By Manon Deshayes, European Women’s Lobby (EWL)
In May 2019, European citizens will vote to decide on the new composition of the European Parliament. The outcome of the elections will also have an impact on the face of the new European Commission and will have an influence on European politics, taking on the present and shaping the future of women and girls in Europe. Though we would like to believe otherwise, data shows that women are still very much second-class citizens in the European Union (EU). While most countries move in the right direction, some EU Member States have actually gone backwards and none has reached full gender equality. At this rate of progress, equality will not be seen in our or the next generations’ lifetimes. This is simply not acceptable. (EIGE data).
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By WECF Netherlands
On 19 November 2018, WECF the Netherlands co-organised an expert meeting in The Hague with the national ‘Building Change coalition’. We discussed the next steps that need to be taken in the Netherlands to reduce our ecological footprint, limit global warming and contribute to reaching the SDGs internationally. The opening remarks by speakers Herman Sips (GCA) and Kiane de Kleijne (Radboud University, chapter scientist of the IPCC Report) set the tone for interesting discussions between 30 representatives of Dutch civil society, youth organisations and Member of Parliament Matthijs Sienot (D66). Sienot even became a new ambassador in the Dutch ‘Adopt an SDG’ Campaign! Read more about the results of the event here.
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By Association 4D
Today, the nationally determined contributions under the Paris Agreement are leading us towards a global warming of around 3.2°C. According to a recent UN report, a tripling of efforts may be needed to keep warming to below 2°C, a goal formulated in the Paris Agreement and in the 2030 Global Agenda for Sustainable Development (Agenda 2030). But how can we accelerate the transition to a low-carbon society when a non-negligible section of the population perceives it as a social injustice, which has negative impacts on employment and the purchasing power of households?
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By René Hartinger, Ökosoziales Forum Wien
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with it’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals is the most important and most widely known agenda for a sustainable transformation of our societies and our global system. Explained in the shortest possible way (that I can think of), it leads a way into a better future of well-being and decent living conditions for everyone, while societal and economic well-being no longer depends on the exploitation of others – be it the people working in the production or supply chain or the marine systems that are overfished. The forests that are cut down and the species extinct for short-term interest, or the tax payers and workers that uphold the common goods while others shift billions to tax morasses. And, of course: the future generations, that will simply not have the same chances, as their forefathers and foremothers who pumped the atmosphere so full of greenhouse gases that the climate finally collapsed. To give this a name, it is, as the Austrian-German Scientist Uli Brand calls the “imperial way of living” - a lifestyle of some, that is based on unsustainable and unethical exploitation, and simply can not be generalised. The main challenge is to overcome the lock-ins of unsustainability.
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By Inese Vaivare, LAPAS
To glocalize the global issues locally, LAPAS has gathered 34 people stories (on each goal) on how the SDGs are being implemented in the work of CSOs, local governments, research institutions and small enterprises. This approach was multiplied at the Baltic level and with the support of the NCM all three Baltic countries gathered best practice cases - 17 for each country.
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ANNOUNCEMENT 2: Apply for MESA grants!
As part of the project Make Europe Sustainable for All, financial support is available to local level civil society groups campaigning on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
We welcome applications for local project proposals in 15 countries (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain) before the closing date of 15 February 2019.
Read more HERE.
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ANNOUNCEMENT 4: WISH - Welcome, Inclusion and Support Hub for Refugees and Asylum-Seekers in Europe
Submissions are still being collected for WISH, an online platform developed by European Volunteer Centre (CEV) in the frame of the European Solidarity Corps projects, where volunteer-based and/or volunteer-led initiatives that support the inclusion and integration of migrants and refugees will be geographically displayed, categorised depending on the kind of support they offer. Submit your initiatives here
Read more HERE.
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