The Minister of Ecological Transition Roberto Cingolani spoke in the preparatory Conference of the National Strategy for Sustainable Development, analyzing the concept of ecological transition and the new challenges that the Ministry will have to face.
The Minister affirmed that the concept of transition is not uniquely defined, the path to achieve the objectives is different for each state and it is necessary to develop an adaptive model based on the national context and the present situations.
In his speech he touched on the following arguments:
Glocal approach. The transition we are facing confronts us with an approach that cannot be global, nor local, but glocal: the vision must be global, but the solutions should be local. Sustainability and sustainable ecology become central concepts for the future.
Environmental debt. The main indicator that must be kept in mind in all political and technical choices is the fact that we live in an era of environmental as well as economic debt.
Climate change. The construction of an ecological transition plan must start from climate change. The principle of thermodynamics is in force in the fight against climate change: damage is fast but recovery is long. This means that the actions taken today will affect future generations.
Pollution and air quality. Another great challenge to face is that of transport, the electrification of public transport, the reduction of private vehicles. There are enormous efforts in progress, but large industrial systems are energy-intensive, so it is necessary to find the right balance between the needs of an economy that generates work and well-being and the fact that this economy should not be implemented at the expense of the environment in which we live. We need a strategy that contemplates the development of innovative technologies, but at the same time of the awareness of individuals.
Chemical pollution. The era in which we live is chemical intensive: in addition to the problem of plastic, we must face the emergency of antibiotic resistant bacteria, which are a problem not only for pollution but also for public health.
Cycle of rejection. The traffic of waste is a legal and social problem and great attention must be paid to both the regulatory and the scientific aspects.
Use of natural resources. The economic growth of recent years has meant that natural resources were heavily committed. Digitization is also very energy-intensive. This consumer model must be tackled globally and considered in the overall budget.
Food system and biodiversity. Sustainability is a compromise between different issues that change over time, and in post Covid the requests will be different from those that could have been had in a moment of great economic prosperity. Man must be able with conscience and knowledge to adapt his choices to the demands.
A healthy planet and a just society. The real goal of the transition is the correlation between a healthy planet, healthy people and a just society.
Co-benefit. All problems related to sustainability are interconnected and this requires multiple solutions inspired by the concept of co-benefit.
Technology at the service of prevention. We need to look to the future with a view to prevention. We need the risk analysis of everything we do. In view of the implementation of the Recovery Plan, it is important to use technology to monitor coasts, landfills, green areas and infrastructures.