By European Commission, 2011
Europe has enjoyed many decades of growth in wealth and wellbeing, based on intensive use of resources. But today it faces the dual challenge of stimulating the growth needed to provide jobs and well-being to its citizens, and of ensuring that the quality of this growth leads to a sustainable future. To tackle these challenges and turn them into opportunities our economy will require a fundamental transformation within a generation – in energy, industry, agriculture, fisheries and transport systems, and in producer and consumer behaviour. Preparing that transformation in a timely, predictable and controlled manner will allow us to further develop our wealth and wellbeing, whilst reducing the levels and impact of our resource use.
Transformation will need a policy framework that creates a playing field, where innovation and resource efficiency are rewarded, creating economic opportunities and improved security of supply through product redesign, sustainable management of environmental resources, greater reuse, recycling and substitution of materials and resource savings. Decoupling growth from resource use and unlocking these new sources of growth needs coherence and integration in the policies that shape our economy and our lifestyles. Action on climate change has already led the way in helping to decouple growth from the use of carbon.
The Europe 2020 Strategy and its flagship initiative on "A Resource Efficient Europe" set the EU on the path to this transformation. The flagship called for a roadmap" to define medium and long term objectives and means needed for achieving them". This Roadmap builds upon and complements the other initiatives under the flagship, in particular the policy achievements towards a low carbon economy, and takes into account progress made on the 2005 Thematic Strategy on the Sustainable Use of Natural Resources and the EU's strategy on sustainable development. The Roadmap should also be seen in the context of worldwide efforts to achieve a transition towards a green economy.
 Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe | [ ] |
 Working paper Part 1 | [ ] |
| Working paper Part 2 | [ ] |
