Milestone bank summit in Belgrade a step towards protecting Balkan rivers, but greater transparency still needed
March 1, 2019
For immediate release. Belgrade – The ‘Save the Blue Heart of Europe’ campaign [1] gave a cautious welcome to a first-of-its-kind summit between the financial sector and green activists, where a roundtable about the role of banks in the destruction of Balkan rivers by hydropower dams was centre stage.
The EBRD Country Strategy for Azerbaijan
February 26, 2019
As the EBRD reviews its Country Strategy for Azerbaijan, Civil society organisations approached the Board of Directors to share their concerns about the situation in the country and asked the Bank to be clear that funding should be linked to the perfor
ARCHIVED: Kresna gorge / Struma motorway, Bulgaria
February 25, 2019
The Struma motorway is tragically emblematic of an EU-funded project that has wrought havoc on European biodiversity and the wishes of local communities. In spite of two decades of protest by civil society and citizens, part of the Struma motorway section is planned directly through the Kresna gorge, a Natura 2000 site and Bulgaria’s richest biodiversity hotspot.
EU action on Western Balkans’ chronic coal pollution is a unique opportunity to improve health and productivity
February 19, 2019
Brussels – Sixteen outdated coal power plants in the Western Balkans are a public health and economic liability for the whole of Europe, with people in the EU bearing the majority of the health impacts and costs, according to a new report [1] by the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL), Sandbag, Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe, CEE Bankwatch Network and Europe Beyond Coal. The European Union (EU) needs to use all of the tools available to improve health, prolong lives, save health costs and increase productivity both in the EU and in the Western Balkan region.
New investigation in Kresna gorge reveals another major breach of law
February 15, 2019
An independent investigation by a Bulgarian TV channel bTV discovered progressing construction works in the Kresna gorge area even though the official procurement procedure is still ongoing.
Changing lives and doing no harm
February 8, 2019
“We invest in changing lives” is the slogan of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, whose investments in 2018 reached EUR 9.5 billion through 395 projects. Whether the change is for better depends on the bank’s environmental and human rights safeguards.
The EU’s bank downplayed climate risk in granting record loans to Europe’s largest fossil fuel project
February 7, 2019
Brussels – In a complaint lodged today with the European Investment Bank (EIB), civil society groups protest that the bank systematically underestimated the climate footprint of a fossil fuel mega project, the Southern Gas Corridor, which helped justify providing it with major financial support using EU public money.
Rural community engagement
January 30, 2019
The publication identifies positive practices to empower communities affected by environmental degradation to develop sustainable livelihood opportunities and protect themselves from harmful developments. Done in cooperation with partners of A Voice of
International CSOs letter regarding Amulsar mine
January 22, 2019
The undersigned civil society groups stand in solidarity with the residents of Jermuk, Gndevaz and Kechut, and with the environmental activists and concerned civil society in Armenia and appeal to the Government of Armenia to act on the Amulsar mine pr
The weight of gold
January 16, 2019
The new gold mine in Krumovgrad boasts environmental performance and social responsibility, yet there are black spots along the path of the Bulgarian gold around the globe.
