Europe must lead on climate action

Food not fuel

Oxfam stunt in front of the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium. 

The climate crisis is the greatest threat to humanity and to our planet. Hundreds of millions of people across the world are already suffering as a result of the climate crisis. Our energy production and consumption model are at the heart of the climate crisis.

The EU has committed to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. 

Yet, with current policies they will miss that target. Time is running out: the transition to clean energy is one of the key transitions that can no longer be postponed. Nor can this be accomplished without linking the transition to social justice. In 2022, over 750 million people worldwide lived without access to electricity. In 2022, over 41 million Europeans were unable to keep their homes adequately warm – that is nearly four times the population of Belgium. Since then, the situation has worsened.

A significant share of emission reductions is achieved through policies that rely on using more and more land to make bioenergy. Such land-hungry ‘net zero’ policies are a threat to global food security - they could result in an 80 percent increase in food prices and more hunger. This danger is now compounded by the war in Ukraine which has seen food prices spike to record highs.

Before 2050, Europe must entirely decarbonize all sectors of its economy

Europe must also reduce its energy demand, shift entirely to sustainable renewable energy, eliminate all fossil-fuel subsidies and support for crop-based biofuels. 

To help low-income countries increase their climate targets and cope with the climate crisis, it is also critical that European countries scale up their climate finance to support these countries in adapting to the unstoppable effects of the climate crisis.

Spark Climate Action Program

Oxfam also runs climate action programs for young climate activists to turn up the heat on the EU’s climate inaction. This training consists of an online training program and a face-to-face event in Brussels for young climate activists interested in learning about EU and global climate policies.