The Yorkshire Post (18 April 2013)
“Six years since it erupted, the global financial crisis still casts a long shadow over Europe. The need to understand how to make finance serve our economic, social and environmental needs has never been so important.”
EU governments get cold feet on transactions tax | euobserver.com (22 April 2013)
“One EU source told this website: “There’s still very little clarity on the proposal and so many unanswered questions. Member states do not know how the FTT will actually work nor do they have answers about the impacts. That 11 countries came together to table six long pages of questions … just shows how much uncertainty there is over the [European] commission’s FTT proposal.”
‘Yes’ to stimulating green markets, but not without safeguards| Europolitics (22 April 2013)
“But the crisis has made its mark and most member states have nuanced their position – in other words they have taken a step back – and, above all, are warning against any negative “collateral” effects. Namely, for the majority of member states it is out of the question that these new reference standards should in any way increase the red tape for companies and organisations and for them to incur an extra cost in the midst of an economic crisis. The member states also stressed the need to protect small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).”
For more information, please contact Theodota Nantsou, Policy Coordinator, WWF Greece, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +30 6982471722