Ariel Brunner
@arielbrunner.bsky.social
Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia with @birdlifeeurope.bsky.social
The schizophrenia of focusing #cop30 on saving forests, while also promoting notoriously forest killing #biofuels
www.desmog.com/2025/11/20/b...
www.desmog.com/2025/11/20/b...
Backed by Industry, Brazilian Hosts Seek COP30’s Blessing for Biofuels
With the clock running down at the COP30 climate talks, the Brazilian hosts are working hand-in-hand with industry groups to secure backing for biofuels in the final text – despite fears that scaling ...
www.desmog.com
November 21, 2025 at 5:12 PM
The schizophrenia of focusing #cop30 on saving forests, while also promoting notoriously forest killing #biofuels
www.desmog.com/2025/11/20/b...
www.desmog.com/2025/11/20/b...
Democracy does not collapse overnight. It decays slowly, often quietly, as civic space narrows and accountability fades. This is what is happening in Europe right now.
Important wake up call.
www.linkedin.com/redir/redire...
Important wake up call.
www.linkedin.com/redir/redire...
The EU's so-called Civil Society Strategy: a band-aid on a gaping wound
The EU Commission’s new Civil Society Strategy, promised by Ursula von der Leyen in 2024, aims to protect civic space, strengthen participation, and secure funding for NGOs. On paper, it sounds promis...
www.linkedin.com
November 19, 2025 at 2:54 PM
Democracy does not collapse overnight. It decays slowly, often quietly, as civic space narrows and accountability fades. This is what is happening in Europe right now.
Important wake up call.
www.linkedin.com/redir/redire...
Important wake up call.
www.linkedin.com/redir/redire...
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
🔴 NEW 🔴
More Than 300 Lobbyists for Industrial Agriculture Attend COP30
Presence of high-polluting companies erodes trust in the UN process, say campaigners.
www.desmog.com/2025/11/18/m...
📝 @rachelsherrington.bsky.social & @ninalakhani.bsky.social 👇
More Than 300 Lobbyists for Industrial Agriculture Attend COP30
Presence of high-polluting companies erodes trust in the UN process, say campaigners.
www.desmog.com/2025/11/18/m...
📝 @rachelsherrington.bsky.social & @ninalakhani.bsky.social 👇
More Than 300 Lobbyists for Industrial Agriculture Attend COP30
Presence of high-polluting companies erodes trust in the UN process, say campaigners.
www.desmog.com
November 18, 2025 at 3:13 PM
🔴 NEW 🔴
More Than 300 Lobbyists for Industrial Agriculture Attend COP30
Presence of high-polluting companies erodes trust in the UN process, say campaigners.
www.desmog.com/2025/11/18/m...
📝 @rachelsherrington.bsky.social & @ninalakhani.bsky.social 👇
More Than 300 Lobbyists for Industrial Agriculture Attend COP30
Presence of high-polluting companies erodes trust in the UN process, say campaigners.
www.desmog.com/2025/11/18/m...
📝 @rachelsherrington.bsky.social & @ninalakhani.bsky.social 👇
French minister publicly committing to defend illegality.
Its hard to fathom how damaging this is to democracy, the rule of law, citizens' trust in institutions, the credibility of the European project.
Shameful.
www.lpo.fr/qui-sommes-n...
Its hard to fathom how damaging this is to democracy, the rule of law, citizens' trust in institutions, the credibility of the European project.
Shameful.
www.lpo.fr/qui-sommes-n...
Le Ministre délégué chargé de la transition écologique en...
En visite dans les Landes à l’invitation de la Fédération départementale des chasseurs, Mathieu Lefevre a répété sa détermination à défendre le piégeage des...
www.lpo.fr
November 17, 2025 at 4:42 PM
French minister publicly committing to defend illegality.
Its hard to fathom how damaging this is to democracy, the rule of law, citizens' trust in institutions, the credibility of the European project.
Shameful.
www.lpo.fr/qui-sommes-n...
Its hard to fathom how damaging this is to democracy, the rule of law, citizens' trust in institutions, the credibility of the European project.
Shameful.
www.lpo.fr/qui-sommes-n...
Very tentative and lilited, but still GOOD NEWS.
