Copenhagen, 22/03/2012 (Agence Europe) - European towns and regions are resolved to work in favour of sustainable development to overcome the severe crisis and contribute to recovery of the European economy. Such is the message that their representatives wish to deliver. They have been meeting in Copenhagen since Thursday for a 5th summit organised under the aegis of the Committee of the Regions. The choice of Copenhagen is no mere chance - the capital of Denmark holds the reins of the EU presidency until the end of June and has the ambition of being the first carbon-neutral town in the world by 2025. Frank Jensen, Mayor of Copenhagen and also the head of the Eurocities organisation, said the economy will be kick-started by making it greener. To this end, 25,000 jobs have been created in clean technologies.
This example is therefore to be followed at European level. It is all grist to the mill of the president of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, who said that the towns can contribute to attaining EUROPE 2020 strategy objectives for growth and a low-carbon economy. Opening the summit, he listed the characteristics of today's towns: - the urban population accounts for over 75% of the total population and consumes 80% of energy used in Europe. It is also in the towns that 85% of European GDP is generated, which is why Barroso says the 21st century will be “urban”. There are many challenges facing towns, he said, saying that the summit provides an opportunity to change such challenges into opportunities. The president of the Committee of the Regions, Mercedes Bresso, is of the same opinion, saying: “We want to propose concrete solutions, practical solutions that elected representatives can apply in local communities. The meeting will make it possible to move forward towards new development in Europe, which will allow us to overcome the crisis”. She has seen, she said, that “towns are the source of problems facing the contemporary economies and societies, but also the solution to those problems”. That is why urban areas must be fully committed along the road to green growth and play a role in European governance in order to help the EU exit the wearying crisis that is bogging it down. Bresso hoped that urban policies would be included on the European agenda and be a key element of sustainable national policies.
In order to anchor the commitment of towns and regions in sustainable development, the Committee of the Regions will, on Friday, adopt the Declaration of Copenhagen on beautiful, green, resourceful and inclusive towns. (MD/transl.jl)