Policy Brief - Green Deal in a Time of “Green Bashing”

Executive Summary

The European Green Deal is an unprecedented package of initiatives proposed by the European Commission (2019/2024) in all sectors for Europe's ecological transition. It responds to various objectives through concrete measures and ambitious regulations, including energy transition, climate neutrality, 'zero pollution', agricultural transition, biodiversity protection, building renovation, deployment of net-zero industry, or just transition. The efforts to deal with biodiversity related issues and climate in a comprehensive approach deserve to be recognized.

However, not all of these ambitious initiatives have come to fruition, and some have been watered down or blocked during the legislative procedure. Moreover, criticism of the European Green Deal has occurred before the 2024 European elections, leading to fears of a certain 'greenlash' on the environmental and climate policies implemented over the last five years, at a time when there is a growing awareness of their very necessity and urgency.

This multi-faceted project needs, therefore, to be examined more in-depth to explore its actual legal implementation, its achievements, its difficulties, and its future. This paper aims at assessing such a large, crucial, and unprecedented project, providing paths to reflect on its uncertain future.

After a detailed presentation of the Green Deal’s main measures in each sector, we will focus on a few of them to analyze its failures or successes in greater detail. We will then explore the prospects for the Green Deal's future within a global framework of 'greenlash', i.e. growing resistance to environmental policies, and why implementing the Green Deal has never been so crucial. Finally, we will reflect on why citizen involvement and a thorough reflection on what we mean by just transition are crucial to avoid backsliding and the current deadlock.

IEP@BU does not express opinions of its own. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors. Any errors or omissions are the responsibility of the authors.

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