European environmental policy has helped shape the Sustainable Development Goals in several ways: 1) Early European environmental policies and events in the 1970s-80s like the Chernobyl disaster sparked greater action on the environment and the formation of green parties. 2) The EU has implemented increasingly stringent environmental programs and regulations over time to promote sustainability, setting an example for global standards. 3) European cooperation on the environment through the EU influenced the collaborative nature of the SDGs which aim to tackle development and environmental challenges through partnerships between countries.

1. World Environmental Policy: “How has European environmental policy helped shapethe Sustainable Development Goals?” | 1
Leuphana Universität Lüneburg
USAC Fall Session, 17. November 2016
International Affairs since 1945
Dr. Sybille Reinke de Buitrago
World Environmental Policy:
“How has European environmental policy helped
shape the Sustainable Development Goals?”
Daphne Saul

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Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1 Overview and Research Question
2. European Environmental Policy
2.1 History of European Environmental Policy
2.2 Current Environment Programs
3. Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs)
3.1 Brief History of Sustainability Goals
3.2 Mission Statement, Core Functions, Processes Supported
4. Comparison
5. Future of Environmental Policy
5.1 Anthropocene
6. Conclusion
Bibliography

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1.1 Overview and Research Question
Environmental policies made and implemented by the United Nations create a standard for the
world, and many of the SDGs aim to better the world in terms of environmental action and
pollution reduction to create a more sustainable future. In Europe an abundance of these policies
are implemented, whether that may manifest in fields of solar panels, wind generators, or the
intricate recycling systems enforced amongst the people. With the connection between Europe’s
ambitious drive to put to work environmentally friendly policies and the current environmental
effect that the SDGs have outside of Europe, this introduces the thesis statement: How has
European environmental policy helped shape the Sustainable Development Goals?”
2.1 History of European Environmental Policy
To understand the depth at which European environmental policies are rooted, history of these
policies shall first be examined. The history of the EU itself is very complicated but the history
of these environmental policies includes a few treaties and a bit of literature to spark the
movement. That particular piece of literature would be Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, a key
factor motivating European nations to move quickly in the direction of environment. This
American author focused the book mostly on the issue surrounding toxic chemicals, particularly
pesticides overused in large scale agricultural institutions (Stoll 2012). In 1962 when it was
published, Europe was not yet as wary since large farms were something associated only with the
US (although this sparked the then beginning Bio food movement), and it was not until 1975 that
the chemicals listed were all either banned or heavily restricted in Europe (Stoll 2012). A few
events in Europe swayed the decisions of countries to take Silent Spring more seriously,
including the 1967 “Torrey Canyon” oil spill affecting France and Britain’s shores, an Italian
chemical plant explosion in 1976 that started the antinuclear movement by releasing a cloud of
the chemical dioxin into the neighboring community called Seveso, and most infamously
recognized the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear power plant explosion that effected all of Europe and
gave rise to the current day Green parties (Stoll 2012).
Furthermore, leading into a history of the specific treaties associated with European
environmental policy, the Treaty of Rome of 1957 was the first treaty to say anything close to
that of environment, which was of course agriculture, in an effort to deepen the integration of

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German and French relations in the post war era (Ansari 1999). In 1972 the first policies about
environment, the Environmental Action Programs, arose over a realization that the pollution
created by a state may affect their neighbors (Ansari 1999). The Environmental Action Programs
each lasted three to five years, and in 1993 the stricter Fifth Environmental Program arose,
giving mandatory regulations instead of directives with the target of sustainable growth (Ansari
1999). Before that, both the 1987 Single European Act and the Treaty on European Union of
1992 worked to set environmental standards for countries to fulfill in order to meet membership
expectations (Ansari 1999). Specifically in the Treaty on European Union, three key points over
environment are stated, including the protection and maintenance of the quality of the
environment, ensuring proper usage of natural resources, and reaching out internationally to help
solve global environmental problems (Ansari 1999). The Directorate General XI was then made
in 1981 to oversee environmental laws and work with countries to create their own legislation
(Ansari 1999). The European Environmental Agency (EEA) was created in 1993 to “provide
Member States with objective, reliable, and comparable information” that can be used to help the
environment (Ansari 1999).
A controversy that has arisen from environmental policy is that having to do with the Cohesion
Fund of the EU, whose main goal is to help lower income EU members meet infrastructural
needs to address environmental challenges (Ansari 1999). The problems specifically that the
Cohesion Fund creates are financial, in that deciding how to use the money is a large dispute, for
example in the Mediterranean, instead of helping the environment, money from the Cohesion
Fund “contributed to deterioration of the environment”, and using the money in two
contradictory ways such as fueling both sides of the wetland disagreement in Spain (Ansari
1999). Another problem that European environmental policies unintentionally create is the
feeling that smaller countries are “not allowed” to properly develop as the larger ones were, and
this reduction of “dirty industry” which larger countries went through before to get where they
are now (Ansari 1999). The third issue falls on the topic of environmental policy having real
power, and in this case what is called “implementation failure” draws on that directives used in
policy are not mandatory therefore they impede on the creation of legislation within countries by
not posing as a priority (Ansari 1999).

