On the 26^th of October, WIL Europe organised an Online Debate on the EU Green Deal in the face of COVID-19, sponsored by Kering. The event, which was moderated by Thaima Samman, WIL’s President, featured a high-level panel of speakers, including Didier Reynders, European Commissioner for Justice; Heidi Hautala, MEP; Antoine Colombani, Member of Cabinet of Frans Timmermans, Executive Vice President for the European Green Deal; and WIL member Marie-Claire Daveu, Chief Sustainability Officer and Head of International Institutional Affairs at Kering.

This conference provided an opportunity for sustainability experts from different sectors to come together to share their perspective on the future prospects for a Deal which has been at the heart of the EU Commission’s agenda since 2019, given the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. During the debate, the high-level speakers debated both opportunities and challenges in generating engagement for the EU Green Deal during COVID-19. Among the issues debated were the critical role of consumers and producers for achieving the SDGs, and the importance of collective buy-in and action to make the Deal a reality.