Good morning, and happy New Year! We hope you had a wonderful winter break filled with rest and quality time with your loved ones. To make this return to routine a little easier—and because we know how tough January can be—here are some tips to ease your way back into it. And if those don’t work, you can always start your day (and the year) on a high note by listening to the latest Bad Bunny album on your way to work! #RoiRecommends
GOODBYE, 2024: Last year was intense and kept us busy, but it also brought plenty of positive stories. If you’d like to revisit some of the highlights, check out our 2024 Wrapped. And while not every moment was easy, it’s worth remembering the wise words of our favourite columnist, Carrie Bradshaw: “Computers crash, people die, relationships fall apart… The best we can do is breathe and reboot.” And, of course, do what we can to save the future.
HOLA, 2025! After a much-needed rest, we’re back in full swing, ready to bring you the most important news, in-depth analysis, and expert commentary on the key developments shaping EU environmental policy for another year. Enjoy!
🤖 TECH BRO TAKEOVER = DISINFORMATION EPIDEMIC
NEW YEAR, SAME CHALLENGES: We leave behind the biggest year for elections in human history. In total, some 3.7 billion people—half of the world’s population—were called to the ballot box. Looking back, 2024 was a test for democracies worldwide, and it left us with some concerning trends: the rise of disinformation, tech-bro influence, and authoritarian far-right forces, which symbiotically pose a fundamental threat to our planet, our well-being and basic democratic freedoms.
FAR-RIGHT RISING: The far right’s success can be attributed to its dominance in digital spaces, whose platforms and algorithms prioritise sensationalist content. As a result, the far-right’s strategy to flood these spaces with disinformation, including climate denialism, xenophobia, and other harmful rhetoric, is working.
Social media platforms like TikTok, where political parties such as the radical, authoritarian, nationalist AfD—classified as a suspected extremist organisation by Germany’s domestic intelligence agency and now second in the polls for the upcoming German elections—accumulate millions of views, have already demonstrated their power to influence election outcomes, as seen in Romania. Clearly, these digital spaces will be key battlegrounds in ongoing and upcoming fights against disinformation.
THE COMMON MUSKRAT: The wealthiest man in the world, owner of the social media platform X and soon-to-be senior member of the Trump administration, is raising concerns over his attempts to meddle in the upcoming German elections. They say money can’t buy you class, but it can buy you influence and media coverage and make sure at least everyone sees your tweet or op-ed.
HE SAID WHAT?Musk recently labelled the (repeat: radical, authoritarian, nationalist) AfD as “Germany’s last spark of hope.” He also invited its leader, Alice Weidel, to a livestream on X last night, where the two appear to agree on everything. This is not the first time Musk has shown explicit support for radical authoritarian leaders as he has supported figures such as Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro—currently indicted for attempting a coup d’état—Argentina’s Javier Milei, UK’s Nigel Farage, and of course, Donald Trump.
EU, DO SOMETHING: Pressure is mounting in Brussels for the EU Commission to enforce the Digital Services Act to ensure that Musk and other tech bros don’t manipulate algorithms to boost authoritarian far-right propaganda, give an unfair advantage to any political party, including AfD, and suppress fact-based content ahead of the elections in the Union’s largest economy.
NOT ANOTHER BRO: Mark Zuckerberg, owner of Meta—which includes Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp—recently announced his intentions to eliminate fact-checkers on his platforms. According to an unsettling video shared on his personal channels, the move is framed as a push to promote “freedom of speech.” In reality, however, this is not about free speech. It’s about what speech the algorithms choose to amplify, and this move will mean opening the floodgates to more disinformation, fake news, and manipulation as any quality checks on sources are removed.
SEEKING THE TRUTH: One thing is clear: trust is in crisis, and disinformation is fuelling it. Trust is the glue that holds societies together—it allows us to live in buildings we didn’t construct, vote in elections we don’t directly oversee, and rely on the safety of food we didn’t grow ourselves. Yet today, trust is eroding—trust in experts, the press, institutions, and, ultimately, in democracy itself.
When trust in our society disappears, the consequences are clear: societal polarisation is fertile ground for exploitation by extremist movements and charismatic figures bought by billionaires who control the narrative. The result: climate denial delays urgent action—at a time when we need action the most!
The challenge we face is this: How can we rebuild trust in a world where the most compelling story—rather than the most accurate one—often prevails? A world where algorithms prioritise engagement over truth, shaping what audiences see to keep them on the platform? Where billionaire tech bros have the last say over what most people see?
WHAT NOW? A crucial first step is understanding the problem and doing something about it. Digital spaces must not become unregulated platforms where those with the deepest pockets get to control the narrative. Lawmakers must enact and enforce legislation to protect our societies, the environment, and democratic systems from those seeking to undermine them. We also need to vastly increase social media literacy across Europe and the world.
