10 Apr 2024
Event report | The Foundational Economy: Putting public liveability at the heart of EU public finance
Back to overviewThis webinar was a presentation of Counter Balance's latest report "Things Have to Change". Held on October 10th, the panel included three speakers, two academics and one grassroots policy expert. There was a good gender balance on the panel, with two women and two men (one of whom acted as moderator). 22 participants from 11 EU countries (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg and Spain) took part in the discussion, of whom only half responded to the non-mandatory question to identify their gender (the rest being 7 women and 4 men).
The exchange focused on the urgent need for EU Member States to encourage the EIB to take on riskier investments, but only in support of the common good and quality public services. Participants expressed the urgent need for the EIB to prioritise investment in public services over profit-driven ventures.
Acknowledging the EIB's substantial annual profits of €2.5 billion, participants argued that these funds should be redirected to socially and environmentally beneficial projects that could play a key role in bringing about transformative change, particularly in the context of climate change.
In essence, the webinar highlighted the need to harness the untapped potential of the EIB to promote a fairer, more sustainable and inclusive future for all, based on strong public services and social justice.
A recording of the webinar can be accessed here and presentations of the speakers are available here.
This webinar was organized within the Citizens’ Observatory for Green Deal Financing project, financed by the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA).