Heating, cooling, and cooking accounts for a staggering 85% of energy used globally – with 76% of that coming from fossil fuels. This pollutes more than all the cars in the EU combined. The way we consume energy must change – including how we heat and cool buildings, how we cook food, and how we use batteries (particularly for electric vehicles). Transitioning away from fossil fuels to renewable energy is a must. We must stop installing new fossil fuel-based devices as soon as possible, exchanging them for appliances and systems that use renewable electricity. ECOS works to make this a reality through standards, policies, laws, and campaigns.
To manage global resources sustainably, we must make our appliances last longer and be more energy and material efficient. A new European standard has started this process for washing machines, introducing a new method for testing how durable they are before being sold. This is a first step towards unlocking the full load of environmental and consumer benefits.
Ecodesign, an EU success story, is expanding. More products than ever will soon be designed from the outset with sustainability in mind — a development that will be good for the environment and consumers. But how? And when? The Ecodesigned4LIFE project consortium, ECOS, BEUC, and ANEC, break it down.
Until now, vehicles have been a model for repairability, often in operation for decades. This is rapidly changing due to overly restrictive vehicle design requirements that prevent more sustainable options, more electronic components, and less access to low-cost spare parts. How could a new EU regulation help the automotive sector make a U-turn?
ECOS has co-signed a letter with other global civil society organisations, labour organisations, investors, and businesses calling for no further weakening of the EU Batteries Regulation Due Diligence Rules as part of the Omnibus IV proposal.
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Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or EISMEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.