"Sustainable development must be seen as an opportunity for progress, not as an obstacle", said EPP-ED spokesman Anders Wijkman leading today's debate with Commission and Council in the EP on the Sustainable Development Strategy. The strategy, adopted in Gothenburg in 2001 - is up for review and the EP resolution to be voted in plenary tomorrow, outlines the expectations on the discussions and conclusions by the European Summit on Friday.
One of the key messages of the EP resolution is the urgent need for better coordination between the Sustainable Development Strategy and the Lisbon Strategy. Efforts to promote growth, competitiveness and innovation need to be well coordinated with environmental and social objectives. Sustainable development should be seen more as an economic opportunity rather than constraint, and as a spur to technological innovation and investment. The resolution makes a plea for smart growth, in particular by making the necessary transformation of energy and transport systems - a key objective of the climate change programme - as a lever to boost growth and exports within the Lisbon Strategy.
"The ecological footprints of the European Union are increasingly visible and we have to act now", underlined Anders Wijkman.
Source: EPP-ED.
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