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2.2 Current Environment Programs
In the European Union, these countries have one of the world’s highest standards for
environmental policy with the ultimate goals to “green the EU economy, protect nature, and
safeguard the health and quality of life” which seem pretty straightforward but require a lot of
work not only on the intergovernmental level but also within the legislation of each member state
(“Environment” 2016). Under these goals, a specific goal is “Green growth” which entails
“developing integrated policies that promote a sustainable environmental framework,” and in
essence works to help maintain trade presence while still protecting the environment
(“Environment” 2016). Another goal is protecting nature, for the reason that everyone lives in
essentially the same European environment and if it deteriorates, the health and lives of everyone
else does as well, so Natura 2000 was created in order to protect the green landscape of Europe
that is home to many species of wildlife and essential natural resources (“Environment” 2016).
Additionally, with the protection of people via the protection of the environment, some of the
EU’s biggest priorities in that area are ensuring water and air safe from chemicals and pollution,
including safe drinking water, air quality maintenance, and working to reduce and ban chemicals
harmful to human wellbeing (“Environment” 2016). Not only is the EU concerned with its own
environment, but also the environment on a global scale, furthermore the EU works its best to
put out international efforts in these same collective environmental goals, also to clean oceans,
manage climate change and ensure ecosystems are treated sustainably (“Environment” 2016).
Bringing up the history of European environmental policy again, The Environmental Action
Programs are now on their 7th Environmental Action Program, which will be in effect in EU
policy until 2020 (“Environment” 2016).
3.1 Brief History of Sustainable Development Goals
To begin with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it must first be noted that they did
not come into existence until 2016, but there is some history behind how they came to be. For
example, in 1972 the UN Conference on the Human Environment first met in Stockholm,
Sweden to discuss and write the “Declaration of the United Nations Conference on the Human
Environment” which basically outlines a some principles for UN nations to follow in order to
protect the “human environment,” and although it does address key global issues, its language is
somewhat lofty and key concept like sustainability are not yet mentioned (“Declaration…”

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1972). The first time the definition for sustainability was written and accepted was in 1987 at the
United Nations Commission on Environment and Development otherwise known as the
“Bundland Commission” named after the Chairwoman and Prime Minister of Norway Gro
Harlem Bundtland (“Getting…” 2015). This definition is as follows; sustainable development:
“the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs” (“Getting…” 2015). The next time this definition was used
was in the 1992 UN Conference on Environment & Development in Rio de Janeiro, and since
then the definition has evolved to include a few more aspects such as economic development,
social inclusion, and environmental sustainability which are essential for a complete working
definition of this subject (“Getting…” 2015). Finally, this three part definition was used in the
2012 Rio+20 Conference which was the basis along with the Millennium Development Goals for
the SDGs that currently affect UN member states (“Getting…” 2015).
3.2 Mission Statement, Core Functions, Processes Supported
With the three part definition in mind, Sustainable Development Goals aim to provide a
framework in cooperative sustainable development, including the right to development for every
country, human rights and social inclusion, convergence of living standards across countries, and
shared responsibilities and opportunities (“Getting…” 2015). The Division for Sustainable
Development (DSD) on the United Nations is primarily in charge of maintaining the SDGs, and
their mission statement is as follows: “The Division for Sustainable Development (DSD) seeks
to provide leadership and catalyze action in promoting and coordinating implementation of
internationally agreed development goals, including the seventeen Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs)” (“Division…” 2016). Under this statement, it also hosts the High-level Political
Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), a platform that does the follow up for the 2030
Agenda, which includes the SDGs and 169 target goals (“Division…” 2016).
The six core functions of the Division for Sustainable Development are:
(i) Support to UN intergovernmental processes on sustainable development; (ii) Analysis and
policy development; (iii) Capacity development at the request of Member States; (iv) Inter-
agency coordination; and (v) stakeholder engagement, partnerships, communication and
outreach; and (vi) Knowledge management (“Division…” 2016).

