Building a New Social and Environmental Pact
One of the upcoming priorities of the new Commission is the review of EU’s Single Market – much anticipated by the Letta-report “Much more than a market”. A new strategy for the Single Market is indeed long overdue. We have entered an era in which its rules have to change in response to multiple crises – ecological and social. The concrete approach can therefore not tinker at the margins. Eliminating barriers, improving rules and making governance more efficient – as put simply by the EU leaders – can resolve some current issues, but these rules of thumb are in no way proposing the paradigm shift that we need in order to answer current questions in Europe.
New realities call us to think transformative and to refocus: away from price, towards quality of product, quality of work and quality of life; a quality that is built on environmental and social sustainability. Just like with the conception of the Single Market in the 1980s and 1990s, a pact, subscribed by many, will be required to give this shape. With this panel, we will explore the main pillars of such a new social and environmental pact. How can the EU redefine its offer to citizens, and what can instigate a new compromise between actors that understand the current challenges? Speakers will give insights from their own fields of work. Expect state of the art thinking on social justice, eco-social policies, the role of civil society and social dialogue in giving shape to our economy, and what this pact should look like from a global perspective.
Speakers:
Philippe Pochet, Associate Professor Sant’Anna, GEF Fellow, former Director General ETUI
Philippe Pochet is a political scientist. He was Director of the Observatoire social européen (OSE) for over 15 years and then General Director of the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI) from 2008 to July 2023. He is also Professor at the Catholic University of Louvain. He is currently Visiting Professor at the College of Europe in Bruges and Affiliate Professor at the Sant’Anna College. In November 2023 he was Ciampi Visiting Scholar at the Scuola Normale Superiore (SNS) in Florence. He is Fellow at GEF.
Sofia Martinez, Global Policy Director, Green Economy Coalition
Sofia Martinez is a senior expert in climate change, energy, sustainable finance, green economy, policy-making and international cooperation, boasting two decades of experience engaging with governments, international organizations, private sector, civil society and communities across a range of sectors, from climate policy, or just transition to innovative financial instruments in the EU, Asia, Africa and Latin America. With a background in Chemical Engineering and Environmental Technology, she started her career in research on efficient cooling and the impact of climate change on wetlands. As a public official, she made significant contributions at the European Commission (DG INTPA), the Spanish Energy Agency (IDAE) and the Spanish Office for Climate Change, where she played a pivotal role in policy, planning, regulatory initiatives, climate diplomacy, capacity building or programme delivery. She led large teams and projects, working in international consultancy and bringing a holistic perspective on global value chains, intersections and local impacts and engagement. She possesses a profound working knowledge of EU policies and instruments, development cooperation, the United Nations system and the international climate change negotiations, as well as of G20, G7, multilateral institutions or development banks.
Juliana Wahlgren, Director, European Anti-Poverty Network
Juliana Santos Wahlgren is the European Anti-Poverty Network (EAPN)’s Director. She is an expert on social rights, gender, anti-racism and anti-discrimination at both EU and Member States Level. She has extensively covered issues related to poverty, migration, integration and strategic litigation. In November 2020, she was appointed to the EC Expert Group on the views of Migrants on Migration, Integration and Asylum.
Mary Murphy, Professor of Sociology at Maynooth University
Mary Murphy is Professor in the Department of Sociology, Maynooth University, with research interests in ecosocial welfare, gender, care and social security, globalisation and welfare states, and power and civil society. She recently authored Creating an Ecosocial Future (Policy Press, 2023). An active advocate for social justice and gender equality, she was appointed to the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (2013-217), is currently a member of the Council of State in Ireland, Chair of Oxfam Ireland, and a member of EU and global academic and practitioner networks
Moderator: Taube Van Melkebeke, Policy Manager, Green European Foundation
