Fondation EurActiv organised for Wednesday 4 May a lunchtime Stakeholder Workshop on the European Commission’s Flagship Initiative on resource efficiency and the raw material industries. The workshop was organised with the support of the Nickel Institute.

Programme:

• Reliable and transparent indicators are needed to cover the availability of natural resources and how efficiently they are used. How should resource use and efficiency be measured? How will progress be assessed?
• While the Communication published in January does not set any concrete targets, Commissioner Potočnik said these could well be tabled by the end of June. What targets are needed in the field of raw material use? What parameters are particularly relevant for the non-energy extractive industries and metallurgy? Should there be recycling targets?
• Concrete policies will be needed to support this flagship initiative. Should rules be set to improve the design of products and make them easier to re-use and recycle? How can resource efficiency be mainstreamed into legislation, trade agreements and policy strategies such as the raw materials initiative?
• The European Commission is fleshing out its Raw Materials Initiative with a Communication on tackling the challenges in commodity markets and raw materials. How will this plug into the broader resource efficiency agenda to secure sustainable supply of raw materials?

Contributors included:

• Lena EK, MEP
• Reinhard BÜTIKOFER, MEP
• Abraao CARVALHO, Head of Unit Metals, Minerals, Raw Materials, DG ENTR, European Commission
• Stefan MOSER, Unit Strategic Objective Solidarity, Secretariat General, European Commission
• Kevin BRADLEY, President, The Nickel Institute
• Doreen FEDRIGO, Senior Policy Analyst, IEEP

Moderator: Outi ALAPEKKALA, Section Coordinator, EurActiv
Chair: Ross MELZER, Public Affairs Manager, EurActiv

EU policymakers and stakeholders are realising how pressing an issue resource efficiency really is, says German MEP Reinhard Bütikofer. Coordination is however still lacking; member states and EU institutions in particular should learn to sing from the same songbook if the EU Resource Efficiency agenda is to fly.

MEP Lena Ek highlights the sense of urgency which is building up: urgency should however translate in concrete policies and action.

We must retain our material stock, says, Kevin Bradley, President of the Nickel Institute. This can be achieved through different means, including of course recycling. Raw materials are necessary to keep our industries going and foster sustainable innovation.

Doreen Fedrigo of the Institute for European Environmental Policy sees a mentality change as the first step towards enhanced resource efficiency. Policy frameworks, economic models and institutional infrastructures will need to change along with mentality.

Fondation EurActiv organised for Tuesday 3 May a lunchtime Stakeholder Workshop titled “E-Commerce: On the way to a digital single market?“. The workshop was organised with the support of the partnership of Visa Europe.

Programme:

2011 is a crucial year for e-commerce: the European Commission is planning to adopt a Communication on e-commerce in the early summer, while the e-Signature and the e-Commerce Directives are up for revision.
Meanwhile, Commissioner Kroes’s Digital Agenda aims at creating a thriving digital economy in Europe by 2020, powered by a strong ‘digital single market’ in which barriers to the cross-border flow of online services are finally overcome.

• Which provisions under EU law should be reviewed to further enhance online shopping? Which recommendations emerged from the public consultation on the future of electronic commerce conducted by DG MARKT?
• Online security issues as well as misperceptions have affected the development of a single internet market place: is lack of confidence based on perception or reality? How can consumer confidence be enhanced? What is the role for consumer education?
• Only 37% of the EU population buy goods and services online; how can the legal environment be improved to maximise the benefit of the digital revolution for all? Can the target of 50% online shopping penetration be reached by 2015?

Contributors included:

• Detlef ECKERT, Director Lisbon Strategy and Policies for the Information Society, DG INFSO
• Werner STENGG, Head of Unit Online and Postal Services, DG MARKT
• Sandra ALZETTA, Senior Vice-President Innovation and new products, Visa Europe
• Bob SCHMITZ, EU Counsel, Union Luxembourgeoise des Consommateurs
• Stefan KRAWCZYK, Senior Director and Counsel Government Relations, eBay

Moderator: Julian OLIVER, Secretary General, Fondation EurActiv
Chair: Rick ZEDNÍK, CEO, EurActiv

On the issue of E-Commerce – the EU Commission, companies and consumer groups find themselves in full agreement with one another at a recent EurActiv Workshop. See the video below.

According to Detlef Eckert, Director Policy Coordination and Strategy at DG INFSO, the internet has a transformative power to change businesses; our laws should therefore change, too. However, fragmented national legislations are an obstacle to the digital single market.

Werner Stengg of the European Commission’s DG MARKT, outlines the most recent and upcoming developments in policy on e-commerce. Consumer trust is crucial for cross-border online trade, he says.

Consumer confidence is key to the uptake of e-commerce, says Sandra Alzetta of Visa Europe. A balance between security and convenience for consumers should be found.

Bob Schmitz of the Union Luxembourgeoise des Consommateurs calls EU institutions to be facilitators for the challenges and changes brought in by e-commerce.