Publications

Environmental NGOs would like to highlight opportunities for decision makers to improve key issues of the Cohesion Policy regulations, in order to maximise the benefits that can be delivered to European regions by the future Cohesion Policy and other Common Strategic Framework funds. In addition, they will ensure that the future Cohesion Policy better contributes to reach the Europe 2020 targets, create regional green jobs, enhance economic opportunities and address environmental challenges.

The European Investment Bank has opened a review of its energy policy and called for the public's views on the key future challenges for the bank's operations. The lending figures to the energy sector until 2011 show that the policy must better guide the EIB's lending towards EU policy objectives of de-carbonisation of the energy sector.

The French energy and transport conglomerate Alstom is one of the seven finalists for the People's Public Eye Awards 2013. This assessment - done by experts from the Institute for Business Ethics of the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland - takes a look at international treaties and Alstom's conduct in relation to them.

Counter Balance is a coalition of European environmental and development organisations that looks into the European Investment Bank's financing with a focus on non-EU activities. The submission therefore emphasises this area, yet also comments on the questions of coal, carbon markets and nuclear lending, given the global effects of these energy sources.

Energy Cities is the European Association of local authorities inventing their energy future. Their submission to the future EIB energy sector lending policy calls for an acceleration of the transition towards low energy cities with a high quality of life for all.

This briefing highlights the opportunity to improve key aspects of the Connecting Europe Facility Regulation on transport to ensure better coherence with EU priorities, to move towards a low carbon and resource efficient transport sector, which is economically and environmentally sustainable. If offered concrete recommendations for Members of the European Parliament's ITRE-TRAN committee for the voting on December 18, 2012.

Effective planning of objectives and achievable targets for regional development requires the integration of all partners and stakeholders into the planning processes, taking into account their specific knowledge of the local context and so guaranteeing the results orientation of Cohesion funding. This briefing offers guidelines and a set of recommendations for governments in pre-accession countries in order to help them establish and implement the partnership principle with all relevant stakeholders in the programming of the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) for 2014-2020.