Green New Deal in Poland

Though the publication of this study the Green European Foundation is continuing its work on the elaboration and dissemination of ideas and research on one of the core projects of the European Green political family: “the Green New Deal”. Initiated by the Heinrich Böll Foundation Warsaw office and the Zielony Instytut Poland, this volume endeavours to link the European level concept to a concrete national example. A “Green New Deal for Poland” delivers a first case study of what the actual implementation of a European Green New Deal would mean at the national level.

For several years now, the European Greens have been setting out their proposals for a European and a global Green New Deal; no less than a green framework for the transformation of contemporary capitalism necessitated by the recent crises. The Green New Deal is not just another “eco-friendly” policy, but refers to a major shift towards more sustainable and equitable patterns of production and consumption. It calls for a rethink of priorities, from the way we live and work to what we value. The Green New Deal proposes a comprehensive economic, social and environmental transformation; from infrastructure and sustainable industrial policies to investment in peoples’ well-being and the redistribution of wealth.

The historic reference is clear: the policies implemented to recover from the Great Depression of the 1930s. Nonetheless, the policies from this period cannot be a blueprint for measures suitable for the 21st century. Today’s interrelated environmental, social and economic crises have brought the Greens’ analyses and political priorities to the centre-stage. The ideas of the Green New Deal have in many ways, and in many countries, become part of the mainstream political discourse.