Abstract

The European Green Deal recognises the urgent and significant threat posed by climate change and environmental degradation, which scientists and increasingly economists warn may hit the point of no return. It has set the EU on a path to become the world’s first ‘climate-neutral continent by 2050, which is resource-efficient and leaves no person and no space behind’.

While the EU has made progress in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, more effort is needed to increase carbon removals from land use, land-use change and forestry, as trends in this sector are currently negative. The EU's biodiversity, soil, and forest strategies set ambitious goals to protect and restore ecosystems, particularly carbon-rich ones like forests and wetlands. Initiatives such as the new Nature Restoration Law, the planting of 3 billion additional trees by 2030, and the Regulation on deforestation-free products are key components in these efforts to combat climate change and prevent biodiversity loss.

Bio

Andrea Vettori is Head of Unit Nature Conservation in the Directorate-General for the Environment of the European Commission, in charge of the implementation of the Birds and Habitats Directives and the Natura 2000 network of protected areas. Before that, he was Deputy Head of the Land Use & Management Unit in the same DG, in charge of forest protection, soil protection, nitrates pollution prevention, and the integration of the environment into agriculture. In the same DG he was part of the team who prepared and conducted the negotiations on the 7th EU Environment Action Programme and worked on strategic planning and policy coordination, on resource efficiency, and on an environmental program for small and medium-sized enterprises. Before joining the European Commission, he worked in the European Parliament and for a European civil society organisation, as well as for the United Nations in New York. He holds a degree in Business Administration and Economics from Bocconi University in Milan.

This webinar is one of several initiatives carried out by GrACE – Green Europe: Active Citizenship and the Environment, an international teacher training programme led by the University of Trento. It aims to provide educators with comprehensive knowledge of environmental issues and the EU’s strategies for tackling the climate crisis, along with innovative methods for teaching about green issues.