Malta is looking at an urgent and massive opportunity to completely change the way we live, the way we travel, the way we do business and the way we guarantee a legacy for our children. But we need to act today.
At the tail end of 2020, while the world’s attention was fixed on the US election, the roll out of a coronavirus vaccine and the uncertainty of the markets, EU mandarins quietly agreed on the biggest ever economic stimulus package to be financed through their institutions.
It was a historic moment: EU leaders signed off on the largest EU budget in the history of time and, for the first time, allocated €540 billion specifically to make Europe greener, more digital, more sustainable and safer.
What this means in practice is that, for the next seven years, there are billions of euros available in funding and grants to businesses and governments in every member state – Malta included – to make our environments healthier, safer and more sustainable.
It might sound like a lot of money, which it is, but the cost of not acting on this right now is considerably higher.
Unchecked climate change and continued environmental degradation is going to lead to catastrophic consequences on a human, economic and environmental scale.
We’re talking about an extra half a million pollution-related deaths per year. Extreme heat will lead to drought, conflict and mass population displacements, increasing migration flows out of places like Africa and the Middle East. Food prices will rise exponentially and the global supply chain will be burdened like never before. People will die, the world’s economy will suffer and our quality of life – as well as our children’s quality of life – will deteriorate rapidly.
The EU recognises this in more than just academic terms. That’s why it has finally put its money where its mouth is in a very substantial way.
The European Green Deal is the EU’s commitment to make Europe carbon-neutral by 2050. It correlates perfectly with the five-pillared economic plan Prime Minister Robert Abela announced in August of last year: carbon neutrality in Malta by 2050.
Surprisingly to many long-time European observers, the EU has gone further and quicker than anyone might have predicted: they have made massive amounts of funding available right away to make these goals a reality.
Unchecked climate change and continued environmental degradation is going to lead to catastrophic consequences- Gayle Kimberley
In short, Malta now has no excuse not to implement, immediately and with urgency, the projects that will not only make our country a first-class case study in running a green economy but will guarantee the safety of the planet in our lifetime and for the lifetimes of generations to come.
And when I say, Malta has no excuse, I mean every person in Malta, not just the institutions of bureaucracy or our government departments. In fact, a commitment to make this change depends on business owners and workers from all sections of the economy taking the reins.
If you are involved in the construction, tourism, infrastructure, energy, agricultural, architectural, retail, digital or innovation sectors, then support in the form of funding, grants and expertise is available to you for all of your projects that aim to reduce your carbon footprint and make your operations greener and more sustainable.
There is a serious number of resources available to Maltese businesses to embrace this green and digital revolution. The European Union wants to make sustainable living a reality in all member states and it’s ready to pay for it.
But we only have seven years to make this happen – the EU has not hinted at what its plans or budgets are beyond that point.
What Malta needs is a fully comprehensive ‘Green Maltese Economy’, with its main focus on the following areas.
Technology: all Maltese businesses should be making investments in environmentally-friendly technologies or green or digital technologies.
Innovation: full support should be given to businesses and industry sectors committed to innovation and a leadership role in the global green economy.
Transport: Malta should roll out cleaner, cheaper and healthier forms of private and public transport.
Energy: a commitment to decarbonising the energy sector by introducing more renewable forms of energy such as wind, solar and tidal.
Building and construction: all existing and future buildings to be more energy-efficient by building or renovating in a way that will help people cut their energy bills and energy use.
The EU has already committed to a lot more depth and detail than this article can include. They have announced the New European Bauhaus, for example, which marries green architecture and culture for better community living. They have plans for batteries and hydrogen and agriculture and pharma – the list of areas for improvement and investment is almost endless.
But Malta has to start somewhere and it has to start now.
To hit its own targets and to safeguard jobs, wealth and safety for the Maltese citizen of generations to come, Malta must adopt a green economy, with the full financial and political support of the European Union.
Gayle Kimberley is Director, Ewropa Consultancy.