🌍 SQUARE THE CIRCLE, CLEAN THE MESS

We hope you’re well wherever you are, and that you’ve been enjoying some balmy evenings and birdsong-filled mornings.  

As we mark World Environment Day, we assess Europe’s progress on plastics, highlight the need for polluters to pay for the mess they cause, and take a moment to appreciate Europe’s cities that are taking the climate threat seriously and implementing positive adaptation plans that benefit nature and people. We also celebrate concrete steps to protect European soils – climate champions and the bedrock of our very survival, and document the launch of the EU’s long-awaited roadmap for water resilience, and what’s still needed to protect Europe from future droughts and floods.

On more of a sidenote, it feels like a good moment to focus on you, our loyal readers. Thank you all for joining us on this journey (on average, over 10,000 of you read this every week, and the number keeps growing!). We couldn’t do it without you, and as ever, we’d love to hear your thoughts! Know someone who might like to join this club? Get them to sign up 🙂

Enjoy the read 🌸✨

💚 KEEP LIFE ALIVE! 

RED LINES DRAWN – As the Commission prepares to unveil its next seven-year budget proposal on 16 July, large numbers of Members of the EU Parliament are drawing a clear red line: don’t touch the LIFE Programme. 

MEPs LEADING THE WAY – On Thursday, in a letter to EU Commission President von der Leyen and Commissioners Ribera, Séjourné, Roswall, Sefčovič, Hoekstra and Jørgensen, MEPs led by César Luena voiced strong support for keeping LIFE as a stand-alone, fully dedicated fund for nature and climate. With droughts, floods and wildfires battering Europe, they argue now is the time to scale up – not sideline – environmental investment. 

TIME TO SPEAK UP – As we’ve reported before, there’s growing concern over leaked proposals to absorb LIFE into a broader ‘European Competitiveness Fund’. While discussions are still ongoing, MEPs warn this could undermine the programme’s environmental focus – and dilute its impact. We couldn’t agree more. The next weeks will be crucial – now is the time to speak up. Keep LIFE alive. Keep it effective. And fund it like our shared future depends on it – because it does. 

🌀 TIME TO BEAT PLASTIC POLLUTION AND SQUARE THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY  

This World Environment Day, all eyes were on the global efforts to beat plastic pollution. In two months, governments will come together to negotiate a Global Plastics Treaty. The EU has been a frontrunner in combating plastic pollution. We now expect EU policymakers to set the right tone by pushing for a meaningful and effective Treaty – and then standing by it. 

LEADING BY EXAMPLE – A large share of plastic pollution comes from single-use packaging waste, which ends up in landfills or leaches into the environment (think microplastics), seriously threatening nature and human health. The EU’s new packaging rules can inspire action across the world. And for local and national governments that are going to implement it in the EU, we and the Rethink Plastic alliance have made a guide for how to get it done! 

NO CIRCULAR WASHING – It is also EU Green Week, with the theme “Clean, Competitive & Circular”. But what does a truly circular economy mean? Recycling alone won’t cut it. Only by reducing resource use and promoting reuse can we ensure true circularity, curb waste, and promote sustainable competitiveness, strategic autonomy and innovation. 

HOLDING POLLUTERS ACCOUNTABLE – We follow the journey of used textiles exported to Ghana, where they wear out local second-hand markets and pollute coastal habitats. How do we fix this? Without further delay, the EU must reduce textile overproduction and take responsibility for its unsustainable textile waste, instead of exporting this toxic problem to communities beyond the EU. Spoiler alert: destroying unsold clothes and shoes is NOT a solution. What can we already do today as individuals? Wave goodbye to fast fashion for good. 

CAR-TEL EXPOSED – For years, car manufacturers and their association, ACEA, have run a veritable anti-recycling cartel. As the EU revises the rules for vehicle design and recycling, this scandal proves once again the need for a robust system to hold producers accountable and increase transparency. 

