Giving Compass' Take:

· Mehreen Khan reports that the European Union has created a 'Green Deal' to achieve a carbon neutral Europe by 2050 and touches on key components of the plan. 

· How does the EU plan to realign the economy with the environment? How does it plan to provide a smooth transition for all countries?

· Read more about this topic and telling the story of climate change.

The European Union unveiled a sweeping set of environmental initiatives on Wednesday aimed at creating the world's first carbon-neutral continent by 2050, touching everything from state aid rules to a green industrial policy and a carbon border tax on imports.

In its much-anticipated Green Deal for Europe, the new European Commission, led by Ursula von der Leyen, laid out 50 policies to be rolled out over the next three years that would revamp rules and regulations to meet ambitious climate goals.

The EU wants to become the first big economic bloc to reach zero carbon emissions by 2050, and it expects to propose a climate law in March to enshrine the target. The new commission also wants to ramp up medium-term targets, cutting emissions by 50 to 55 percent in 2030, up from a current target of 40 percent.

It also plans to mobilize €100 billion of the EU budget and investment loans from the European Investment Bank to fund a "just transition" in poorer, eastern member states whose economies currently rely on fossil fuels.

Read the full article about the EU's 'Green Deal' by Mehreen Khan at InsideClimate News.