A small town outside of Zagreb, Samobor in Croatia, was the destination for over 20 European climate & gas campaigners from the Friends of the Earth Europe network. Our Climate Campaign Coordinator Suzanne Maas was there to join the annual Fossil Free Network Gathering, to discuss with colleagues from across Europe how to get our continent off fossil fuels, and particularly, how to bring about a phase-out of gas. 

The threat of gas has been increasing this past year. With Europe in a frenzy to move away from Russian gas, there has been a lot of money flowing towards infrastructure for LNG (liquified natural gas); investments that are locking us into decades of further of gas, a dangerous fossil fuel. 

The group of campaigners rallied together to push for real solutions to the climate and energy crisis: renewable energy in the hands of the people, such as through community energy initiatives; investments in energy saving measures that reduce both bills and emissions; and political pressure to move away from fossil fuels for good. 

Just a few days later, Suzanne was joined by our Director Martin Galea de Giovanni on another transnational meeting on the topic on energy. In the early morning, they hopped on the ferry to our neighbouring island Sicily to discuss with Italian NGOs and activists about the proposed Melita gas pipeline, intended to connect Malta and Gela in Sicily. They met with representatives from ReCommon, a collective of campaigners challenging corporate and state power in the energy sector, as well as with activists from the No MUOS movement, who campaign on topics such as militarization and energy democracy. In a public meeting in Catania, Suzanne explained about the proposed Melita gas pipeline, including its connection to corruption, carbon emissions and climate targets. To learn more about the Melita gas pipeline and why we’d like to see invest in the energy of the future instead, click here to see a short explainer video. 

Through making such connections, we can learn from successful campaigns elsewhere, build crucial alliances and support each other to take action to stop further investment in fossil fuels, and make a fossil free Europe a reality!