The European (Green?) Deal: a systematic analysis of environmental sustainability

Abstract

AbstractTransitioning towards a sustainable society is at the core of public planning in the EU through the European Green Deal (EGD). However, is the EGD a master plan for actual sustainable development in the EU? This work aims to answer this question through an analysis of the environmental sustainability within the EGD's plans through the method of critical discourse analysis, and discussing the results with previous efforts for sustainable development in the EU and in the UN. The results of the analysis identify fundamental flaws in the environmental sustainability of the EGD, which seems to repeat mistakes of previous efforts for sustainability planning in the EU. This work concludes that economic growth is the predominant focus in public planning and that the EGD needs a review of various environmental aspects to be considered the master plan for a transition towards a sustainable EU.