Two people wrote this editorial: me,and my six-month-old daughter. A squeal-ing, babbling and kicking baby on myknees doesn’t make for perfect writingconditions, but certainly lends sharp per-spective. In the coming decade, the healthof millions of children will greatly dependon the quality of environment; but even asthe EU continues to expand, some politicalleaders appear far removed from the envi-ronmental concerns of so many parents in CEE. The good news is that a tide of envi-ronmentally responsible thinking seems tobe spreading across Europe nonetheless.

World Views: Eurpoe`s leaders are reaching for global sustainability

In March, the leaders of EU memberstates adopted a climate protection pro-gramme involving binding targets to reducegreenhouse gas emissions and increase theuse of renewable energies by 2020. Praisedby European Commission President JoséManuel Barroso as “the most ambitious cli-mate protection strategy anywhere in theworld,” the European Council’s decisionhas reaffirmed the EU’s commitment toglobal sustainability leadership.

The reason for this “true triumph” –—quoting UK Prime Minister Tony Blair here— is not necessarily a love for nature. Britain’s Special Representative for ClimateChange John Ashton warns against label-ing the trend as “environmental” (see oppo-site page). Rather, he claims, a low-carboneconomy is a matter of continental securi-ty and prosperity, and a way to restore cit-izens’ trust in the European project.Whatever the case may be, the Council’sdecision makes me prouder as an EU citi-zen and more relieved as a father.

But not everyone shares these senti-ments. The EC’s own vice-presidentresponsible for industry, GuntherVerheugen, appears to be one such per-son. On the eve of the Spring Councilmeeting, Verheugen warned against “cli-mate hysteria” and claimed that strict car-bon targets will harm Europe’s competi-tiveness. Quite contrary to these remarks,Ashton believes a low-carbon switch willactually improve Europe’s competitivenessand self-confidence.

Verheugen is not alone in opposingthe EU’s climate commitments. In spite ofprovisions that the new targets be shared“fairly and equitably” between memberstates and take into account differentnational “circumstances, starting pointsand potentials,” the plan has not been uni-versally embraced within CEE. MirekTopolanek, the Czech prime minister, hascalled the targets “unreasonable” and“nonsensical” – comparing them to thefive-year economic plans imposed undercommunism. But Czech President VaclavKlaus has resorted to even stronger rheto-ric. 

“The biggest threat to freedom, democ-racy, the market economy and prosperityat the beginning of the 21st century is notcommunism, [but] the threat of ambitiousenvironmentalism,” Klaus wrote to the USHouse of Representatives.

Should someone read Klaus’ wordsseriously, it would seem that the new“threat” for the region is coming fromBrussels. Indeed, most recently the EC hasrequested that Poland and the CzechRepublic should cut their planned annualindustrial greenhouse gas emissions for2008–12 by 27 percent and 15 percentrespectively.

Earlier in March, the Commission tookPoland to the European Court of Justiceover a motorway cutting through the pro-tected Rospuda Valley habitat, a Natura2000 site. Poland chose to defy earlierwarnings and to proceed with the con-struction project. And Bulgaria, one of theEU’s newest members, is also having ahard time complying with Natura 2000, theEU’s network of protected areas.

But today’s generation of parents inCEE is quite well aware of the differencesbetween communism and environmental-ism. Paradoxically, polling evidence fails toshow an overwhelming base of public sup-port for the anti-environmental stances ofgovernments. In fact, according to KirilAvramov, a senior analyst for PoliticalCapital, a Budapest-based think-tank, pub-lic support for environmental movementsand new green parties seems to be on therise across the region. If this proves correct,the tide of environmentally aware politics,policy making and consumer behaviourwill soon reach CEE.

It is already here, actually. Among thefirst signs: rising real estate prices in greenareas, and a growing interest in bio prod-ucts. Climate change consequences and theloss of natural habitats and ecosystems haspeople worried. As the region becomeswealthier, health and security are becom-ing more and more a concern for many par-ents — myself included. And concernedparents make for impassioned voters.Rather than building lines of defenceagainst environmentalism, CEE politiciansshould learn to keep pace with it.