A grant from the state-owned development financial institution ALTUM for multi-apartment residential building renovations in Salaspils, Latvia, is a success story about active residents and the support of their local municipality, which sets an important precedent for public mobilisation and participation.
A different kind of bucket challenge
July 18, 2018 | Read more
In May this year, Romania made headlines after being referred to the European Union’s Court of Justice for failing to solve its air pollution problem. This breach is about three major cities – Bucharest, Iași and Brașov. But beyond the big cities, small communities are opposing polluting coal industries with nothing more than a bucket.
The European Ombudsman has sided with the civil society demanding the European Commission to improve its oversight of the EU Export Credit Agencies (ECAs). The decision upholds an earlier ruling that required the Commission to ensure better compliance of these financial institutions with the EU law.
China must walk its EU standards talk
July 6, 2018 | Read more
The seventh Central and Eastern Europe-China “16+1” summit for heads of state is set to take place this week in Sofia, Bulgaria, on the heels of an EU initiative on screening Foreign Direct Investments in the areas of security and public order. The EU initiative comes amidst concerns of increased foreign direct investments – including Chinese – going into strategic and sensitive sectors in Europe.
How the EBRD can seize the day in sustainable development
June 28, 2018 | Read more
To truly invest in changing lives and preventing human rights violations, the EBRD must ensure that its independent accountability office can conduct rigorous investigations into allegations of abuse in financed projects – and hold itself accountable.
In the Israeli Environmental Protection Ministry’s annual ranking, Israel Chemicals has been topping the lists of corporate environmental offenders. For the EIB, the company has “sound environmental policy” which justifies a quarter of billion euros for supporting R&D of specialty chemicals. Ahead of the first anniversary of the Ashalim spill, which originated from an ICL subsidiary’s chemicals plant, a new Bankwatch analysis questions the EIB’s engagement with the company.