Something for @christophehansen.bsky.social and other deregulators to ponder over. Legislation is NOT a burden. It's crucial for our survival.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Something for @christophehansen.bsky.social and other deregulators to ponder over. Legislation is NOT a burden. It's crucial for our survival.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
With neonicotinoid pesticide ban, France’s birds make a tentative recovery - study
Analysis shows small hike in populations of insect-eating species after 2018 ruling, but full recovery may take decades
www.theguardian.com
November 17, 2025 at 5:45 AM
Very tentative and lilited, but still GOOD NEWS.
Something for @christophehansen.bsky.social and other deregulators to ponder over. Legislation is NOT a burden. It's crucial for our survival.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Something for @christophehansen.bsky.social and other deregulators to ponder over. Legislation is NOT a burden. It's crucial for our survival.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
This is what many of us have been saying. Part 3 of the Planning & Infrastructure Bill is based on a myth: that we don't have enough homes because wildlife and green spaces are protected. It will solve nothing, and inflict terrible harm on our remaining ecosystems
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Nature not a blocker to housing growth, inquiry finds
Commons committee report challenges ‘lazy narrative’ used by ministers that scapegoats wildlife and the environment
www.theguardian.com
November 16, 2025 at 12:12 PM
This is what many of us have been saying. Part 3 of the Planning & Infrastructure Bill is based on a myth: that we don't have enough homes because wildlife and green spaces are protected. It will solve nothing, and inflict terrible harm on our remaining ecosystems
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐋𝐈𝐏𝐔!! 🎉
Today, we join the celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the Lega Italiana Protezione Uccelli, BirdLife's Italian Partner. They mark six decades of bird conservation, habitat restoration, and inspiring future generations.
Find out more: www.birdlife.org/news/2025/11...
Today, we join the celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the Lega Italiana Protezione Uccelli, BirdLife's Italian Partner. They mark six decades of bird conservation, habitat restoration, and inspiring future generations.
Find out more: www.birdlife.org/news/2025/11...
November 15, 2025 at 10:35 AM
𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐋𝐈𝐏𝐔!! 🎉
Today, we join the celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the Lega Italiana Protezione Uccelli, BirdLife's Italian Partner. They mark six decades of bird conservation, habitat restoration, and inspiring future generations.
Find out more: www.birdlife.org/news/2025/11...
Today, we join the celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the Lega Italiana Protezione Uccelli, BirdLife's Italian Partner. They mark six decades of bird conservation, habitat restoration, and inspiring future generations.
Find out more: www.birdlife.org/news/2025/11...
Very greatful to Italian President Sergio Mattarella for hosting our Italian Partner Lipu's 60th anniversary.
And for allowing Italian people to explore the natural wonders of the Castelporziano Presidential estate , including its monumental ancient cork oak forest.
And for allowing Italian people to explore the natural wonders of the Castelporziano Presidential estate , including its monumental ancient cork oak forest.
November 16, 2025 at 11:21 AM
Very greatful to Italian President Sergio Mattarella for hosting our Italian Partner Lipu's 60th anniversary.
And for allowing Italian people to explore the natural wonders of the Castelporziano Presidential estate , including its monumental ancient cork oak forest.
And for allowing Italian people to explore the natural wonders of the Castelporziano Presidential estate , including its monumental ancient cork oak forest.
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
Science-policy webinar:
Join us on 20.10.2025 (10-12 CET) to hear policy-relevant results of @agtransect.bsky.social project:
What farmers plead for; barriers & levers 4 expanding agroecology; implications for CAP; evaluation of the CAP reform.
Register here:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/agroecolog...
Join us on 20.10.2025 (10-12 CET) to hear policy-relevant results of @agtransect.bsky.social project:
What farmers plead for; barriers & levers 4 expanding agroecology; implications for CAP; evaluation of the CAP reform.
Register here:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/agroecolog...
November 13, 2025 at 4:14 PM
Science-policy webinar:
Join us on 20.10.2025 (10-12 CET) to hear policy-relevant results of @agtransect.bsky.social project:
What farmers plead for; barriers & levers 4 expanding agroecology; implications for CAP; evaluation of the CAP reform.
Register here:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/agroecolog...
Join us on 20.10.2025 (10-12 CET) to hear policy-relevant results of @agtransect.bsky.social project:
What farmers plead for; barriers & levers 4 expanding agroecology; implications for CAP; evaluation of the CAP reform.
Register here:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/agroecolog...
EU institutions deal last night on the "simplification" of the CAP dropped the looniest EP amendments, like exempting farmers in protected areas from env requirements that would still apply in un-"protected" land.
