“Local Voices, Big Decisions: On the Frontline of Nature Protection”

Today at the Covenant of Mayors meeting, the discussions went beyond climate protection and sustainability — they focused on how local communities can truly be involved in European decision-making. We had inspiring exchanges on how to safeguard the biodiversity of mountain regions and how to make nature protection a cause that everyone can understand and relate to.

The Covenant of Mayors is a European initiative through which local and regional authorities voluntarily commit to achieving the EU’s climate and energy objectives.

The importance of today’s event was underlined by the presence of Kata Tüttő, President of the European Committee of the Regions, alongside Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, who spoke about housing, nature and environmental protection, and the importance of joint action. Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament, also emphasized that the Committee of the Regions is gaining increasing influence in the EU decision-making process and that the Parliament fully supports this cooperation.

The full recording of the discussion is available on my English-language Facebook page, where both Ursula von der Leyen’s and Kata Tüttő’s speeches can be viewed. This was also the focus of my live discussion with Kata Tüttő: the Committee of the Regions is becoming a stronger political voice — and the Parliament is a partner in this effort, regardless of political affiliation.

This clearly shows that we cannot accept a situation where the Commission and the finance ministers of the Member States decide alone on the allocation of funds. Cohesion funds must remain, and local and regional authorities must have a real say in how these resources are distributed.

#LocalCommunities #NatureProtection #WorkInBrussels #CohesionPolicy