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Climate change is driving global wine production to historic lows, with sparkling wine facing specific threats to its quantity and quality. Extreme weather in France, Spain, and Italy has led to reduced yields and price increases for labels like Cava and Prosecco. Higher temperatures are accelerating ripening, which alters the balance of sugar and acid, potentially resulting in higher alcohol levels and less fizzy wines. Projections suggest that if global temperatures rise by 2°C, over half of suitable wine-growing regions could shrink, with up to 90% of traditional areas in southern Europe becoming economically unviable. Adaptation strategies, such as relocating vineyards or using protective technology, are costly and may fail to preserve the unique cultural and flavour characteristics of traditional sparkling wines.

The report details the expansion of 'Big Oil' companies like Shell and BP into the solar energy sector in Southern Europe. It highlights a pattern of using intermediary shell companies to acquire agricultural land and bypass environmental scrutiny and community participation. The authors argue that this 'extractive' model of the energy transition prioritizes corporate profit over food sovereignty and democratic engagement, while noting that Italy could meet its solar targets using rooftops and degraded land rather than fertile fields.

A rapid analysis by World Weather Attribution indicates that heavy 1-day rainfall events in central and southeastern Spain are approximately 12% more intense and twice as likely in the current climate, which is 1.3°C warmer than preindustrial levels. The analysis focuses on the extreme precipitation event of October 29, 2024, which caused devastating floods in regions like Valencia and Catalonia, resulting in over 200 deaths. While the study used daily rainfall data over a large region—potentially underestimating the intensity of localized sub-daily extremes—the findings align with the Clausius-Clapeyron relationship and existing evidence of climate change signals in European rainfall extremes.

The report identifies a dual-track narrative strategy: 'Type A' narratives that exploit societal vulnerabilities to sow discord (such as anti-immigrant and gendered disinformation), and 'Type B' narratives that erode trust in democratic institutions (including electoral fraud and anti-West rhetoric). It details the use of advanced Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) based on the DISARM framework, highlighting the role of AI-generated deepfakes, website cloning, and coordinated inauthentic behavior. The findings suggest that despite EU guidelines under the Digital Services Act, voluntary recommendations are insufficient to protect democratic processes from these evolving, often state-sponsored, threats.

Spain is a European leader in commercial-scale solar energy, with the highest operational capacity (29.5 GW) and a massive pipeline of projects. However, to meet its 2030 targets of 81 GW of solar and 62 GW of wind, the country must overcome permitting bottlenecks, low adoption of small-scale rooftop solar, and infrastructure limitations. While solar targets are achievable given the current pipeline, wind energy requires a significant acceleration in deployment rates.

The document examines the gap between EU Green Public Procurement (GPP) targets and actual implementation in eight Member States. It identifies systemic barriers—including fragmented governance, lack of standardized data, and limited procurement officer capacity—while highlighting successful local and national initiatives in Sweden, France, Germany, and others. The brief argues that the EU must harmonize reporting, institute mandatory requirements for high-emitting sectors, and provide better technical support to leverage public spending for climate goals.

The report finds that Green Public Procurement (GPP) in the EU is characterized by a fragmented approach with few binding requirements and significant gaps between national climate targets and actual procurement practices. While some regions like Catalonia and cities like Berlin show high ambition, most Member States rely on voluntary guidelines. The construction and road transport sectors are highlighted as high-impact areas where GPP could drive decarbonization, yet implementation is hindered by a lack of standardized data, insufficient capacity and time for procurement officers, and a lack of mandatory EU-level criteria. The report recommends harmonizing GPP definitions, introducing mandatory carbon criteria, and expanding the scope of EU Directives to include embedded emissions.

The article argues that referendums are alien to the UK's tradition of parliamentary sovereignty and have been used by politicians to resolve internal party disputes or by campaigners to simplify complex issues through misinformation. It highlights the 2016 Brexit vote and the 2014 Scottish independence referendum as examples where binary choices reduced nuanced decisions to 'support/oppose' options, leading to voter regret and democratic weakening.

The study examined the impact of monetary information—delivered via sales staff and supplementary labels—on the purchase of washing-machines, fridges, dishwashers, and tumble-driers. Results indicate that while monetary information can increase the probability of buying A++ appliances, it often fails to nudge consumers toward the highest efficiency (A+++) models, likely due to price premiums. Additionally, the study identifies a 'memory effect' where previous regional rebate programmes continued to positively influence the purchase of A+++ appliances after the programmes had ended.

The author argues that referendums are historically alien to the UK's tradition of representative democracy and parliamentary sovereignty. The text identifies three drivers for their recent use: addressing constitutional questions like Scottish independence, seeking political legitimacy to resolve internal party conflicts (as seen with David Cameron and Brexit), and as a tool for those seeking epochal change through binary choices. The author concludes that the lack of civic experience with referendums led to campaigns based on fear and disinformation, ultimately damaging the UK's democratic health.

