Encouraging Informed Choices for a Greener Europe

MEMO/04/129

Brussels, 28 May 2004

Green Week 2004: encouraging informed choices for a greener Europe

Combining economic competitiveness and environmental protection, raising the importance of the environment in the forthcoming European Parliament elections and strengthening the environmental dimension of the Lisbon Agenda are among the key themes of this year’s Green Week. Green Week is the largest annual international forum for discussion of current and future EU environment policy. This year it takes place from 1 to 4 June in Brussels under the motto “Changing our behaviour: informed choices for a greener Europe.” European Environment Commissioner Margot Wallström will inaugurate the fourth edition of Green Week on 1 May by ringing the opening bell on a ‘sustainable’ stock market. On this market participants will be able to buy and sell shares in virtual companies with contrasting environmental track records and to compare their performance over the week. Another highlight of the Week will be an ‘Oscars’-style event at which the European Environment Awards 2004 will be presented. The awards encompass four broad categories: business, low-emission shipping, sustainable urban mobility and children’s painting and photography.

Around 4,000 participants are expected at this year's Green Week. Some 27 debates, workshops and seminars are scheduled over the four days, involving almost 200 speakers from the 25 EU Member States as well as further afield including the US and China. In parallel with the discussions, the Green Week exhibition, running during the whole week, will showcase projects, products and information from more than 60 organisations as well as drawings, paintings and photographs of birds made by the children nominated for European Environment Awards. Green Week takes place in the conference centre of the Commission’s Charlemagne building.

Programme highlights Each day of the event has a different focus. The opening day, Tuesday 1 June, puts citizens at the centre of discussions by focusing on the importance of the environment as a political issue in the European Parliament elections, the charter of environmental rights and the involvement of citizens in decision-making. After launching the sustainable stock market, Commissioner Wallström will take part in an opening debate entitled People, planet, prosperity with Members of the European Parliament Alexander De Roo and Chris Davies and the Dutch State Secretary for Environment, Pieter van Geel. Wednesday 2 June, entitled From an economic environment to an environmental economy, will look at how to balance economic competitiveness and environmental protection. Among the topics under discussion will be eco-business, the sustainable stock market, green advertising, the recently adopted Environmental technologies action plan (ETAP) and the future of the Kyoto Protocol on climate change. Commissioner Wallström will hold a press conference on Green Week, climate change and renewable energies at the Charlemagne building at 1300. Thursday 3 June has the title From idealism to action. Highlights will be a debate on the greening of the Lisbon Agenda, at which Enterprise Commissioner Erkki Liikanen will speak, and a series of sessions to mark the 25th anniversary of the EU directive on the conservation of wild birds. This year’s children’s drawing and photography competition is on the theme of 'birds' for this reason. The main theme of Friday 4 June, the final day of Green Week, will be sustainable management of the marine environment, which links to the seas and oceans theme of this year’s World Environment Day taking place the next day.

Evening programme Green Week also has a busy evening programme. At 19.30 on 1 June Commissioner Wallström and Jan Leyers, a Belgian TV presenter and musician, will co-host this year’s European Environment Awards ceremony at the Théâtre Saint- Michel, an event modelled on the Hollywood Oscars night combining music and entertainment. Four categories of awards will be presented: the European Business Awards for the Environment, the Clean Marine Award (a new award), the European Mobility Week Award and the Children’s Award for drawing and photography. For details of the event and nominees, see annex. On 2 June the evening event will be “Green Talk,” a probing debate with Mr Steve Howard, CEO of the Climate Group, a non-profit organisation bringing together corporations, governments and financiers with a common interest in finding solutions to the challenge of climate change. In line with the day’s focus on the EU birds directive, the evening of 4 June will see the screening of With beak and claw, a Polish nature film made in the manner of a thriller. The film will be introduced by the director, Mr Kristian Matysek.

Green Days During Green Week local and regional authorities across Europe are invited to organise their own Green Days to celebrate World Environment Day. While Green Week 2004 promotes the concept of sustainable development and environmental action at European level by providing a platform for political debate and exchange of knowledge and information, Green Days focus on direct environmental action and awareness-raising in local communities. The initiative is a first step towards organising local Green Weeks around Europe.

Practical information All Green Week events are open to media representatives. Journalists will be able to obtain a Green Week press badge from the Green Week press desk in the Charlemagne building by showing their Commission press badge or national press accreditation. Further information on Green Week and the detailed programme can be found at http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/greenweek/index_en.htm

2 Annex

European Environment Awards ceremony The European Environment Awards will be presented at a ceremony on 1 June at 19.30 at the Théâtre Saint-Michel, Boulevard Saint-Michel 26bis, 1040 Brussels. European Environment Commissioner Margot Wallström and Jan Leyers, a Belgian TV presenter and musician, will co-host the ceremony. The event will combine music and entertainment and is modelled on the Hollywood Oscars. The nominees in the four categories of awards are: European Business Awards for the Environment, for companies making an outstanding contribution to sustainable development: Management Award for Sustainable Development J. Schmalz GmbH (Germany) Denso Manufacturing Hungary Ltd (Hungary) Gorenje d.d. (Slovenia) Morrison Bowmore Distillers (UK) Product Award for Sustainable Development Papeteries Matussière & Forest (France) Elpa d.o.o. (Slovenia) Process Award for Sustainable Development Cotinfi NV (Belgium) Cognis Ireland Ltd (Ireland) Rugby Ltd (UK) International Co-operation Award for Sustainable Development SolarFrost Research (Austria) Aquadev ASBL (Belgium) Nedap NV (Netherlands) Further information on the European Business Awards and nominees can be found at http://www.eu-environment-awards.org/environment_awards.asp Clean Marine Award, for best practice in low-emission shipping in the EU: EU ship operator with low-emission operation beyond regulatory requirements Reederei Rord Braren (Germany) Bijlsma Shipyard & Knutsen Shipping (Netherlands) EU shipper which uses low-emission ships to transport its goods SCA Transforest (Sweden) Volvo Logistics Corp & Wallenius Wilhelmsen (Sweden)

3 EU authority which facilitates low-emission shipping or shore-side activity in port Port of Gothenburg (Sweden) Port of Stockholm (Sweden) Further information on the Clean Marine Award and nominees can be found at http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/environment/clean_marine/index.htm European Mobility Week Award, for local authorities making an outstanding contribution to European Mobility Week: Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Spain) Almada (Portugal) Ljubljana (Slovenia) Further information on the European Mobility Week Award and nominees can be found at http://www.mobilityweek-europe.org Children’s Award, for best drawings/paintings or photographs of birds: Nominees from Lithuania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Germany and Czech Republic. Further information on the Children’s Award and nominees can be found at http://www.greenweek2004.eun.org/main_index.cfm?lang=en. This year’s entries can also be viewed on the site.