Climate & coronavirus: Competing agenda?

Abstract

The article analyzes trends in the global climate agenda and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on it. Analysis of the events associated with the pandemic and its impact on the economies of leading countries and on the prospects for reducing greenhouse gas emissions is carried out. Article also focuses on the climate-related social movements, including "Fridays for Future" initiative and Flightshaming flashmobs. Analysis of the origin of these movements is carried out, with a special reference to the real goals and beneficiaries of this type of activity on the global level. A connection is traced between the origination of these movements and actual state of the global scientific discourse on the climate change issues, including the anthropogenic warming hypothesis. Special attention is paid to the reaction of the world and European elites political to the situation with coronavirus, including new and worrisome approaches. Attempts to counter the shift of the global agenda from the climate change issues to the real action against global coronavirus pandemic, carried out both at the EU level and at the global level, are discussed. New EU goals in the area of GHG emission reduction, set in the EU State of the Union address of September 16, 2020, are analyzed, in parallel with the assessment of the economic situation in the EU countries after the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic and the EU activities during that period.