May 13 2009, 05:54 PM
Swedes put environment on top of their EU list
By: Sara Jeswani
Today I am blogging from the train between Stockholm and Gothenburg. Spring has made every tree explode into green leaves and flowers, and I can't wait to take a walk in the forest.
Between the gardens full of cherry blossoms that are flashing by outside the train window, once in a while I also see a billboard that encourages people to vote in the upcoming election for the European parliament.
With less than a month left until the election, campaigns have just started for real. According to a survey made by one of Sweden's biggest news papers, the issues that Swedish voters prioritize most are climate change, the environment and energy. 23 percent say that these are most important. Hopefully this will show more in debates as the election gets closer.
What happens in the EU often seems distant and a bit abstract to many people. But when it comes to climate policies, EU has a big impact on what will happen at the national level.
One of the reasons why climate change politics are more burning than ever, is the UN climate conference in Copenhagen that will be held in December. There the actions that the world will take when the Kyoto agreement expires will be decided. In these negotiations the EU plays an important role. In just a few weeks Sweden is taking over the presidency of the EU. Expectations are high.