One week ago, Greece’s development minister, Kostis Hatzidakis, said something rather interesting. In planning the country’s energy portfolio, he said yes to renewable energy. In the same document, and just as important, he said no to both coal and nuclear power.
The decision came after months of campaigning on a coal moratorium by a coalition of Greek groups, including WWF Greece, on a “No to Coal” initiative. It’s cause for celebration, and congratulations to all those who put time and energy into making it happen! Demetres Karavellas, of WWF Greece, said, “Today, we can be more optimistic that Greece might make the necessary shift towards a more sustainable and competitive green economy.”
After winning that fight, the group isn’t planning to just sit back and celebrate though. Plans are to push forward using the momentum they have gained from the coal moratorium and make Greece a real leader in the EU for the UN Climate negotiations set to finish this December in Copenhagen. This victory is an inspiration to all the coal campaigning going on all over the world. One down…