By Theodoros Zachariades, Associate Professor, Cyprus University of Technology
We are nowadays at a time of planning and announcing measures to reheat the economy. Obviously, the attention of the government and political parties is focused on making things easier for employees and businesses that have been hit hardest in recent months. In this context, however, we must not lose sight of the developments that are coming, which we must be prepared for. Dealing with future epidemics and the need for more intense digital transformation come to mind. But environmental developments cannot wait - they are also an area that needs to be prioritized from now on. Let's see why.
1. The environment is a pan-European goal of great importance. The European direction is clear: European Green Deal. It is supported by the European Union heads of state, who in all their meetings since March until today have stressed the need for the recovery of the European economy "by incorporating the green transition and digital transformation". The economic reconstruction of societies must lead to a transition to economies with a much lower environmental footprint, on the one hand because it reduces social inequalities and on the other because it increases the resilience of societies to future natural disasters and epidemics. After all, it seems that all countries will face serious consequences in the coming years due to climate change. Air pollution is causing a serious number of deaths even in Cyprus, while natural resources and many ecosystems are also in crisis.
2. Environmental protection is already cost-effective. The National Action Plan on Energy and Climate, submitted by the Republic of Cyprus to the European Commission in January 2020, cites many measures in the areas of energy saving, the greater use of renewable energy sources, the optimum use of waste for energy production, energy efficiency in public transport, areas where investments will result in net economic benefit as early as 2030. For this to happen, we need political will, so that we do not have to wait for them to be imposed on us by a natural disaster or by fines from the European Union. This does not only mean public investment and "incentives" in the form of subsidies. It is also very important to redesign the tax system in a green direction. The Council of Ministers decided in the fall of 2019 to put forward a proposal for a green tax reform. This cannot wait, now is the time to go ahead with it.
3. Green policies can boost growth and employment. EU environmental policy is ambitious and demanding, but it also creates great business opportunities that are spread across the productive fabric, because they are about energy saving, sustainable transport, raw material export, product packaging, waste management and many others. Such opportunities can be made used of by creating innovative products and services in Cyprus as well. A targeted support - either with direct sponsorships or with increased government guarantees - of a plethora of private investment that will serve the purposes of tackling climate change and productive use of natural resources can open up new jobs for employees of various skills.
To sum up: It is obvious that securing or even increasing employment is a priority now. But this should not be done the way we are used to so far. This support is an opportunity to lead to green jobs that meet future needs, encouraging the production of innovative products and services that will reduce the environmental footprint of the economy. In this way, the adaptation of the Cypriot economy to the changes brought about by the transition to a highly digital, but also environmentally much more demanding, era will be accelerated.