🌱 EU CHARTS PATH FOR SOIL HEALTH AND WATER RESILIENCE 

GOOD NEWS FOR EUROPE’S SOILS! Despite months of disinformation campaigns targeting the EU’s ‘Soil Monitoring Law’, a majority in the EU Parliament’s Environment Committee backed the historic deal reached in April – bringing us closer to Europe’s first-ever soil law. With 60–70% of soils in poor health and no dedicated legal protection, this law is urgently needed. Stay tuned! 

WATER RESILIENCE STRATEGY: A TRICKLE OF WARM WORDS – The EU’s long-awaited Water Resilience Strategy finally launched this week! It’s a step forward to see overdue recognition of PFAS and nutrient pollution, and a nod to nature-based solutions and EU water law enforcement. Water is finally starting to get the attention it deserves. 

BUT WE NEED A TORRENT OF ACTION – Words alone won’t keep rivers flowing or communities safe. Without binding targets, funding, or enforcement, the strategy falls dangerously short. The EU must act boldly – invest in nature, hold polluters accountable, and make water protection central to all policies. See our full joint press release here! 

🌧️ CLIMATE UPDATES 

YET ANOTHER DATE – Months overdue, the EU’s 2040 climate target now has a new release date: 2 July. But concerns are growing that the Commission may water it down under pressure. That’s why this week, 17 civil society groups and farmer representatives urged Commissioner Hoekstra to stand firm and unlock the untapped potential of agri-food systems. We need more climate action across all sectors – not less. 

EUROPEAN CITIES ALREADY ACTING – While EU and national action still lags, it’s encouraging to see cities stepping up. According to the latest EuroCities Monitor, climate remains the top priority for EU mayors. Local climate leadership not only safeguards our future – it offers a chance to redesign cities in harmony with nature, our strongest ally in the fight for a liveable planet.  

👀 IN OTHER NEWS 

EEB TALKS FARMING – Alongside a panel, our policy officer for agriculture this week joined a timely debate on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Our message? To respond to the spiralling climate, nature and pollution crisis, and to ensure the resilience of farming, protect livelihoods and deliver sustainable, healthy food for all, we need to embrace nature – especially in the CAP!  

END THE CAGE AGE – This week in Brussels, we attended a timely event on ‘European Citizens’ Initiatives’ (ECI), and protecting their integrity is so vital for EU democracy. There was a palpable agreement and a shared frustration between most speakers and the audience: we expect the voices and demands of citizens to be acted upon – ignoring them will not make them disappear.  

🔮 IMAGINING A FUTURE BEYOND MINING  

MINE, BABY, MINE? Just a day before World Environment Day, the EU Commission announced 13 new “Strategic Projects” outside the EU under the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA), sparking serious concerns. With little transparency, no clear selection criteria, and weak safeguards, the EU is putting supply chains ahead of social and environmental justice. Controversial projects like Serbia’s Jadar lithium mine – previously shelved after mass protests – are being revived without public consent, signalling a troubling return to extractivist politics under a green gloss. 

DEGROWTH IS HERE TO STAY – What’s missing is a rethink of Europe’s material footprint. A truly sustainable strategy would focus on sufficiency, reduced demand, and longer product lifespans – not endless extraction. Strategic autonomy must not come at the expense of Indigenous rights, ecosystems, or democracy. If the EU is serious about environmental justice, it must scale down, not dig deeper. Explore more in this upcoming event series. If you’re in Brussels and you like cinema, sign up to the EEB’s screening next week of Scars of Growth. 

🧠 THE DOPAMINE HIT 

A weekly dose of good news to brighten your inbox: 

— Farmers step up for migrating birds: Agricultural communities are playing a key role in protecting vital habitats for migratory birds. Read more here. 

— Brontë country gets official protection: In the UK, the 1,274-hectare Bradford Pennine Gateway, linking eight nature sites, will become a national nature reserve. Read more here 

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By: Ben Snelson. Special thanks to the EEB’s editorial team: Alberto Vela, Ruby Silk and Roi Gomez. Editor: Christian Skrivervik