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The programs that are supported through the DSD are Technology Facilitation Mechanism and
the Multi-Stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable
Development Goals, Regional Commissions (from the 1992 Earth Summit) which are member
states’ implementation such as creation of legislation, the General Open Working Group on
Sustainable Development Goals, and of course the 2030 Agenda, all of which fall under either
the General Assembly, ECOSOC, the High-level Political Forum, or Rio+20 (“Division…”
2016). The DSD also works with and supports Major Groups as defined in Agenda 21 of the
United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) as basically stakeholders that can go farther and
do more than UNEP ever could alone, utilizing fields of science, policy and law, for the further
implementation and creation of better policy, also including advocacy, watchdogs, and other
stakeholders that strengthen capacity, knowledge, and skills (“Major Groups”).
4. Comparison
Considering that the SDGs started much later than the overall European environmental policies
began, but that the roots of the SDGs also began around the same timeframe as Silent Spring was
released and acted upon, the commonalties for the reason and motive of both lines of policy are
very similar. In 1993 the Fifth Program had the target of sustainable growth, indicating that these
European nations were already developed, whereas in 1987 the term sustainable development
was being formulated and defined, to mean that the rest of the countries had not developed, that
they were not merely growing but still developing. In this case, the issue around the means for
development can be seen in the Declaration of the United Nations Conference on the Human
Environment, with its fluffy language and the motive to help undeveloped countries develop
without destroying their environment and natural resources, because what right does a central
body have to tell underdeveloped countries how to develop and how to use their resources when
the cultures are so incredibly different that this rhetoric and language does not transfer from one
hand to the other. Over time since the 1970s when this Declaration was written, this idea has
changed and evolved and developing countries are seen in a different light, one that needs more
research and hands on work such as the Major Groups in determining what exactly these people
need and even want within their cultures and traditions to “develop” in whichever way is right
for them, and not just from the utopian eye of the UN. An interesting point that was mentioned
earlier was the connection of Silent Spring and the timing of the beginning of these programs.

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Since this author Rachel Carson was an American author, and these problems first affected
largely the United States before any other country, it can be argued that the United States is
actually the leader in environmental policy since what started towards the environmentalist
movement started in the United States and not first in Europe. Although countries like Austria
already had very high environmental standards, they were not put into the supranational policy of
the EU until much later when environmental issues started to affect member states directly and
head on like the three mentioned in the history section including Chernobyl. With the SDGs
today addressing Sustainable Development in a way that is measured and affects all levels of
development in a culturally sensitive way with Agenda 2030 backing them up with a follow up
program, they have come a long way since the early days of simple environmental policy. When
member states of the EU are helping developing countries in the same way that the SDGs work
to do, then their efforts are helpful and worthy, but when they just throw money blindly at a
problem, corruption gets in the way and nothing really good comes of it. In any case, it is better
to follow development with a structured program and not just on a country to country level. The
EU policies
5.1 Anthropocene
Part of the effectiveness of the SDGs and any environmental program or policy, is the
perspective that the people have on that particular policy. For example, in 2016 there are still a
large amount of people who do not believe that climate change exists like Donald Trump and his
supporters. Therefore, a policy that is optional for a country to follow and implement becomes a
non-priority, and for a country as large as the United States to have a leader that does not even
acknowledge the existence of climate change that will have great environmental consequences.
To combat this, the author Adam Frank has proposed a new perspective in his article and
upcoming book “Climate Change and the Astrobiology of the Anthropocene” (Frank 2016). This
idea is that the Earth, compared to other planets in our solar system, has gone through different
stages in its lifetime such as very cold, very wet, and very hot, and that the current inhabitable
stage is the Holocene, but as it moves into the Anthropocene human consumption is speeding up
the process (Frank 2016). Frank says that collective efforts towards sustainability may be the
“final test” as a species, and that humans must think as a planet in order to sustain what is
currently inhabitable (Frank 2016). This is important not only on a personal level, but on the

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highest level of government, of international policy, and global action, a cry to all humans that
sustainability is of the upmost importance or humanity will cease to exist. This also ties into the
first definition of sustainable development “without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs”, but when the planet evolves into the Anthropocene there
will be no future generations.
6. Conclusion
The environment is crucial for the existence of humanity as we know it and these policies give
countries a common standard and direction to work in. The Division for Sustainable
Development works with Regional Commissions to help translate the SDGs into legislation
which helps bring about a change. As European countries increase sustainability nationally, and
work towards sustainability abroad as well, it is also helpful to reach out to the public from
which the greatest change will come, not just from the professional meetings of diplomats in
suits far away from the everyday challenges that the world’s people face. Under the Agenda
2030, having a follow up program legitimizes and gives teeth to the SDGs, which are the most
important guidelines for humanity at the moment, and making it essential for UN members to
follow these guidelines is the best work for the world.

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