© Anton Darius / Unsplash
Green policies and laws

How can we fight for a healthy environment and better life for all of us, without also fighting for better laws, a truly sustainable economy and development policies, proper planning for urban and natural spaces, while at the same time addressing environmental crime?

At WWF Greece, the main focus of our work for good policies are climate change and energy, protecting nature, economic and development policies, spatial planning and, of course, environmental legislation. For this reason, we stand against poor legislation, lack of transparency, environmental crime, destructive policies and major polluters, and in parallel, we want to channel money away from activities that destroy the health of the planet and societies.

© Brian J. Skerry / National Geographic Stock / WWF

VICTORIES

We've celebrated many victories: averting many attacks on environmental legislation; the 2011 law on biodiversity; the 2012 Presidential Decree on island wetlands; our victorious battle to move away from lignite; stopping the diversion of the Acheloos River; court wins for forests; victorious mobilisation for coastlines and shores; major alliances for the best European policies for biodiversity.

© Andrea Bonetti / WWF Ελλάς

CHALLENGES

The challenges are even greater. The major open fronts which lie ahead of us are sustainable recovery from the pandemic crisis, enactment of a climate law with a solid scientific foundation, shielding of biodiversity cells, successfully moving away from fossil fuels, just transition of lignite areas to the post-lignite era and, of course, development of a strong environmental democracy.

OUR WORK

We maintain a strong defence for the environment and build a better future for all, through legal actions, proposals and solutions, but also through public mobilisation campaigns! We have the knowledge and the courage to address major threats, such as biodiversity loss, the climate crisis, forest fires and overfishing. To this end, we analyse data and provide solutions for public policies and laws that improve our lives on a living planet.
We have found that Greece has long undermined the prospects for a vibrant economy and sustainable social development by actually encouraging a lack of transparency, clientelism, poor legislation and vague, complicated planning. For this reason, we at WWF Greece also support a society of knowledge, participation and solidarity, formulating and pursuing positive solutions through fully transparent economic policies and public accountability, participation, incentives for sustainable entrepreneurship, legal certainty and clear rules for everyone. We highlight the value of nature and the severity of the climate crisis, through the often invisible connection between economic and environmental risks. 

From the government’s economic policies and the banks that lend businesses money to the businesses themselves, our economic system is the motor force of the human activities that impact the health of our planet. A sustainable economy is one that respects the planet’s limits and helps to keep global warming from exceeding 2o Celsius, while also offering all people, without discrimination, a good quality of life. We support the need for ecological transformation of key sectors of the economy along with full transparency and public accountability of the state and of all enterprises, and we press governments, enterprises and the financial sector to make brave changes which will redirect the state’s economic policies and private cash flows towards the necessary transition to a sustainable future.

Conference: Law under the challenge of the environmental crisis

The international conference on “Law under the challenge of the environmental crisis”, organized by WWF Greece and the scientific association Nomos + Physis, was held on Friday, November 6th, 2020. The conference was held under the patronage of H.E. the President of the Hellenic Republic Ms. Katerina Sakellaropoulou, who addressed the conference. Recent scientific studies have analyzed the consequences of climate change and biodiversity loss on the planet and people’s lives, and show beyond doubt that urgent action is needed. All evidence indicates that the next decades will be critical. But how could the environmental law adapt to and address these constantly changing conditions? The speakers joined the discourse and deliberated on this discussion point.

Together with a large team of partners and volunteer lawyers, we constantly monitor legal developments, analyse bills, express well-founded public criticism; we press ministers and MPs, proposing the best possible solutions. We are always there, on the front line for clear, transparent laws that truly defend common interest: the environment, quality of life, our future. We are there in almost every consultation and bill that is submitted to Parliament and concerns the environment. We submit our opinion and strongly defend it to prevent “laws that seriously damage the environment” and to improve environmental legislation. We may be the only organisation in Greece that continuously reads even the small print, as we know that the greatest improprieties are hidden in the details.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

Without your support, we cannot continue to defend our precious natural environment and ensure a healthy future for humanity and the planet. Join us now!