The document summarizes information from a conference on collective actions towards sustainable consumption and production. It discusses the Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe (REC), which works on environmental projects in Europe and beyond. Some key points made in the document include: - The REC works on over 300 projects annually with a focus on sustainable consumption and production. - Europeans overwhelmingly consider the environmental impact of products they purchase and support eco-labels and carbon footprint labeling. - Common actions that have the greatest impact on environmental problems include buying energy efficient products and improving energy efficiency in general. - The REC promotes SCP in the region through projects and working with organizations like the European Environment Agency on reporting and analyses.

1. Making an Impact – Collective
Actions Towards SCP Conference
“Meeting in the Middle”
Hosted by: the European Economic and Social Committee
Marta Szigeti Bonifert
Executive Director

2. The REC
• “… is an international organisation with
a mission to assist in solving
environmental problems (…)”
• The REC is legally based on a charter
signed by the governments of 29
countries and the EC
• Multi-stakeholder International Board
• 190 staff (some 30 nationalities)
• 12 million Euro annual turnover
• Offices in 17 countries
• Operations beyond Central and
Eastern Europe
• 100% project based organization (over
300 running projects)
• Project portfolio is handled by Topic
Area system
• SCP Topic Area
www.rec.org

3. REC beneficiary region
• New EU Members
• Candidate countries
• Potential Candidate Countries
www.rec.org

4. "The battle against climate change must be
fought on all fronts and everyone must contribute.
It is not only the remit of companies and
governments; consumers also have their part to
play. By purchasing environmentally and climate-
friendly products individual customers send the
right signal to producers who respond in turn by
producing more eco-friendly products."
EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas July 2009
www.rec.org

5. Europeans overwhelmingly consider the
environmental impact of products they buy
Out of Europeans surveyed:
• four out of five Europeans say that they consider the
environmental impact of the products
• They were evenly divided about claims by producers about the
environmental performance of their products with 49% trusting
the claims and 48% not trusting such claims.
• 72% of EU citizens thought that a label indicating a product's
carbon footprint should be mandatory in the future.
• Almost half of EU citizens (49%) thought that they should
increase the visibility of such products on their shelves or have a
dedicated green corner in their store. A third (31%) of Europeans
said that the best way for retailers to promote green products is
for them to provide better information to consumers.
Eurobarometer - Brussels, 29 July 2009
www.rec.org

6. Actions with the greatest impact on solving
environmental problems
www.rec.org

7. Buying energy-efficient products
www.rec.org

8. Impact of energy efficiency on
purchasing decision
www.rec.org

9. Importance of eco-labels in
purchasing decision
www.rec.org

10. Should a label indicating a product’s
carbon footprint be mandatory?
www.rec.org

11. Best way for retailers to promote
environmentally-friendly products
www.rec.org

12. How
do you
promote SCP
in your region?
www.rec.org

13. How do you promote SCP in your
region?
• SCP Topic Area (SCP TA) under the thematic cluster
“Sustainable management and use of natural resources”
• Several of our projects, even if they are implemented under
other TAs or thematic clusters are directly related to SCP
• As one of the main building blocks of our project-based
activities, the REC works closely together with the EEA
via its Topic Centres on SCP (earlier on resource and
waste management) and Climate Change
• In the Topic Centres we are in general responsible for our region
at the same time we also contribute to their work in the EU15
region
• e.g. by developing methods for reporting etc.
• REC is a regular contributor e.g. to the EEA’s State of the
Environment in Europe report (SCP and waste chapters), but
also to other relevant regular and non-regular EEA reports
www.rec.org

14. Examples of relevant projects
www.rec.org

15. Examples of relevant projects
• Other examples:
• The role of the EU Eco-label in Green Public Procurement
• Guidelines to national authorities on how to prepare national waste prevention
programmes
• In general trainings to governmental officials on sustainable development
(Course for Sustainability) and the REC’s Green Pack etc. are also very relevant
• Country Office Hungary runs the Hungarian “SCP network” and is implementing
the project “Campaign to promote environmentally aware and healthier
consumption patterns and to green the retail sector”
• SEE region
• Promotion of Green Public Procurement (2008/09): first steps “planting the seeds of
GPP” as it is very novel area of policy in the region
• Promotion of high-efficiency household appliances (2009/10): explore what
governments and retailers can do to enhance the markets for high-efficiency
household appliances and to promote the use of the EU Energy Label
• Promoting Financing Mechanisms for Eco-Innovation (2008/09): the objective was
to identify existing and potential mechanisms for the stimulation and financing eco-
innovation in the selected SEE countries
www.rec.org

16. www.rec.org

17. What is in the moment urgent in the
SCP policy agenda in your region?
• It is necessary to create a better understanding
of what SCP is and why it is important,
• i.e. what the interrelations are between the economy,
the environment and social wellbeing, not only in
general, but also in the particular sub-regional /
national context.
• (It is important to note that NMSs and also SEE countries
have many distinctive features e.g. lower levels of
consumption and household waste generation, many
times good, although deteriorating public transport
infrastructure etc., at the same time higher energy
intensity, lower levels of environmental awareness etc.,
finally cultural factors and values, attitudes etc. are also
very important.)
www.rec.org

18. „Radical” change: the roots
“The problem is not simply economic and
technological; it is moral and spiritual. A
solution at the economic and technological
level can be found only if we undergo, in the
most radical way, an inner change of heart,
which can lead to a change in lifestyle and of
unsustainable patterns of consumption and
production.”
The Venice Declaration on Environmental Ethics, June 2002
www.rec.org

19. Thank You for Your Attention!