Trends Identified
Growing vulnerability of cities to climate change
Climate change influences climate conditions (temperature, rainfall and the magnitude of extreme weather events). Over the coming years, extreme weather events in LRAs will give an indication of situations projected for later this century. For instance, droughts and peak summer temperatures will be gradually more common in the Mediterranean regions. Winter floods and summer droughts will increasingly become more frequent in continental Europe while storms, heavy rainfalls and mild winters alter biophysical conditions in Western Europe.
2014
Challenges at the horizon 2025
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)
Growing global and EU urbanisation
In 1950 only one in three people in the world lived in urban areas. By 2007 every other person lived in an urban environment. The projected urban share of global population is estimated to rise further to 60% in 2030. The figure in Europe is 2/3 rds of the European population living in urban areas (see graph), and this share continues to grow with nearly 80% living in urban areas by 2030.85 While the situation varies throughout the EU, there are big contrasts between rural and urban communities.
2014
Challenges at the horizon 2025
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)
Growing urban sprawl and urban-rural synergies in the areas of recycling, food and renewable energy production Growing urban rural relations
With continuing growth of urbanisation, urban-rural relations are rapidly changing. Foremost, Europe will continue to witness an ever wider urban sprawl. Over the past 50 years, on average, cities have expanded by 78%, whereas the population has grown by only 33%. The historical compact city model has been replaced by free standing housing, more than doubling of the space consumed per inhabitant. As a result, low density suburban development in the periphery of Europe's cities has become the norm.
2014
Challenges at the horizon 2025
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)
Increased stress and damage to vulnerable ecosystems and habitats
As cities expand into the countryside, the habitats of many animals and plants are reduced. Roads and other infrastructure are carving valuable habitats dividing wildlife populations into increasingly smaller groups. This has serious consequences for some of Europe’s most endangered species.
2014
Challenges at the horizon 2025
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)
Limited and declining EU cohesion funds and infrastructure investments
The Structural Funds and the Cohesion Funds are the financial instruments of EU regional policy intended to narrow the development disparities among regions and EU Member States. Together with agriculture, they are the biggest spending blocs. Both agriculture and cohesion policies suffered hefty decreases for the upcoming budgetary cycle (2014-2020). It follows an ongoing trend in the EU budget away from agriculture and cohesion policy allocations.
2014
Challenges at the horizon 2025
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)
Growing availability of big data and the data deluge
Data in the world is doubling every 18 months and has become the ‘21st Century’s new raw material’.95 The overall trend is that the world is becoming more and more interconnected by globally and continuously available data.
2014
Challenges at the horizon 2025
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)
Growing pressure on local and regional authorities to better understand society, use of big data in areas such as e-health and e-education
Big data analytics is aimed at making governments and companies more effective. The rejuvenation of public services should continue through the rapid implementation of services such as e-government, e-health, e-invoicing and e-procurement. This will lead to more and better digital services for citizens and enterprises across the EU and free resources in the public sector for innovative use.
2014
Challenges at the horizon 2025
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)
Fragmentation of regulatory approach to ICT and big data
Despite the potential of big data and cloud computing, fragmented regulatory environments in the EU and a lack of adopted interoperability approaches and standards pose significant barriers. The lack of clear guidance in this field causes regulatory uncertainty on how to apply the relevant provisions from the existing EU regulatory framework. Member States have started to adopt different approaches, creating a risk of fragmentation of the digital single market and deterring EU wide investment and innovation.
2014
Challenges at the horizon 2025
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)
Growing knowledge about citizens choices and preferences and the dawn of internet of things
While big data has many promises, the next challenge is how to best use that data while respecting the privacy concerns of European citizens. The most valuable big data information is about people going online and the digital trail that they leave behind. By making connections between different snippets of information, big data can reveal far more than ever intended. Inevitably that means the collection and use of big data is central to the debate on privacy and the use of personal data. The EU needs a data protection framework that builds that confidence and permits that digital innovation.
2014
Challenges at the horizon 2025
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)
Continued importance of communicating the EU
The Communication strategy needs to inform citizens of the EU about the EU’s added-value and its functioning and decisions which impact upon the daily life of each of its citizens.111 Informing citizens about the complex EU multi- governance system and to engage citizens’ awareness and active engagement in this system is challenging.
2014
Challenges at the horizon 2025
European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS)