friends of the earth spearheads campaign to challenge “global europe” strategy
Friends of the Earth has been at the forefront of the battle against “Global Europe”, the European Union’s new “external competitiveness” strategy, adopted in November 2006. FoEI has serious concerns about Global Europe and the EU’s current position in the World Trade Organisation and in bilateral trade agreements.
Global Europe, adopted by all member states, insists competitiveness is now Europe's top economic priority. This has major implications for Europeans, according to Charly Poppe, trade campaigner for FoE Europe. “What promoters of Global Europe are saying implicitly to European citizens is that Europe has high social and environmental standards. And those standards are not viable any more in the world economy, they’re actually becoming privileges for European citizens, and that is a major burden for the European economy.”
“So that is the internal agenda of Global Europe. It’s quite frightening but that is what we are seeing in the discourse in the promoters of Global Europe.”
Friends of the Earth was one of first civil society networks to pick up the issue, to alert other organisations and the general public, and to develop campaign plans shared by our three teams working on corporates, trade and international financial institutions
The result: many civil society groups and networks, NGOs and trade unions, in Europe but also around the globe, have taken “Global Europe” on board as a campaign. Now is the time to develop a more sustainable, democratic and equitable trading system for the 21st century in participation with citizens organisations, and for 2008 we are looking forward to mass mobilisations on this issue.
More information here.
with thanks to our funders: the isvara foundation