CAP remains money (to the rich) for nothing. But without the surrealist twist.
CAP remains money (to the rich) for nothing. But without the surrealist twist.
November 11, 2025 at 7:51 AM
EU institutions deal last night on the "simplification" of the CAP dropped the looniest EP amendments, like exempting farmers in protected areas from env requirements that would still apply in un-"protected" land.
CAP remains money (to the rich) for nothing. But without the surrealist twist.
CAP remains money (to the rich) for nothing. But without the surrealist twist.
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
“The Omnibus fails to meet the constitutional standards the EU’s own legal order demands”.
That’s the conclusion reached by legal opinion endorsed by 100+ academics warning the Parliament about this dangerous precedent.
Read the opinion 👇 #Omnibus #CSRD #CSDDD
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
That’s the conclusion reached by legal opinion endorsed by 100+ academics warning the Parliament about this dangerous precedent.
Read the opinion 👇 #Omnibus #CSRD #CSDDD
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
November 10, 2025 at 6:33 AM
“The Omnibus fails to meet the constitutional standards the EU’s own legal order demands”.
That’s the conclusion reached by legal opinion endorsed by 100+ academics warning the Parliament about this dangerous precedent.
Read the opinion 👇 #Omnibus #CSRD #CSDDD
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
That’s the conclusion reached by legal opinion endorsed by 100+ academics warning the Parliament about this dangerous precedent.
Read the opinion 👇 #Omnibus #CSRD #CSDDD
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
On health, as on environment, the intensive farming lobby is at the forefront of dismantling EU democracy.
“No meeting minutes have been shared, no stakeholder consultation has been opened [..]. For those who work to reduce alcohol-related harm, [..] the message it sends is unmistakable: the interests of producers matter more than the wellbeing of citizens.”
euobserver.com/eu-political...
euobserver.com/eu-political...
Lack of transparency of EU's new wine proposals will cause a hangover
The EU Wine Package — a broad reform of the rules for how wine should be produced, marketed, and labelled across the EU — is moving forward with unusual speed and limited transparency.
euobserver.com
November 10, 2025 at 6:57 AM
On health, as on environment, the intensive farming lobby is at the forefront of dismantling EU democracy.
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
Emptying the sky: #Malta’s commitment to #bird #conservation is in decline.
From #trapping disguised as “research” to weakened enforcement and plans to constitutionally protect hunting, policies continue to favour exploitation over preservation.
Read more: www.independent.com.mt/articles/202...
From #trapping disguised as “research” to weakened enforcement and plans to constitutionally protect hunting, policies continue to favour exploitation over preservation.
Read more: www.independent.com.mt/articles/202...
Emptying the sky: Malta’s declining commitment to bird conservation - The Malta Independent
Malta's strategic position along the central Mediterranean flyway makes it a vital stopover for migratory birds. Yet over the past decade, a succession of policy decisions has gradually eroded
www.independent.com.mt
November 9, 2025 at 9:58 AM
Emptying the sky: #Malta’s commitment to #bird #conservation is in decline.
From #trapping disguised as “research” to weakened enforcement and plans to constitutionally protect hunting, policies continue to favour exploitation over preservation.
Read more: www.independent.com.mt/articles/202...
From #trapping disguised as “research” to weakened enforcement and plans to constitutionally protect hunting, policies continue to favour exploitation over preservation.
Read more: www.independent.com.mt/articles/202...
The added value of Dutch agriculture is €13.3 billion, but env damage leads to net impact estimated at a negative €5.3 billion per year.
Essential read at a moment when the intensive farm lobby is leading an all out assault on EU environmental legislation
www.deloitte.com/nl/en/Indust...
Essential read at a moment when the intensive farm lobby is leading an all out assault on EU environmental legislation
www.deloitte.com/nl/en/Indust...
The hidden bill | Deloitte Netherlands
The scale and intensity of Dutch agriculture brings positive economic impact while at the same time generates environmental and social costs. Transitioning to a smarter, lower-impact system can, howe...
www.deloitte.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:30 PM
The added value of Dutch agriculture is €13.3 billion, but env damage leads to net impact estimated at a negative €5.3 billion per year.
Essential read at a moment when the intensive farm lobby is leading an all out assault on EU environmental legislation
www.deloitte.com/nl/en/Indust...
Essential read at a moment when the intensive farm lobby is leading an all out assault on EU environmental legislation
www.deloitte.com/nl/en/Indust...
