On 22–23 April, over 400 delegates gathered at the Austria Centre Vienna for EUConvention's Green Economy Summit 2024. The event brought together environment ministers, European Commission officials, industry leaders, climate scientists and representatives from environmental organisations across 24 member states. Here is a summary of the main points of discussion and the conclusions that emerged.
The European Green Deal: Progress and Friction
The opening plenary addressed the state of the European Green Deal, roughly four years after its launch. The assessment was mixed. Speakers acknowledged genuine progress on renewable energy deployment, with several delegates noting that the EU's 2030 renewable targets now appear achievable. However, there was broad agreement that the industrial transformation element of the Green Deal — the shift towards clean manufacturing, circular economy practices and sustainable supply chains — is lagging behind.
A recurring concern was the regulatory burden on small and medium-sized enterprises. Several industry representatives argued that the reporting requirements associated with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive are disproportionate for smaller firms. Others countered that transparency is a prerequisite for meaningful change and that exemptions would undermine the framework's effectiveness.
Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism
A dedicated session on the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) drew one of the largest audiences of the summit. The CBAM's transitional phase began in October 2023, and the session examined early implementation experience.
Importers of steel, aluminium and cement reported significant administrative challenges, particularly around emissions data from third-country suppliers. Several delegates questioned whether the Commission's guidance on data collection was sufficiently detailed, and there were calls for additional technical assistance for importers in the initial years.
On the policy substance, there was consensus that CBAM is a necessary instrument but debate about its scope. Environmental groups argued for an expansion to cover additional sectors and downstream products. Industry representatives cautioned against moving too quickly, arguing that predictability and stability are more important than breadth at this stage.
Green Finance
The green finance session examined the EU Taxonomy's role in directing investment towards sustainable activities. Speakers from the financial sector described the Taxonomy as a useful but imperfect tool. Its criteria for assessing which economic activities qualify as "sustainable" were praised for their rigour but criticised for their complexity.
A point of particular discussion was the treatment of natural gas and nuclear energy within the Taxonomy. The political compromise that included both under certain conditions remains contentious, and several delegates argued that it has undermined the Taxonomy's credibility with environmental groups and some institutional investors.
Just Transition
The summit's closing plenary focused on the concept of a "just transition" — ensuring that the shift to a green economy does not disproportionately burden workers and communities that depend on carbon-intensive industries. Speakers from coal-dependent regions in Poland, the Czech Republic and Germany described the practical challenges of economic diversification and workforce retraining.
There was broad agreement that the Just Transition Fund, while welcome, is insufficient in scale. Several delegates called for greater coordination between EU-level funding and national industrial strategies, and for more attention to the social dimensions of transition planning.
Looking Ahead
The Green Economy Summit will return in 2025, this time in Brussels, on 18–19 March. We intend to build on the 2024 discussions with a particular focus on industrial decarbonisation pathways and the relationship between trade policy and climate ambition. We will share programme details in due course.
We are grateful to our partners — the Europatica Institute, the Nordic Policy Centre and the Rhine-Danube Forum — for their contributions to the programme, and to all delegates for the quality and candour of the discussions.