Europe is struggling to find its way out of multiple crises. Austerity measures in reaction to the economic crisis are causing untold human suffering. The environmental crisis is continuing apace, endangering the well-being of future generations. Meanwhile, little has been done to put the region on an environmentally sustainable path. Ten of the leading environmental organisations in the EU, representing over 20 million Europeans, believe that the answers to these crises lie in smarter and more sustainable EU policies.

This toolkit provides EU funds practitioners, whether it be relevant officials in municipalities, potential EU funds grantees, local communities, civil society organisations or interested members of the public, with an overview of all the legal regulations related to environmental mainstreaming and sustainable development that have been introduced into the forthcoming EU budgetary period of 2014-2020. In practical terms, coverage is provided, too, of the relevant environmental mainstreaming strategies and mechanisms.

Analyses and comments elaborated and published in the course of the
on-going programming process from May until December 2013 show that the draft planning documents fail to ensure sustainable development, are half-hearted in environmental protection, sideline partners and neglect communities.

Prompted by gross human rights violations in Egypt this letter asks for clarification how the EBRD can continue to operate in Egypt even though the EBRD's mandate states that the bank operates in "countries committed to and applying the principles of multiparty democracy, pluralism and market economics" and its continued operations in Egypt therefore amount to a blatant violation of its commitments as a public institution.

While the EBRD's founding document require it to "promote in the full range of its activities environmentally sound and sustainable development" more than half of the bank’s energy investments in Ukraine for the period 2006-2013 hardly served the purpose of sustainable development promotion. In this period the EBRD has supported nuclear energy production and new output capacities for nuclear power plants, export-oriented infrastructure, as well as controversial initiatives in the renewable energy sector.