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HZ has collaborated with StopGlobalWarming.eu to promote the European Citizens’ Initiative which aims to fight climate change by putting a price on CO2.  The revenue collected from the carbon pricing policy will be used to cut labor taxes and to support a low-carbon future.

The ECI (European Citizens Initiative) is a participatory democracy instrument that allows you to shape the Europe that you want, suggesting concrete legal changes. It’s much more than a petition: it must be launched by a minimum of 7 EU citizens, living in at least 7 different member States. If the initiative gathers 1.000.000 signatures in 1 year, the ECI is presented to the European Commission and debated in European Parliament.

You have the power to shape a green and sustainable Europe!

During the last century, global warming has increased by more than 1°C: in June 2020 Siberia reached 38°C, fires in California and Australia in 2019 put life in danger, Greta Thunberg's messages raised awareness in public opinion and mobilised millions of people, not only the youth.  Oil prices reached historic lows. Without an adequate taxation, we risk giving significant advantages to polluters, at the expense of those who choose clean energy.

THE IDEA

A European Carbon Pricing, a price on CO2 emissions. According to 27 Nobel Laureates, 5.000 economists and 11.000 scientists, it is the most effective and cost-effective way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions endangering the environment and to fight climate change.

European institutions also recently put Carbon Pricing on their agenda to efficiently fight climate change. The German Presidency of the Council of the EU is willing to propose a moderate minimum Carbon Price and to expand it to all sectors, beyond the European Emission Trading System. The Von der Leyen Commission included a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism in its proposal for the European Green Deal. A bottom-up push by citizens through StopGlobalWarming.eu would put European institutions in a much stronger position to overcome the resistance of some Member States.

Main objectives:

Our proposal aims to introduce a minimum price on C02 emissions, starting from 50€ per CO2 tonne from 2020 up to 100€ by 2025. At the same time, the proposal shall abolish the existing system of free allowances to EU polluters and introduce a border adjustment mechanism on non-EU imports, in such a way as to compensate for the lower pricing on CO2 emissions in the exporting country. The higher revenue deriving from carbon pricing shall be allocated to European policies that support energy saving and the use of renewable sources, and to the reduction of taxation on lower incomes.”

THE PLAN

It is much more than a petition: 1 million signatures on www.StopGlobalWarming.eu by 22nd July 2021 would allow the ECI to enter the European institutions. A discussion with the European Commission and a public hearing in the European Parliament will then be organised. Both institutions can follow up on the initiative based on their respective competences.

Sign the petition now on https://www.stopglobalwarming.eu/.