learn more about global europe
'Global Europe' is the EU's new external relations strategy with the rest of the world. It is mainly geared at serving EU transnational corporations’ interests.
The problem
The 'Global Europe' strategy of the European Union has the official aim to enhance Europe’s external “competitiveness”. It is promoted as Europe's response to so-called ‘new global challenges’, such as the rise of China and India. This means the European Union seeks to re-establish its leadership position in the global economy by expanding the power of its corporations.
Global Europe aims to expand free trade between Europe and other parts of the world, securing market access abroad for European companies and securing cheap supplies of raw materials and energy resources for the European industry. As such, Global Europe is a radical neoliberal and pro-business agenda. It puts Europe's social and environmental standards under heavy pressure, and jeopardizes developing countries' efforts towards sustainable development.
The solution
Friends of the Earth International believes there are better options for the EU in the world. This requires a fundamental shift in the EU's external economic relations, stepping away from maximising access to resources for Europeans at the expense of the environment and the rest of the world. Such a shift needs to be based on alternative and sustainable principles, such as food sovereignty, managed trade, equitable finance, the protection of peoples’ rights and access to sustainable energy.
What we do
There is very little public information on Global Europe. We research and expose the Global Europe strategy to open it to public scrutiny. Our member groups around the world work together to better understand how Global Europe will affect individual countries, particularly developing ones. For example, we map and publicise how the EU’s trade agreements and financial mechanisms work together to support EU corporations abroad. We research the impact of Global Europe policies on the rest of the world, in areas such as mineral resources, agrofuels and agri-business
We support communities in specific cases of EU malpractice abroad. We confront members of the European Parliament and the European Commission with these realities and mobilise the European public. We also exchange information and strengthen solidarity between people and workers in Europe and the South in order to expose that the benefits of the Global Europe are only for economic elites and big European corporations.
