Climate Proofing EU Structural and Cohesion Funds

Friends of the Earth Europe, CEE Bankwatch Network and the group of the Greens/EFA have the pleasure to invite you to a one-day conference "Climate Proofing EU Structural and Cohesion Funds" which will take place on November 17, 2009 in the European Parliament in Brussels.

Please, find below a provisional agenda.  There is a strong consensus that climate change is one of the biggest challenges for European regions. It will affect adversely both human and non-human environment and pose significant constraints to regional and local economies. Therefore, mitigating and adapting to climate change is a matter of urgent policy actions supported by targeted funding resources. Taking timely action to place society and the economy on a low carbon pathway of development can be also a recipe for creating green jobs and market opportunities while ensuring energy security and long term prosperity. EU structural and cohesion funds are the second biggest line in the EU budget providing 347 billion of euro for the period 2007-2013 aimed to deliver regional development and social cohesion.

The 2007-2013 financial period provided new opportunities for EU funds to finance energy efficiency, renewable energy, sustainable transport systems and integrated urban development. Yet, at the same time a considerable amount of the funds are still allocated for interventions (especially in 'cohesion' countries for road construction) which are likely to lock countries into climate intensive development scenarios. In the next three years important decisions on the future of cohesion policy and the EU budget will be taken, therefore this conference aims to engage members of the European Parliament, EU officials and
national/regional governments, civil society and media in a one-day constructive discussion on the following issues:

• What is the climate impact of EU funds programmes and projects - presentation of analyses and case studies about the implementation of climate mitigation and adaptation projects for the 2007-2013 financial period.
• What are the opportunities and success factors based on good practices for "de-carbonisation" of EU funds programmes and projects in transport and energy sectors
• What are the common problems and barriers for the use of the EU funds for climate mitigation and adaptation projects
• What kind of cohesion policy EU needs in order to deliver low carbon development in European regions - recommendations for climate proofing of the future cohesion policy and the new financial perspective 2014-2020

The conference is organised by CEE Bankwatch Network / Friends of the Earth Europe together with the European NGO Coalition on Sustainable EU funds in collaboration with the Group of the Greens/EFA. The organizers are able to reimburse travel, visa and accommodation costs for most participants. Please note that CEE Bankwatch Network in collaboration with Counter Balance is organizing a conference "The European Investment Bank – ready for development?" 18-19th November in the European Parliament (Brussels) so participants are encouraged to attend both conferences. For more information, please contact
Monika Matus
monika.matus@bankwatch.org
Tel.: +32 (0) 2 893 1032

8:30 – 9:00	Registration at the European Parliament
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9:00- 9:30	Welcome and introduction by organizers • Elisabeth Schroedter, Group of the Greens/EFA • Anelia Stefanova, Bankwatch
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9:30 – 11:00	Panel I – EU funds for clean and efficient energy Moderator: Keti Medarova-Bergstrom, EU Funds coordinator, FoEE • Jan Raczka, President of National Fund for Environmental Protection, Poland • Petr Holub, Head of Climate Protection Department, Ministry of Environment, Czech Republic • Julien Dijol, Policy Officer, CECODHAS • Michael Warhurst, Senior Campaigner, FoEE Discussant: DG Regional policy Questions from the public
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11:00 – 13:00	Panel II – EU funds for climate proofed transportation Moderator:Pippa Gallop, Bankwatch • Nina Renshaw, Policy officer, Transport & Environment • Pavel Pribyl, International Transport Coordinator, Bankwatch • DG TREN (tbc) • Alex Huke, Environmental Sustainability Manager, South West of England Regional Development Agency Discussant: Michael Cramer, Group of the Greens/EFA Questions from the public
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13:00 – 14:00	Lunch
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14:00 - 16:00	Panel III - Cohesion policy and climate change – identifying challenges and solutions Moderator: Dave Keating, ENDS Europe • Ruslan Zhechkov, Senior Expert, REC-ENEA Climate group • Stefan Scheuer, Policy and Advocacy Director, Europe Planet Earth • Dr. Philipp Schmidt-Thomé, Senior Scientists, ESPON project • Peter Torkler, WWF Germany Discussants: DG Regional policy Questions from the public
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15:30 - 17:00	Panel IV - Towards carbon free cohesion policy – recommendations for the future of cohesion policy and EU budget Moderator: Swedish EU presidency • Danuta Hübner, EPP • Inés Ayala Sender, S&D • Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy, ALDE • Elisabeth Schroedter, Group of the Greens /EFA • Magda Stoczkiewicz, Director of Friends of the Earth Europe
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19:00	Dinner and cultural event at Mundo-B Rue D'Edimbourg 26, Brussels 1050