The document examines the historical and contemporary role of referendums in the UK, noting that they conflict with the country's tradition of parliamentary sovereignty. It identifies three trends in their recent use: addressing constitutional questions like Scottish independence, seeking political legitimacy to resolve internal party conflicts, and as a tool for those seeking seismic change through binary choices. The author argues that the lack of civic experience with referendums has allowed for the use of misinformation and fear tactics, specifically citing the 2016 Brexit vote, and concludes that the UK needs new approaches to enhance political literacy and reconnect the public with their representatives.

The report argues that Ecoembes and Ecovidrio, the dominant waste management systems in Spain, use their monopoly power and lobbying to prevent the adoption of a mandatory Deposit Return System (SDDR). It highlights that these organizations benefit financially from increased plastic packaging volume, creating a conflict of interest that hinders EU recycling targets. The document also criticizes major supermarkets like Mercadona for opposing the SDDR and promotes the legislative progress in the Balearic Islands as a model for the rest of the country.

The report argues that Spain's plastic waste management is dominated by monopolies like Ecoembes and Ecovidrio, whose business models profit from increased plastic packaging, leading them to lobby against effective solutions like DRS. It highlights the financial burden of litter clean-up on taxpayers, estimated at up to €744 million annually, and criticises retailers for their lack of transparency and opposition to mandatory reforms. While some regions like the Balearic Islands are implementing ambitious laws, the report warns that the Spanish government remains susceptible to industry lobbying, which threatens the country's ability to meet EU targets for separate collection and recycled content by 2030.

The author analyzes how neoliberalism and the 'tertiarization' of the Spanish economy—specifically the dominance of tourism—have fueled regional inequalities and the rise of peripheral nationalisms. The text argues that the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these tensions by exposing the fragility of the tourism-dependent model. To mitigate future conflicts and the impacts of climate change, the author proposes a transition toward a 'degrowth' model, emphasizing the revival of organic agriculture in the interior, the promotion of green industries, and the potential reorganization of Spain into a federal state.

The document argues that the 21st century is defined by a conflict between capital and the biosphere, exacerbated by the Anthropocene and mass species extinction. It proposes a post-pandemic recovery for Europe based on three pillars: protecting biodiversity to ensure human health, valuing the local through the care economy and localized supply chains, and accelerating an energy transition to reduce dependence and redistribute wealth. The author emphasizes that sustainability requires a change in the social model and a shift from a culture of vehicle ownership to shared services, while warning against 'greenwashed' solutions and austerity.

The ENHANCE project (2017-2020) focused on integrating the EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) into regional policies to drive the transition to a circular economy. By collaborating across six European regions, the project identified 24 good practices and implemented 31 actions, primarily focusing on regulatory reliefs and promotional incentives. Key achievements include the reduction of financial guarantees for waste companies in Estonia, tax reductions for EMAS organizations in Catalonia, and the integration of EMAS as an award criterion in Austrian green public procurement. The project engaged 375 stakeholders and concluded that stakeholder involvement and clear financial incentives are critical for the successful implementation of environmental policy instruments.

The document outlines six key actions for regional governments to decarbonize mobility: expanding electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, electrifying commercial and government fleets, implementing clean vehicle manufacturing standards, improving freight delivery efficiency, investing in public transit, and promoting non-motorized travel alternatives.

The document outlines five specific actions to decarbonize regional industry: methane containment, transitioning to clean industrial processes, implementing shared industrial flows (such as eco-industrial parks), decarbonizing ports and airports, and transitioning to clean industrial vehicles. It provides a framework for regional authorities to eliminate waste, electrify processes, and implement regulatory penalties for emissions, supported by references to policies from jurisdictions such as California, Brazil, and Hong Kong.

The document outlines ten policy proposals from Research & Degrowth in Barcelona aimed at breaking the 'spell of growth' and providing a cooperative economic model for radical Left and Green parties. These proposals include a citizen debt audit, work-sharing with a 32-hour week, a basic income of 400-600 Euros, and a green tax reform shifting taxation from work to energy and resource use. It advocates for ending subsidies for polluting activities, supporting the non-profit cooperative sector, optimizing existing building use, restricting advertising, establishing absolute caps on CO2 and material resources, and replacing GDP with prosperity indicators. The authors argue these complementary measures decouple social security from economic growth and shift the focus toward the commons and shared infrastructure.

The author contends that the Spanish government's refusal to negotiate decentralization or allow a referendum on self-determination necessitates a democratic process for Catalonia to decide its own future. The text highlights the failure of the 2005 renegotiation of competences and the subsequent 2010 Constitutional Court repeal as catalysts for the independence movement. It compares the situation to Scotland's referendum and asserts that a new Catalan state would be built on a pluralistic, participatory process with a strong welfare state. The document notes that over 80% of Catalans wish to be consulted and that the EU must respond democratically to any verdict.