Can Ukraine reconcile environmental priorities with economic interests?
September 24, 2025
The Ukrainian government has updated indicators in the Ukraine Plan under the 2024–2027 Ukraine Facility. Though largely technical, the changes still need EU approval.But the key question remains: Will the government deliver on the environmental reforms essential to Ukraine’s European future?
Prosumer paradox: How outdated grids undermine energy poverty efforts in central and eastern Europe
September 5, 2025
Outdated and underinvested grids in the Czech Republic, Poland and Romania are blocking households from fully benefiting from renewable energy programmes and exacerbating energy poverty. This briefing highlights shared challenges, from capacity constra
From solar roofs to shared power: Pioneering community energy in the Czech Republic
August 25, 2025
Community energy pioneers know that much hard work is needed before they can seamlessly share power between one another. In spite of all obstacles, they believe the project is worth it.
Europe’s big trash-burning experiment has become a dirty headache
July 27, 2025
“Many of these installation plans would turn out to be obsolete,” says Anelia Stefanova, energy transformation area leader for CEE Bankwatch, since EU countries are expected to meet waste reduction and recycling targets enforced by EU laws.
Why the EU budget needs a democratic reset – a Czech civil society perspective
July 25, 2025
As the European Union begins shaping its post-2027 budget – the next multiannual financial framework – the challenges ahead are significant. From accelerating climate change to geopolitical tensions and conflicts, the EU needs a budget that is both responsive and forward-looking. Yet, despite the far-reaching impact these decisions will have on millions of Europeans, the process by which they are made still falls short of being truly democratic.
A budget aware of the challenges, yet falling short on solutions for a resilient future
July 16, 2025
Despite bold rhetoric on climate and environmental leadership, the European Commission’s proposal for the next long-term EU budget, published today, falls short of aligning future EU spending with the needs of a climate-neutral EU. It fails to provide a clear, enforceable vision for beneficiaries of EU funds to tackle today’s multiple challenges by directing public funds towards building a more resilient, just, and environmentally sustainable economy.
Recommendations for the EIB Group: Shaping the 2026–2030 Climate Bank Roadmap
July 15, 2025
The publication outlines the European Investment Bank’s transformation into the EU’s first public international financial institution to stop funding fossil fuels in both developed EU Member States and developing countries and significantly increasing investments in climate action and environmental sustainability.
Why the next EU budget is worrying nature conservationists
July 15, 2025
As the European Commission prepares to present the EU’s next Multiannual Financial Framework, biodiversity advocates are pessimistic. They expect nature to be deprioritised in the EU budget and view the disappearance of the Life Fund, the only funding instrument dedicated to the environment, with concern.
The Connecting Europe Facility for Energy: Funding fiction, failing climate
July 15, 2025
The Clean Industrial Deal envisions an expansion of both hydrogen and carbon capture throughout the EU. The experts’ prevailing view is that hydrogen can only advance the energy transition in a few hard-to-abate sectors, and there are serious concerns over the very viability of carbon capture, especially at scale. Yet our latest analysis reveals that a little-known EU infrastructure fund has been handing out hundreds of millions to these dubious technologies.
Adapting the Just Transition Mechanism to the needs of regions in transition
July 11, 2025
This discussion paper synthesises contributions from members of the Just Transition Platform’s ‘Future of Just Transition’ Working Group and other key stakeholders on the potential design of future support for a just transition in Europe.