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
🔥 What happens after Europe’s NGOs are dismantled?
Last week, @alemanno.bsky.social mapped how civic space in Europe is being suffocated – how NGOs die.
This week, we asked the next question: what happens when they do?
🧵👇
euobserver.com/eu-political...
Last week, @alemanno.bsky.social mapped how civic space in Europe is being suffocated – how NGOs die.
This week, we asked the next question: what happens when they do?
🧵👇
euobserver.com/eu-political...
What happens after Europe's NGOs are dismantled?
What does Europe look like when independent civil society is silenced, sidelined or slowly starved out of existence? This is not dystopian fiction. It is the logical end-point of a trend already visib...
euobserver.com
November 5, 2025 at 9:40 AM
🔥 What happens after Europe’s NGOs are dismantled?
Last week, @alemanno.bsky.social mapped how civic space in Europe is being suffocated – how NGOs die.
This week, we asked the next question: what happens when they do?
🧵👇
euobserver.com/eu-political...
Last week, @alemanno.bsky.social mapped how civic space in Europe is being suffocated – how NGOs die.
This week, we asked the next question: what happens when they do?
🧵👇
euobserver.com/eu-political...
So the EP Agri committee, so adamant that consumers would be confused by labels saying VeggyBurger or Vegeterian sausage, have voted to allow booze producers to replace health indications with a QR code
Transparency seems is a one way street. Leading away from healthier and more sustainable diets.
Transparency seems is a one way street. Leading away from healthier and more sustainable diets.
November 6, 2025 at 4:10 PM
So the EP Agri committee, so adamant that consumers would be confused by labels saying VeggyBurger or Vegeterian sausage, have voted to allow booze producers to replace health indications with a QR code
Transparency seems is a one way street. Leading away from healthier and more sustainable diets.
Transparency seems is a one way street. Leading away from healthier and more sustainable diets.
Part of the tragedy of our time is that so many are ready to attack the bits of governance and democracy that annoy or get in their way, while ignoring the risk of the whole house coming down crashing on their heads.
This is a must read piece.
This is a must read piece.
“What does Europe look like when independent #civilsociety — the organisations that exist to protect the public interest — is silenced, sidelined or slowly starved out of existence?” really important piece
What happens after Europe's NGOs are dismantled?
What does Europe look like when independent civil society is silenced, sidelined or slowly starved out of existence? This is not dystopian fiction. It is the logical end-point of a trend already visib...
euobserver.com
November 5, 2025 at 7:23 AM
Part of the tragedy of our time is that so many are ready to attack the bits of governance and democracy that annoy or get in their way, while ignoring the risk of the whole house coming down crashing on their heads.
This is a must read piece.
This is a must read piece.
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
⚠️In a few weeks, the European Commission will present a package, called environmental omnibus, that could roll back laws protecting our air, water, and wildlife... all to please powerful polluters.
It's time for the Commission to listen to people, not polluters.
#HandsOffNature
It's time for the Commission to listen to people, not polluters.
#HandsOffNature
November 3, 2025 at 11:08 AM
⚠️In a few weeks, the European Commission will present a package, called environmental omnibus, that could roll back laws protecting our air, water, and wildlife... all to please powerful polluters.
It's time for the Commission to listen to people, not polluters.
#HandsOffNature
It's time for the Commission to listen to people, not polluters.
#HandsOffNature
The road to hell: let’s burn more fossile fuels if we mismanage our forests....
The European Union should weaken its next climate target if its forests sequester less carbon dioxide than planned, according to a draft agreement on the bloc's 2040 emissions-cutting goal.
EU countries poised to demand weaker climate target if forests fail to absorb CO2
Ministers are rushing to strike a deal on EU emissions ahead of the COP30 climate conference in Brazil.
www.politico.eu
November 3, 2025 at 11:22 AM
The road to hell: let’s burn more fossile fuels if we mismanage our forests....
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
The @ec.europa.eu confirms it has not endorsed Malta’s so-called research derogation for finch trapping, reinforcing that the previous ruling still stands.
👉 Read more: birdlifemalta.org/2025/11/euro...
👉 Read more: birdlifemalta.org/2025/11/euro...
