Green 10 to Ursula von der Leyen: Defend the European Green Deal

Last Updated on: 12th July 2025, 01:47 am

Green 10, which represents more than 50 million Europeans and spans all of the member states and candidate countries of the European Union, has a message for European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen: protect the European Green Deal in order to protect people and the planet. How do we know it has this message? Because Green 10 wrote a letter to Von der Leyen saying this.

“Our asks respond to the new emerging world order and geopolitical developments, the need for EU security, the new distorting norm of disinformation, and the concerted attacks on civil society that are part of a wider playbook to undermine the European Green Deal (EGD), EU democracy and the European project,” they write in their letter. “Together with partners across civil society and progressive business, we are concerned that the EGD is at risk of being systematically unravelled. As noted in the June 2025 Eurobarometer: a large majority of Europeans continue to view climate change as a serious global threat, with 85% of citizens identifying it as a major problem.”

Indeed, it would be ridiculous — insane — to pull back on climate action from the European Green Deal right now. As an emphasis on that, last week, the first day of Wimbledon was the hottest day of Wimbledon in the tournament’s storied history. And then the day after that broke the record again. For anyone watching, there have been numerous interruptions from fans fainting or having other problems from the heat and assistance needing to come in. There have been countless more severe examples of the problems global heating and climate change bring, but straight-up heat emergencies and heat deaths should be reason enough to tell the European Commission that something is wrong and strong, consistent action is needed.

“The Commission must champion the Green Deal as a strategy for hope, resilience and fairness. Now is the moment to lead with courage — and to invest in people and planet,” T&E writes.

“The evidence is undeniable that the triple climate-nature-pollution crisis is undermining people, communities, business and society today and in the future. It needs urgent high level attention and there should be no back-tracking for immediate political expediency or short term economic benefits to the few, at the cost to society now and in the future,” the letter adds.

To read the four core points made by the Green 10 group, and several directives and detailed requests associated with each, download the full letter here.

Signatories of the letter included Patrick ten Brink, European Environmental Bureau (current chair of the Green 10); Ariel Brunner, Bird Life Europe; Chiara Martinelli, Climate Action Network Europe; Ester Asin, WWF European Policy Office; Genon Jensen, Health and Environment Alliance; Matilda Flemming, Friends of the Earth Europe; Petr Hlobil, CEE Bankwatch Network; Tobias Munchmeyer, Greenpeace Europe; and William Todts, Transport & Environment Europe.

Will the letter make a difference? Who knows? It’s concerning that these prominent people and groups even feel the need to write such a letter.

Featured photo by European Parliament via Flickr (CC BY 2.0 license).