The European Union’s proposed batteries regulation should require importers and manufacturers to source the bauxite, copper, and iron used in batteries responsibly, a coalition of 16 organizations said today. The coalition includes Amnesty International, Earthworks, Finnwatch, Germanwatch, Human Rights Watch, Inclusive Development International, INKOTA, PowerShift, RAID, SOMO, and Transport & Environment, as well as human rights and environmental activists from producer countries.
The European Union is in the process of redefining the ecodesign criteria for products in several legislative proposals. Together with 37 European organisations and companies, Germanwatch publishes an open letter calling on legislators in the EU to make use of the historic chance by introducing the universal right to install any software on any device, including full access to hardware.
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Also for us at Germanwatch, 24 February 2022 has been a watershed. Since that day, war is raging just 800 kilometres from Berlin. Europe's peace order has been fundamentally called into question. A country is invading its neighbour. As we write this, the Russian army is marching towards the Ukrainian coal towns in the Donbass, towns which we at Germanwatch have been working intensively with ever since 2017.
From 28 February to 2 March, the United Nations Environment Programme will host the next Environment Assembly. In a joint statement today, more than 150 organisations from all continents, including Germanwatch, call for sustainable food systems to be a core issue of the Assembly, with a particular focus on animal husbandry.