European Commission confirms that finch-trapping derogation is not in line with the European Court of Justice ruling | BirdLife Malta
EU clarifies it has not endorsed Malta’s finch-trapping derogation, warning of possible legal action if EU Birds Directive rules are breached.
birdlifemalta.org
November 1, 2025 at 11:57 AM
The @ec.europa.eu confirms it has not endorsed Malta’s so-called research derogation for finch trapping, reinforcing that the previous ruling still stands.
👉 Read more: birdlifemalta.org/2025/11/euro...
👉 Read more: birdlifemalta.org/2025/11/euro...
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
Join our webinar for the launch of the African-Eurasian Flyway Initiative! ✨
The African-Eurasian Flyway is one of the world’s great migratory routes, used by over 2 billion birds, connecting ecosystems and people across Africa, Europe and Asia. 🌍
Learn more here www.worldbank.org/en/events/20...
The African-Eurasian Flyway is one of the world’s great migratory routes, used by over 2 billion birds, connecting ecosystems and people across Africa, Europe and Asia. 🌍
Learn more here www.worldbank.org/en/events/20...
October 31, 2025 at 11:25 AM
Join our webinar for the launch of the African-Eurasian Flyway Initiative! ✨
The African-Eurasian Flyway is one of the world’s great migratory routes, used by over 2 billion birds, connecting ecosystems and people across Africa, Europe and Asia. 🌍
Learn more here www.worldbank.org/en/events/20...
The African-Eurasian Flyway is one of the world’s great migratory routes, used by over 2 billion birds, connecting ecosystems and people across Africa, Europe and Asia. 🌍
Learn more here www.worldbank.org/en/events/20...
Reposted by Ariel Brunner
A coordinated assault on civil society is unfolding with surgical precision (...) EU institutions and national governments are deploying a 5-step playbook to eliminate independent organisations that stand between corporate power and public interest
euobserver.com/eu-political...
euobserver.com/eu-political...
How NGOs die — Europe's playbook for dismantling democracy
The playbook is brutally efficient: fabricate a scandal, delegitimise and defund organisations into dependency on philanthropic support, then criminalise their new funding as foreign influence — all w...
euobserver.com
October 29, 2025 at 5:49 PM
A coordinated assault on civil society is unfolding with surgical precision (...) EU institutions and national governments are deploying a 5-step playbook to eliminate independent organisations that stand between corporate power and public interest
euobserver.com/eu-political...
euobserver.com/eu-political...
One of a new generation of landscape level #RestoreNature projects we've been developing with our national Partners.
Bringing nature at scale requires bold vision, inclusive work with communities, factoring in climate change, imagining sustainable local economies.
Stay tuned.
Bringing nature at scale requires bold vision, inclusive work with communities, factoring in climate change, imagining sustainable local economies.
Stay tuned.
💪𝗪𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗮𝗻 🌊
Lemnos Island, Greece, is a stunning landscape shaped by volcanic forces, where coastal and marine ecosystems, wetlands, grasslands, ancient forests, and farmlands converge.
Lemnos Island, Greece, is a stunning landscape shaped by volcanic forces, where coastal and marine ecosystems, wetlands, grasslands, ancient forests, and farmlands converge.
October 29, 2025 at 3:10 PM
One of a new generation of landscape level #RestoreNature projects we've been developing with our national Partners.
Bringing nature at scale requires bold vision, inclusive work with communities, factoring in climate change, imagining sustainable local economies.
Stay tuned.
Bringing nature at scale requires bold vision, inclusive work with communities, factoring in climate change, imagining sustainable local economies.
Stay tuned.
Dear @eppgroup.bsky.social please check up the regimes that have been following the Russian play book on anti-NGOs repression and ask yourselves if those are the models you want to follow:
www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/fore...
Standard play book: defunding=>foreign agent labelling=>judicial repression.
www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/fore...
Standard play book: defunding=>foreign agent labelling=>judicial repression.
Foreign Agent Laws: The Latest Authoritarian Weapon Against Civil Society
When thousands of Georgians filled the streets of Tbilisi in 2023 to protest against their government’s proposed ‘foreign agents’ law, they understood what their leaders were trying to do: this wasn’t...
www.ipsnews.net
October 29, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Dear @eppgroup.bsky.social please check up the regimes that have been following the Russian play book on anti-NGOs repression and ask yourselves if those are the models you want to follow:
www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/fore...
Standard play book: defunding=>foreign agent labelling=>judicial repression.
www.ipsnews.net/2025/10/fore...
Standard play book: defunding=>foreign agent labelling=>judicial repression.