EC Affirms Signing of Declaration on Green and Digital Transformation
EC announced that 24 member states, along with Norway and Iceland, have signed a declaration, at the online Digital Day 2021, to accelerate the use of green digital technologies for the benefit of environment. The signatories will deploy and invest more green digital technologies to achieve climate-neutrality and accelerate the green and digital transitions in priority sectors in Europe. The key areas of action include the promotion of green cloud, artificial Intelligence and blockchain technologies, sustainable hardware, green public procurement, and support for green tech startups and small and medium size enterprises (SMEs).
The signatories of the declaration on a green and digital transformation of the EU will take action, at the national level, in the following key areas:
- Make data available in common European data spaces
- Lead on energy-efficient artificial intelligence solutions
- Support smart and sustainable mobility systems
- Promote eco-designed products and accessible digital public services
- Contribute to the use of a climate-neutral, sustainable and energy-efficient European cloud and blockchain infrastructure
- Propose permits for deployment of networks and data centers that comply with the highest environmental sustainability standards
- Make green public procurement the default option
- Use EU funding programs and private equity to support European green tech startups and SMEs
The signatories will regularly assess their progress made and feed it into the ongoing monitoring activities of EC. They will also contribute to a shared repository of best practices and experiences to implement the declaration. In addition, 26 CEOs from the information and communications technology (ICT) sector joined the "European Green Digital Coalition," committing, on behalf of their companies, to significantly reduce their carbon footprint by 2030 and to become climate-neutral by 2040. The companies that have joined the European Green Digital Coalition include Accenture, IBM, Microsoft, and SAP SE. Solutions include investing in the development of more energy- and material-efficient digital technologies and working with expert organizations to measure and monitor the net environmental impact of green digital solutions. This also includes a commitment to co-create deployment guidelines of green digital solutions, along with other industry leaders, to accelerate the transition to sustainability of sectors.
Related Links
- Press Release on Digital Day 2021
- News on Green and Digital Transformation
- News on European Green Digital Coalition
Keywords: Europe, EU, Banking, Securities, Sustainable Finance, Climate Change Risk, ESG, Green Technology, Cloud, Artificial Intelligence, EC
Featured Experts
Michael Denton, PhD, PE
Dr. Denton provides industry leadership in the quantification of sustainability issues, climate risk, trade credit and emerging lending risks. His deep foundations in market and credit risk provide critical perspectives on how climate/sustainability risks can be measured, communicated and used to drive commercial opportunities, policy, strategy, and compliance. He supports corporate clients and financial institutions in leveraging Moody’s tools and capabilities to improve decision-making and compliance capabilities, with particular focus on the energy, agriculture and physical commodities industries.
Related Articles
ESAs Issue Multiple Regulatory Updates for Financial Sector Entities
The three European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) issued a letter to inform about delay in the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) mandate, along with a Call for Evidence on greenwashing practices.
ISSB Makes Announcements at COP27; IASB to Propose IFRS 9 Amendments
The International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) of the IFRS Foundations made several announcements at COP27 and with respect to its work on the sustainability standards.
IOSCO Prioritizes Green Disclosures, Greenwashing, and Carbon Markets
The International Organization for Securities Commissions (IOSCO), at COP27, outlined the regulatory priorities for sustainability disclosures, mitigation of greenwashing, and promotion of integrity in carbon markets.
EBA Finalizes Methodology for Stress Tests, Issues Other Updates
The European Banking Authority (EBA) issued a statement in the context of COP27, clarified the operationalization of intermediate EU parent undertakings (IPUs) of third-country groups
OSFI Sets Out Work Priorities and Reporting Updates for Banks
The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) published an annual report on its activities, a report on forward-looking work.
APRA Finalizes Changes to Capital Framework, Issues Other Updates
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) finalized amendments to the capital framework, announced a review of the prudential framework for groups.
BIS Hub and Central Banks Conduct CBDC and DeFI Pilots
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Hubs and several central banks are working together on various central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilots.
ECB Sets Deadline for Banks to Meet Its Climate Risk Expectations
The European Central Bank (ECB) published the results of its thematic review, which shows that banks are still far from adequately managing climate and environmental risks.
ESAs, ECB, & EC Issue Multiple Regulatory Updates for Financial Sector
Among its recent publications, the European Banking Authority (EBA) published the final standards and guidelines on interest rate risk arising from non-trading book activities (IRRBB)
EC Adopts Final Rules Under CRR, BRRD, and Crowdfunding Regulation
The European Commission (EC) recently adopted regulations with respect to the calculation of own funds requirements for market risk, the prudential treatment of global systemically important institutions (G-SIIs)
