LIFE and climate change mitigation

Climate change is one of the major global challenges. Science has shown that recent climate changes have had widespread impacts on human and natural systems. The European Union is at the forefront of global efforts to address this challenge. The transition to a low-carbon society is an essential underpinning of Europe 2020 – Europe’s growth strategy. At the heart of the flagship initiative 'resource-efficient Europe' is the 2050 roadmap for moving to a competitive low-carbon economy.

The EU is also contributing proactively to the conclusion of an ambitious global climate agreement in 2015. Most recently, EU leaders agreed on a new integrated climate change and energy framework for 2030. This sets more stringent targets for reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, increased use of renewables and greater energy-efficiency. These will be combined with a revision of the EU emissions trading system and more reliable and transparent governance to ensure climate change mitigation targets are met.

Since 1992, the LIFE programme has mobilised more than €600 million in favour of climate change mitigation. As this publication shows, in so doing LIFE has already contributed to the shift towards a resource efficient, low-carbon and climate-resilient economy by demonstrating effective, cost effective and inclusive ways of mitigating the effects of climate change across a range of key sectors, including energy, agriculture, transport and enterprise. One of LIFE’s particular strengths is its ability to support practical and replicable solutions developed at local level, whether the individual municipality or the individual farm.

The new LIFE climate action sub-programme seeks to build on this, increasing the public and private sector’s capacity to integrate and mainstream climate objectives into everyday practice, as well as supporting better climate governance at all levels. It is clear that the LIFE programme has been, and will continue to be, an important source of funding for actions that help us achieve the goal of creating a resilient and low-emission energy Union with a forward-looking climate change policy.