Kostas Chrysogonos asks Neven Mimica about development & environment

SYRIZA & GUE/NGL MEP Kostas Chrysogonos asking the commissioner designate for European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica about biodiversity. Below is the translation: Mr. Commissioner, in 2001 states of the UN agreed they achieve until 2015 eight (8) international developmental goals or goals of the Millennium as they were named. However in the most critical sector, that is to say the guarantee of environmental viability and more specifically the interception of losses in the biodiversity not only there was no progress, but we see that the world emissions of carbon dioxide have increased by 46% from 1990 until today while more and more types of life are going extinct. Given the imminent beginning of negotiations on the world frame for the period after 2015, I would like to ask you which positions do you intend to take in order that the 21st century will not be characterized as the period of extinct life? Answer, Neven Nimica: “Yes, indeed. One of the leftovers or failures of the Millennium development goals framework was most prominently or most tragically seen in the area of an environment and climate change and biodiversity in the world. So exactly, identifying this problem with Millennium goals that are mostly focused on economic development, let’s say it in short. Therefore the idea, especially in Rio+20 Conference has been developed to go much, much more in a focused way into a sustainable development, in all of three pillars of the sustainable. And we are right there now. We have to build the biodiversity issues, or the environmental issues very much into, overall, sustainable agenda of our policies. What we can achieve in that regard is only if we keep this synergy and coherence of all three sustainability concepts of the economic, social and environmental development. I would say that in terms of biodiversity indeed, many species are endangered, even land and forests are endangered and Europe should not only follow, but lead some of the initiatives that would bring for instance wildlife at the forefront of our joint sustainable action. So, this is what we shall do, this is the way that we shall lead.”