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On Monday, November 7, GMF and the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung European Union cohosted a panel discussion at the Representation of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia to the European Union entitled “Transatlantic solutions for a low-carbon economy: Are regional initiatives the best hope for U.S. action?”
The event served as the release of the final report of The Climate Network, a project funded by the European Commission and implemented by the Heinrich Boell Foundation.  The speakers were Vicki Arroyo, Director of the Georgetown Climate Center, Washington, DC, and Artur Runge-Metzger, Director for International and Climate Strategy at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Climate Action. Frank Groneberg, Manager of the Rodenäs Community Solar Park in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, and Thomas Legge, GMF Senior Programme Officer, responded.Ms. Babette Winter from the NRW Representation opened the event and Claude Weinber, Director of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung European Union, moderated the debate. The speakers gave their views on the state of play in the United States and in the EU in the transition towards a low-carbon economy. Ms. Arroyo pointed out that certainly climate actions in the U.S. have to cope with many challenges, but there are also a number of regional activities in place which demonstrate that America should not be underestimated in its effort in the environment issues. From the European side Mr. Runge-Metzger expressed the need for Europe to go ahead in the implementation of the EU Emission Trade System and produce concrete results in order to continue to be an global leader on environment issues. The panelists discussed how the EU could cooperate with state and regional initiatives like the new Californian emissions trading system even in the absence of a U.S. federal cap-and-trade program.
Click here for a podcast with Vicki Arroyo, Executive Director of the Georgetown Climate Center.