Climate change, the demographic challenge, increasingly vulnerable global markets and changing patterns of international competition have resulted into a resurging debate about solidarity, societal cohesion and social justice. Faced with these dramatic changes Europe is called upon to explore innovative models of sustainable growth and new ways of enhancing the well-being of its people.

Bertelsmann Stiftung and the World Future Council are jointly organising a series of panels dealing with the issue of sustainability from an EU perspective. Under the theme “Rethinking Well-being: How to keep Europe on the Sustainability Track”, the panels aim to spur the debate about necessary paradigm shifts with EU policy-makers, economic opinion leaders and civil society.

The next and last panel, entitled "Cutting the edge – How to realign the EU Sustainable Development Strategy”, will take place on 23 February 2010. After having challenged the traditional GDP growth paradigm in the first panel, and having discussed potential ways to implement a new “Living Economy” paradigm, the last panel entitled “Cutting the Edge: How to realign the EU Sustainable Development Strategy” will assess suggested structures of and ideas for a future EU Sustainable Development Strategy (SDS). The panellists will debate ways to dovetail the EU’s future growth and jobs strategy (“post-Lisbon strategy”) and the EU Sustainable Development Strategy. A main question will be how the EU SDS can best contribute to a rapid shift to a low-carbon economy including sustainable consumption patterns while contributing to a socially sustainable Europe at the same time.

Panellists include:

- Carlos Bastarreche Sagües (Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Spain to the EU)

- Jo Leinen (MEP, Chairman of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, European Parliament)

- Conny Reuter (President, Social Platform)

- Anders Wijkman (former MEP, Chair of CEPS Task Force “A green budget for a sustainable future”)

For further information

 
Bertelsmann Stiftung                                                                                                 thomas.fischer@bertelsmann-stiftung.de
(Thomas Fischer, Executive Director Brussels office)        
www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/bruessel

World Future Council
info.eu@worldfuturecouncil.org
www.worldfuturecouncil.org