- Title: Climate activists call for green coronavirus recovery on margins of EU summit
- Date: 17th July 2020
- Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JULY 17, 2020) (REUTERS) CLIMATE ACTIVISTS FROM CAMPAIGN GROUP AVAAZ ARRANGING MONEY BAGS AND FAKE EURO NOTES IN FRONT OF EUROPEAN COMMISSION FOR PROTEST FAKE EURO NOTES VARIOUS OF CLIMATE ACTIVISTS ARRANGING NOTES ACTIVISTS STANDING WITH SIGNS READING (English): "OUR MONEY OUR FUTURE", ACTIVIST THROWING FAKE NOTES IN THE AIR ACTIVISTS STANDING WITH SIGNS FAKE EURO NOTES (SOUNDBITE) (English) CAMPAIGN DIRECTOR AT AVAAZ, IN CHARGE OF CLIMATE CAMPAIGN, PASCAL VOLLENWEIDER, SAYING: "Corona has been, is, a terrible crisis, many people have lost their lives and many people have lost their jobs. We're looking into an economic recession and people are looking to their leaders to put money there and kick start their economies. So now they have a choice: do they spend the money on the new technologies, the clean technologies, and get us to a green future, or do they prop up the dirty polluters from the past? This is truly a trial of fire, it's a challenge of leadership and I hope our leaders are ready to take the decisions they need to do." EUROPEAN COUNCIL VARIOUS OF POLICE AT ROAD BLOCK IN FRONT OF COUNCIL BUILDING
- Embargoed: 31st July 2020 09:30
- Keywords: EU summit climate change coronavirus investment protest
- Location: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
- City: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
- Country: Belgium
- Topics: Environment
- Reuters ID: LVA001CN75LQF
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:Campaigners piled sacks of fake banknotes in front of the European Commission in Brussels on Friday (July 17) as they called on leaders gathering for a summit not to channel coronavirus recovery funds into sectors responsible for climate change.
The leaders are discussing the EU's next long-term budget, worth around 1 trillion euros, plus a proposed 750 billion euro recovery fund of grants and loans aimed at rebuilding virus-hit economies.
The European Commission, the bloc's executive arm, has said the economic destruction wreaked by the virus would not shake its plans to make the EU "climate neutral" by 2050, and promised that recovery spending would drive green growth.
But some researchers have said weak safeguards mean the funds may prop up polluting sectors.
Activist group Avaaz said more than 1.3 million people had signed a petition calling for the money to be spent on a "green and just recovery", calling on leaders to rule out giving funds for development of fossil fuel, airports, petrol or diesel powered cars and the textiles industry.
"They have a choice: do they spend the money on the new technologies, the clean technologies, and get us to a green future, or do they prop up the dirty polluters from the past?" climate change campaign director at Avaaz Pascal Vollenweider told Reuters.
(Production: Johanna Geron, Johnny Cotton) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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