Towards a green & digital future

Abstract

This study examines how the green and digital transitions can be successful. Both the green and the digital transitions are political priorities of the European Commission that will shape our future in the long-term. While these two simultaneous, or ‘twin’, transitions, can reinforce each other in many areas, they are not automatically aligned. For example, digital technologies have substantial environmental footprints that go against the targets of the green transition. This is why a proactive and integrative approach to managing the twin transitions is important to ensure their successful implementation. The goal of this study is to analyse how the European Union can make sure that these two transitions mutually reinforce each other. In doing so, the study focusses on five of the most greenhouse gas emitting sectors: 1) agriculture, 2) buildings and construction, 3) energy, 4) energy-intensive industries, and 5) transport and mobility. Based on this analysis, the report derives key requirements for the success of the European Union’s green and digital transitions.