CEE Bankwatch Network

⚙️ [New tool] #Biodiversity in Europe is rapidly declining, making it more important than ever to focus on nature protection and restoration while halting harmful projects. 🍃 We often become aware of projects planned for our localities that pose a risk to #nature. But how can we stop them? By identifying and reporting these projects. In doing so, we can all act as watchdogs and help prevent future harm. That’s why we’ve created a harmful project documenting tool designed to help you collect important information.  If you become aware of a nature-damaging project, you can now:  💠 read our step-by-step guide;  💠 download our harmful project documenting tool to help you gather crucial information;  💠 connect with other individuals or groups that share similar concerns; and  plan your next steps. 🖇️ Discover our new harmful project documenting tool and act #ForNature: https://lnkd.in/dXHkzz8y

Nearly three years since Russia’s full-scale invasion, we continue to stand with Ukraine, advocating for a green, sustainable and inclusive reconstruction that places civil society at the heart of the country’s rebuild. Here are the highlights of our work: 🇺🇦 Community-led reconstruction: At the 2024 Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin, we emphasised the importance of involving community and civil society and ensuring municipalities and local stakeholders have their say in shaping the country’s reconstruction. 💡 Knowledge sharing: We organised study tours for Ukrainian mayors and partners, sharing insights on community development and the just transition. 🤝 Advocating for sustainable investments: Through active engagement with international financial institutions and the EU’s Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations, we lobbied for improved public participation guidelines and more sustainable investments in Ukraine. 

This year, we’ve been pushing Europe to choose a greener, more sustainable future, urging stakeholders to ditch the idea that fossil gas is a viable solution. Here are our major wins:  🌍 Exposing Azerbaijan’s dirty energy plans: In collaboration with Urgewald, we released the report ‘SOCAR – Azerbaijan’s Fossil Fuel Proxy’, highlighting the country’s plans to ramp up fossil gas production and its troubling human rights abuses and corruption. The  exposé, covered by The Guardian, amplifies ongoing calls for climate justice ahead of COP29. 🌿  Halting gas expansion in Hungary: Our Hungarian member group MTVSZ secured a major victory by pressuring regional authorities to conduct a full environmental impact assessment for new gas extraction projects in the Békés region. This critical step will ensure the cumulative environmental impacts of these projects are fully understood. ⚖️ Challenging the Tuzla–Podisor pipeline: Bankwatch Romania took legal action against the Tuzla–Podisor pipeline, filing a preliminary complaint with the Romanian energy ministry. This is just the first step in our fight to stop this damaging fossil- fuel project. We remain committed to prioritising sustainable, renewable energy solutions over fossil gas expansion. 🚫💨 

🌍  As 2024 draws to a close, we want to extend a heartfelt thanks to our loyal followers and allies. Your unwavering support has made our work possible and incredibly rewarding. And despite the challenges of a record-breaking warm year and the ongoing climate crisis, we remain hopeful. By harnessing the power of smart public policies and responsible resource use, we can create a fairer, greener future – one that upholds human rights and respects the collective well-being of ourselves and the planet. 🌱💪 Thank you for standing with us. Let’s make the world sustainable for generations to come. 🙏 

When it comes to sustainable energy solutions, we’ve been leading the charge to transform district heating systems across central and eastern Europe. Here’s how we made a real impact this year: 🔥 Tuzla 3 thermal power plant, Bosnia and Herzegovina: We successfully advocated for a reduction in the capacity of Tuzla’s proposed switch from coal to biomass  from 100 to 50 megawatt thermal. As part of an EBRD-supported feasibility study, we’re advising on renewable energy alternatives like heat pumps and heat storage, potentially even in underground salt mines! 💡 Žabljak, Montenegro: Our advocacy efforts led to the municipality receiving technical assistance to rethink its district heating plans. The result?  A four-fold reduction in investment costs and heat pump solutions being preferred over biomass. 📊 A new methodology for sustainable local heating and cooling: We’re developing an actionable methodology that will guide regions transitioning to renewable energy with the help of our national campaigners across central and eastern Europe.  💪 We’re proud to be at the heart of these critical changes, championing smart, sustainable and community-focused solutions. 

🌍💰 Ever wondered how international financial institutions fund climate projects? Curious about where public money ends up? How it impacts nature, human rights, and the transition to a net-zero economy? 🌱 We’ve got you covered! 🎧 Tune into the Bankwatch Podcast for a deep-dive into the world of public financing, with insightful contributions from across central and eastern Europe and beyond! Follow us on Spotify or your favourite podcast platform and join our growing group of listeners from over 30 countries: https://lnkd.in/dD5HM4Z2

📢 Join us for our webinar 'Funding energy communities: opportunities and bottlenecks' dedicated to the topic of energy communities and their role in achieving the priorities of the European Union, such as the European Green Deal and Cohesion Policy. 💻📱🎧    Register via link 👇🏻    https://lnkd.in/dqdNPbnS

🐞 How is nature conservation progressing in the Western Balkans compared to other European countries? Why are so many beautiful and unique rivers in the region still unprotected? And will the new target recently set by the Bern Convention make a difference? 🎧 Listen to the latest episode of the Bankwatch Podcast with our own Andrey Ralev and ProNatura’s Friedrich Wulf: https://lnkd.in/daX5sQSs

In November, we organised a knowledge exchange trip to Prague for our colleagues working on urban mobility from Green Alternative and Urban Initiative Peshcom. Here are some highlights and outcomes from the event:  🤝 We met with local stakeholders and learned about the challenges and successes of Prague’s public transport system.   💡 We shared our own achievements, discussed our future plans, exchanged knowledge and ideas with partners and member groups, and identified opportunities for support and collaboration.    🌌 We addressed the issue of shrinking civic space in Kyrgyzstan and Georgia and explored ways of responding effectively.    Follow us for regular updates on our future work together! 

🌱 From high-level policy discussions to grassroots campaigns, we’ve been at the forefront of driving meaningful change on the just transition. Here are some of our key achievements:   ✅ We mobilised 42 civil society organisations to advocate for the future of the Just Transition Fund, amplifying calls for a fairer and more sustainable future.   ✅ We connected with over 700 stakeholders, including youth groups, non-governmental organisations and businesses, through capacity- building events and roundtable discussions.   ✅ Our ‘Follow the Money’ briefings sparked crucial debates on transformative investments in eight central and eastern European countries.  ✅ Our active role in monitoring committees led to positive changes to Just Transition Fund proposal calls. We were also instrumental in halting environmentally harmful projects like the water management plan in Eastern Wielkopolska. As we enter 2025, we remain committed to pushing for impactful policies, meaningful investments, and a just, sustainable future for all. 🚀  #JustTransition #BankwatchWrapped