President Higgins to address European Advisory Councils on Environment
Date: Mon 26th Oct, 2020 | 16:02
President Higgins will deliver the keynote address at the annual conference of the European network of advisory councils on environment and sustainable development (EEAC Network), hosted by the Irish National Economic and Social Council (NESC).
Entitled ‘Delivering a Just Transition for All: Principles, Policies and Practice’, the conference will focus on how principles of justice, fairness, equality and equity can shape policies and practices to deliver a just transition to sustainable production.
Throughout his terms in office, President Higgins has stressed the grave implications of the impending climate crisis, warning, as he did in a speech to the UN General Assembly, that the climate crisis is “moving so much faster than the efforts we are expending or enlisting to address it.”
In his speech to the EEAC/NESC conference, President Higgins will expand on the keynote addresses he delivered to this month’s OECD conference on ‘Confronting Planetary Emergencies’ and to the Engineers Ireland annual conference, where he outlined the connections we need to make between economy, social cohesion and ecology, in a new and balanced paradigm of policy.
Reflecting on the concept of ‘Just Transition’, President Higgins will argue that systemic change is urgently needed, and will advocate policy approaches that can develop fairness, participation and sustainable development.
In his speech, the President will suggest that major transitions in our society and economy must be approached with the ‘Just Transition’ concept in mind, thus ensuring that those most vulnerable are protected and empowered, thus ensuring their meaningful participation in the change processes.