The article is republished from LETA buvinzenierusavieniba.lv
To educate and inform the wider public about the European Union’s Green Deal and climate-neutrality policy, the association Latvia’s Climate Neutrality Cluster 2050 has been established, the board member Armands Gūtmanis informed the LETA news agency.
As Gūtmanis explains, the European Green Deal and the EU’s climate policy on emission reduction affect every resident and business, directly or indirectly — regardless of whether they are located in the capital, regional centres, or municipalities. To prepare for the so-called green transition, public awareness is one of the key tasks.
According to him, the association will remain neutral and will not evaluate the climate-policy goals that have already been adopted in all EU member states. “The main question right now is how to achieve these ambitious climate-policy objectives — meaning the risks and opportunities, explaining what changes are expected and how they can be used for the development of every sector. It is also important to understand how to prevent negative risks and threats,” Gūtmanis notes.
To achieve these goals, the association’s board plans to establish support structures of the Latvia’s Climate Neutrality Cluster 2050 across regions and municipalities, and aims to involve a wide range of partners — from local governments and businesses to NGOs, academia, and expert communities. This approach aligns with the core principles of a cluster.
The association will function more as a platform for discussing information and viewpoints rather than as a source of ready-made answers. “Over the past two years, together with our partners, we have already organized more than 20 seminars on the EU Green Deal and emission-control policy issues, so working within the association will be a logical and consistent continuation of the work already begun,” Gūtmanis explains.
Six associations and three private individuals have already joined the Latvia’s Climate Neutrality Cluster 2050, including the Consumer Rights Protection Association, the RISEBA Alumni Association, the Mentors Association, the Latgale Businesswomen’s Association, the For a Green Pierīga Association, and the Latvian Consumer Interest Protection Association.
The board of the association includes Dr. Ilze Ozola, a researcher at the Latvian State Forest Research Institute Silava, as well as Ģirts Fišers, who is developing an innovative biofuel production technology in his company, based on the core principles of the circular economy.
The association also invites other civil-society organizations to join, as this is the way to reach different segments of the public. In the near term, it plans to approach experts from various fields who may be interested in sharing their views on the impact of climate policy, as well as business-sector associations and similar organizations in other EU member states.
In addition to the EU’s goal of climate neutrality and the ambition to achieve negative emissions after 2050, the European Climate Law sets a binding target for member states to reduce net greenhouse-gas emissions — emissions after deducting removals — by at least 55% by 2030 compared to 1990. These are tasks that will affect society as a whole.
