We are happy to welcome the One Planet Network (OPN) as new knowledge partner in the Think2030 platform.
The Think2030 platform gathers organisations (think tanks, academia, NGOs, civil society and private sector) that share a common vision for a more sustainable future. As the network is expanding, we conducted a series of interviews to feature the partners, their involvement in the platform and their contribution to the implementation of the European Green Deal agenda.
The One Planet Network is a global community of practitioners, policymakers and experts, including governments, businesses, civil society, academia and international organisations, working towards achieving SDG12: ensuring sustainable patterns of consumption and production. Find more information here.
As an organisation made up of six thousand individual members, 850 organisations and 140 national focal points, OPN recognises the value and importance of partnership for advancing shared goals in a rapidly changing world.
Why did you join the Think2030 platform?
Part of OPN’s mandate means it works across government and business sectors to ensure SDG12: sustainable consumption and production is made more visible and better understood as the key enabler for meeting our climate, biodiversity and pollution commitments. Given the work Think2030 is involved in with the EGD Barometer Report, the organisation feels this provides an excellent opportunity to establish to what extent the European Green Deal accelerates the implementation of SDG12, as well as determining if the EU is sufficiently promoting SDG12.
Additionally, both IEEP and OPN share many strategic priorities in the sectors they are focused on such as the circular economy, sustainable consumption and production and digitalization. The scope for collaborating on these thematic areas, alongside the complimentary knowledge base both organisations possess, was an additional factor in forging this new partnership.
What can your organisation bring to the Think2030 platform and its activities?
At the One Planet Network we lead innovative initiatives such as harnessing digitalisation for accelerating the circular economy, leveraging consumer information for sustainable lifestyles and transforming sustainable food systems. This enables us to provide sector wide insights into effective ways of meeting the commitments stemming from environmental agreements whilst also achieving sustainable development goals by 2030, while leaving no one behind.
We also host and curate a vast pool of knowledge resources and tools on SCP from across our global network of governments, organisations and individuals. Think2030 can benefit both strategically and practically from harnessing these resources to advance your own network and priorities in relation to SCP, but also more broadly on the 2030 sustainable development agenda.
What do you think are the challenges and opportunities arising from the implementation of the EGD?
Firstly, I think we should acknowledge that achieving the European Green Deal (EGD) means embracing a wide range of radical initiatives and policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, increasing renewable energy production, and promoting sustainable economic growth.
The biggest challenge I would say to achieving this major policy initiative, is navigating the sheer scale and scope of the EGD. It encompasses such a broad range of sectors, organizations and stakeholders, each with their own agendas and priorities. To ensure success, we must find common ground that advances each priority fairly – and in a way that ensures the fundamentals of the EGD are not diluted.
Implementing the EGD at the level required will take significant focused investment in green technologies, infrastructure, and high impact sectors at scale. At the One Planet Network much of our work is focused on this, with leadership of several global programmes focused on transforming food systems, advocating sustainable lifestyles and improving access to accurate consumer information.
Yet, on balance it is precisely the scale of the EGD that presents its greatest opportunity for realising a truly sustainable future for business, governments and individuals. The Green Deal provides the opportunity for businesses and governments to collaborate and innovate around green technologies and practices. New jobs and industries can be born out of this process with sustainable development principles as their foundations.
Overall, I believe the Green Deal represents a unique opportunity for Europe to take a leadership role in addressing the urgent environmental challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. At the One Planet Network, with our global network of governments, policy-makers and international organisations, we stand ready to support this effort, through a focus on promoting the shift to sustainable consumption and production practices globally.
Photo by Arnaud Mesureur on Unsplash
