09/11/11 Christiana Figueres Keynotes Eco-Innovation Summit

The Eco-Innovation Summit convened under the timely theme The Road to Durban: Towards an Ambitious UN Deal and Low-Carbon Economy. Christiana Figueres, executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), delivered The 2011 Robert Schuman Lecture and made a passionate call for Europe and the world to re-double its effort to mitigate climate change and lay the foundation for a low-carbon economy. Her speech was complimented by interventions from Harry van Dorenmalen, chairman of IBM Europe, and Harry Verhaar, senior director for energy and climate change at Philips, who both serve as co-chairs of the Lisbon Council’s Eco-Innovators Network.

Watch Christiana Figueres' Message to Eco-Innovators
Watch The 2011 Robert Schuman Lecture by Christiana Figueres in full
Watch Harry van Dorenmalen's Speech at The Eco-Innovation Summit
Watch Harry Verhaar's Speech at The Eco-Innovation Summit
View Photos from The Eco-Innovation Summit on the Lisbon Council flickr Photostream

13/01/11 Commissioner Hedegaard Keynotes 2011 Eco-Innovation Summit

The 2011 Eco-Innovation Summit convened under the timely theme of Cancún and Beyond: Europe’s Next Steps on the Road to a Low-Carbon Economy and Sustainable Future. At the occasion of her first major speech after the COP16, Connie Hedegaard, European commissioner for climate action, delivered The 2011 Jean Jacques Rousseau Lecture and made a compelling call to redouble Europe’s efforts to lead the world towards a low-carbon future. The commissioner’s forceful and vibrant remarks were followed by a fascinating panel discussion led by Jules Kortenhorst, CEO of the European Climate Foundation, and Harry Verhaar, senior director for energy and climate change at Philips.

Watch a Summary of Discussion and Debate at The 2011 Eco-Innovation Summit
Watch Commissioner Hedegaard's Lecture
Watch Harry Verhaar's Intervention
Watch Jules Kortenhorst's Intervention

Press Coverage of The 2011 Eco-Innovation Summit:

EU Kyoto Doubts Go Public, says EurActiv, 13 January
EU May Consider Taxing Energy, Commissioner Says, Bloomberg, 13 January
Chinese Five-Year Plan Will Be Wake-Up Call on Climate, EU Says, EUObserver, 13 January
Hedegaard Calls for EU Energy Taxes, The Parliament Magazine, 14 January
EU Eyes on Climate 'Paradigm Shift' on Tax, Growth and China, EurActiv, 14 January

View Photos from the Eco-Innovation Summit on the Lisbon Council flickr Photostream

31/01/11 e-Brief: Climate, Energy and Competitiveness

On the eve of the European Council on energy and innovation policy, Jules Kortenhorst, CEO of the European Climate Foundation and co-chair of the Lisbon Council's Eco-Innovators Network, issues a far-reaching Eight-Point Programme for addressing the challenge of climate change and raising Europe's competitiveness in a key 21st century economic battlefield. “European leaders must work to understand the changing nature of climate and energy policies - and the opportunity that this shift provides,” Mr. Kortenhorst writes, adding “Concerted action taken at the February European Council can give Europe the lead in the 21st centuries' main fields of competition.” 

Download Climate, Energy and Competitiveness e-Brief

02/06/10 Lykke Friis on Energy and Climate Change

In a stimulating and forward-looking intervention, Lykke Friis, Danish minister for climate and energy presented her government's energy plan to The Lisbon Council Eco-Innovators Network. She also addressed her vision for the EU Energy Action Plan, as well as the Danish EU Presidency in the spring of 2012.

Watch Lykke Friis' interview on The Lisbon Council YouTube Channel

08/04/10 Janez Potočnik Delivers The 2010 Jean Jacques Rousseau Lecture

Janez Potočnik, European commissioner for the environment, delivered The 2010 Jean Jacques Rousseau Lecture and used the occasion to make a compelling call to make resource efficiency one of its cornerstones. His speech on Resource Efficiency as a Driver of Sustainable Growth and Jobs made the case for a new “environmental contract” and argued for the development of new indicators to measure progress and performance on resource efficiency.

Watch The 2010 Jean Jacques Rousseau Lecture Part I
Watch The 2010 Jean Jacques Rousseau Lecture Part II
Watch The 2010 Jean Jacques Rousseau Lecture Part II

Download Commissioner Potočnik's speech

30/10/09 Eco-Innovators Appeal to Copenhagen COP-15

Members of the Lisbon Council Eco-Innovators Network appealed to the Copenhagen COP-15 summit to deliver a deal.

30/10/09 Yvo de Boer Addresses The 2009 Eco-Innovation Summit

Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Yvo de Boer delivered a personal message to The 2009 Eco-Innovation Summit. In a written statement, Mr. de Boer said "you as European eco-innovators can play a significant role in helping the world to shift towards a low-carbon society."

Download Mr. de Boer's message.

30/10/09 European Patent Office to Study Green Innovation

The European Patent Office (EPO) has embarked on a detailed study to map the growth in eco-innovation since the introduction of the Kyoto Protocol on climate change. The move comes ahead of next month's UN climate change summit in Copenhagen and as major industry players line up behind green technology. For more, follow this link: http://www.euractiv.com/en/enterprise-jobs/european-patent-office-study-green-innovation/article-186982

30/10/09 Accessing Credit a Daunting Task for Eco-Innovators

Companies are finding it difficult to get loans for eco-innovation projects because banks lack the technological knowledge to approve them, according to European businesses. For more, follow this link: http://www.euractiv.com/en/innovation/accessing-credit-daunting-task-eco-innovators/article-186910