CONTRIBUTORS Shada Islam
CONTRIBUTORS Shada Islam is the editor of the EUobserver magazine, columnist for EUobserver, and visiting professor at the College of Europe. Matt Tempest is comment editor at EUobserver, and a former political correspondent for The Guardian in London and news editor at AFP in Paris. Elena Sánchez Nicolás is the climate and tech reporter at EUobserver, also responsible for infographics. Wester van Gaal is green economy reporter with EUobserver. James Kanter is editor of the EU Scream politics podcast and a former correspondent for the International Herald Tribune and The New York Times. Nikolaj Nielsen is migration correspondent at EUobserver. Eszter Zalan is democracy and rule-of-law reporter at EUobserver focusing on central and eastern Europe. Lisbeth Kirk is the founder of EUobserver. Tomas Luko is sales and marketing director at EUobserver. Henner Sorg is sales and marketing manager at EUobserver. Leon Mangasarian worked as a reporter and editor for Bloomberg News, dpa and UPI in Berlin, East Berlin, Bonn and Brussels. Alfonso Medinilla Is Head of climate and green transition - geopolitics and energy, European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM) Fu Jing is executive vice president of Xiamen Torch Academy in China’s coastal city of Xiamen. CREATIVE DIRECTION Studio Limbo - www.studiolimbo.be PRINTED BY Designpress GmbH ADDRESS EUobserver Résidence Palace International Press Centre Rue de la Loi / Wetstraat 155 1040 Brussels - Belgium CONTACT contact@euobserver.com Editorial This magazine is about the world’s collective and potentially transformational journey towards a green economy. It is also about taking you, the reader, on what we hope is an equally fascinating ”green voyage” across some key parts of Europe as well as to Africa and China. Editing and writing the magazine has been an unpredictable journey in itself. Our initial plans, drawn up in January, were based on the assumption of continuing peace in Europe. All that changed suddenly on February 24 when Russia invaded Ukraine, upending many of the questions we took for granted, including the future of the EU’s Green Deal. As we go to press, it is still not clear how the war in Ukraine will reshape the global green transition. Some are hoping for a stepping up of moves towards renewables while others speculate that some already-reluctant governments will seek to delay such plans. The topic is vast, fascinating and multi-faceted. To polish up your green credentials, we have a glossary of key climate-related terms and a visual journey through the most defining moments and initiatives which mark the EU’s green transformation. For easier reading, we have divided the magazine into three parts: First, we look into the more interesting and intriguing internal aspects of the EU’s Green Deal. The magazine kicks off with our lead article which says that – at least for the moment - Russia’s war against Ukraine and, before that, Covid 19, are supercharging the project, instead of derailing it. There is criticism, however, that the EU’s decision to include natural gas and nuclear power as “transitional activities” in its sustainable investments guidelines for green finance could turn out to be “biggest greenwash ever.” Meanwhile, increasing nuclear energy capacity has re-emerged as an option to help Europe cut dependence on Russian fossil fuels and in Germany, we explore whether the government’s pro-renewables rhetoric is really being translated into easy-to-implement policies. Second, we take a closer look at the Green Deal’s external fall-out, especially on African countries where the EU has been advocating an “African Green Deal” as a centrepiece of the continent’s economic recovery. Our interviews and articles reflect more nuanced African thinking on the topic and warn that the EU’s much-publicised Global Gateway connectivity initiative as well as the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism are not universally welcomed in Africa. Finally, we talk to former Green MEP Magic Magid who is campaigning for climate justice and to MEP Mohammed Chahim who says a large chunk of the proceeds from the Carbon Border tax should be used to help low-income countries to build renewable energy systems and clean up their industries. Uganda’s young climate activist Hilda Flavia Nakabuye explains why she will not stop her campaign for greening Africa. With its diversity of authors and views and its globally inclusive approach, we believe the magazine sharpens ongoing EU discussions on the green economy. We really enjoyed putting this magazine together and we hope you enjoy reading it. Shada Islam 3