IN THE SHORT TERM… Radical far-right actors are dominating digital spaces and clearly negatively influence societal narratives and attitudes at scale. This makes it all the more critical for pro-democratic, pro-environmental, pro-all-the-good-stuff forces to claim or reclaim these spaces. We need as many voices as possible advocating for a fair and just society and for a future where both people and nature can thrive together. And together, we can amplify each other! Create, like and share 📢
🫧 IN THE BRUSSELS BUBBLE
CHANGING OF THE GUARDS: At the stroke of midnight on 31 December, Poland took the helm of the Presidency of the EU Council from Hungary. With the EU Commission and Parliament now finally set and ready to go, Warsaw must hit the ground running.
HUNG(A)RY FOR MORE: Hungary’s Presidency left NGOs wanting more. While some efforts were made to improve biodiversity and a toxic-free environment, the impacts were minimal. Meanwhile, commitments were severely lacking when it came to advancing the EU Green Deal, energy security, cleaner air, and improved rule of law and environmental justice. Hungary’s turn at the wheel failed to keep up with Belgium’s and Spain’s earlier efforts. Despite the difficult context of a changing Parliament and Commission, more could and should have been done. Are we that surprised? Not really.
NEW YEAR, NEW EU: Donald Tusk’s Poland now faces a high-stakes six-month term, juggling an overloaded backlog of EU Green Deal files and setting the stage for the next EU mandate. With tough political winds blowing on the continent and beyond, Poland needs to deliver on unfinished business and show that the EU will lead by example when it comes to the environment.
WHATS ON WARSAW´S WATCH: The Polish Council Presidency will look at the existing files, including the Waste Framework Directive (WFD), Soil Monitoring Law (SML), Green Claims Directive, Priority Substances Directive, regulation on preventing losses of plastic pellets, End of Life Vehicles (EoLV), One Substance One Assessment (OSOA) package (chemicals). It will also look at new files from the Commission work programme, including the Clean Industrial Deal expected on 26 February, the European Climate Law Revision, the vision on the future of agriculture, circular economy files, water resilience strategy, climate adaptation and climate risk. Expect a busy half-year.
NEW TRIO IN TOWN: Poland’s presidency kicks off a fresh Council presidency trio, with Denmark and Cyprus in line to take over through July 2026. As the first Council Presidency Trio to navigate the EU’s post-election landscape, these three must respond to the new EU Commission’s Political Guidelines and the Strategic Agenda the Heads of State agreed upon and engage with the new EU Parliament. Over the next 18 months, the trio must prove the EU’s resolve in tackling the triple climate, nature and pollution crisis.
Need a cheat sheet on what to work on? We have mapped out a dozen environmental demands to help guide the trio’s way.
📰 IN OTHER EU NEWS
WE ARE OUT THERE: If you’re looking for podcast recommendations for this chilly winter weekend, look no further—we’ve got just what you need. Our Deputy Secretary General and Director for European Governance, Patrizia Heidegger, recently appeared on Frankly Speaking, the podcast on responsible business, where she joined Alberto Alemanno for a discussion on key environmental topics. They covered the implementation of the EU Green Deal and its international dimension, the new Trump administration, and what environmentalists should be prepared to do to bring about the change we need. You can listen to it here!
If you’re lucky enough to speak the language of love (sorry), we recommend tuning into the latest episode of the LIMIT podcast. Our Director for Nature, Health, and Environment, Faustine Bas-Defossez, joined the influencers to discuss agriculture, ecology, and social justice.
She also addressed the threats posed by disinformation and the lack of accountability among certain powerful actors in the food and agriculture sector—many of whom falsely claim to represent farmers. No spoilers but there is also a huge opportunity for the incoming Commission to drive much-needed changes that will ensure a fair and sustainable future for farmers, consumers, and nature. This opportunity comes from the historic ‘Strategic Dialogue’ consensus between farmers, industry, civil society, and consumer groups that “business-as-usual is no longer an option.”
BEFORE LETTING YOU GO: As we step into the first days of 2025, we want to take a moment to express our deepest gratitude to you, our readers. Your support, engagement, and positive feedback have made us proud of this collective project. Each week, we strive to bring you the latest news, in-depth analysis, and key developments shaping our Union’s environmental policies. Thank you for subscribing, reading, sharing, and supporting our vision of a better future for people and the planet we call home💚
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By: Roi Gomez Special thanks to the EEB’s editorial team: Ruby Silk, Ben Snelson, Alberto Vela and this week’s external collaborator: Bich Dao. Editor: Christian Skrivervik.
