Key principles and strategies for successful EU-funded climate projects in CEE: Insights from the EUKI Academy Webinar
On April 27, 2023, the EUKI Academy and CEEweb for Biodiversity co-organized a webinar with a focus on optimizing the allocation of EU funding to Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries for achieving climate neutrality
The experts highlighted the beneficial practices of EU-funded projects in CEE nations, including small-scale initiatives with low maintenance costs and substantial community engagement. They also stressed the importance of incorporating climate preservation and social justice objectives into EU-funded initiatives for the benefit of society as a whole. However, the webinar also identified several issues with the use of EU funds, such as inconsistent regulatory indicators, a lack of stakeholder participation, and initiatives with no long-term sustainable benefits.
To address these issues, experts proposed using the "Do No Significant Harm" (DNSH) approach to examine the long-term viability of new initiatives supported by the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF). This concept seeks to ensure that economic activities and investments do not jeopardize environmental goals. Additionally, stakeholders such as civil society organizations (CSOs) can monitor tender procedures and project implementation to verify that EU-funded initiatives correspond with sustainability aims. Public education can also promote awareness of the benefits of EU-funded climate programs, and improving sustainability understanding in schools can help future generations support long-term climate and environmental control.
During the webinar, four presenters shared their insights and experiences with EU-funded projects in Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries. The speakers were Katalin Tarr from the Clean Air Action Group (Hungary), Yasen Georgiev from the Economic Policy Institute (Bulgaria), Jonas Sonnenschein from Umanotera (Slovenia), and Ewa Świerkula from the Institute for Sustainable Development (Poland). They discussed both successful and unsuccessful initiatives, offering valuable lessons on how to optimize the allocation of EU funding towards climate neutrality in the region.
Good practices of EU-funded projects are characterized by efficient financings, such as small-scale projects with low maintenance costs and strong involvement of the local community during the planning and implementation phase. Furthermore, projects are advantageous to the wider community when measures are financed that combine several goals, such as climate protection and social justice.
Ms. Zita Herman, an advisor to the Green Group in the European Parliament, spoke at the webinar about the use of EU funds towards climate neutrality. Ms. Herman acknowledged that the DNSH principle is now a requirement for the RRF and cohesion policy in the current funding period. However, she noted that the implementation of the principle needs to be followed up with the Commission for specific projects that go against climate adaptation and mitigation goals. Ms. Herman also expressed keen interest in listening to the examples presented by the presenters, and it was agreed to continue constructive dialogue on the DNSH principle in private discussions with consortium partners. She also offered to follow up on convincing cases where the DNSH principle has been breached, stating that the first big and convincing case will test the waters for the entire implementation. With these strategies in place, CEE nations can accomplish their climate neutrality targets and promote a sustainable future through improving sustainability in EU-funded initiatives.
For those interested in learning more about the EUKI Academy Webinar, the recording of the event and additional information can be found here. To learn more about the project or submit a best practice to the Biodiversity Practices Database (BPD), please visit here.
This project is part of the European Climate Initiative (EUKI). EUKI is a project financing instrument by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK). The EUKI competition for project ideas is implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. It is the overarching goal of the EUKI to foster climate cooperation within the European Union (EU) in order to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.