The European Union officially simplifies the CSRD
• The European Commission published the revised ESRS sustainability reporting standards in the Official Journal of the EU, applying to companies covered by the CSRD and, on a voluntary basis, to smaller structures via a dedicated standard.
• The Omnibus I initiative, launched in early 2025, limited the reporting obligation to a smaller number of companies by raising the eligibility thresholds and cut mandatory data points by 61%.
• This revision, entering into force for financial years starting from January 2027, aims for a regulatory transformation by easing the compliance burden and strengthening the clarity of published sustainability information.
Source: ESG Today – "EU Publishes Final Revised European Sustainability Reporting Standards in Official Journal"
The EU EmpCo directive: the end of greenwashing?
• The European Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition directive, effective from September 27, 2026, required all companies operating in the EU, particularly in consumer goods, retail, fashion, and technology, to substantiate all their environmental claims with evidence in order to fight greenwashing.
• This regulation targeted widespread practices such as vague terminology, uncertified private labels, or carbon neutrality based solely on external offsets, imposing independent audits and scientific validation of data.
• By requiring structured approaches, the directive strengthened the credibility of sustainability claims, giving companies that meet these requirements a competitive advantage and renewed consumer trust.
Source: ESG Today – "Beyond Greenwashing: Navigating the EU Directive on Green Claims"
The government considers a sharp budget cut at ADEME despite the climate crisis
• The French government considered cutting ADEME's 2027 budget by more than 30%, notably targeting the heat fund, whose amount fell from €800 million to about €500 million after the summer of 2026.
• This budget cut threatened the halt or abandonment of energy-transition projects led by companies and local authorities.
• The measure comes as the reduction of the heat fund undermines the momentum of cutting fossil-gas imports, against the backdrop of a summer marked by unprecedented heatwaves and drought.
Source: Le Monde – "Après un été de canicules et de sécheresse, le gouvernement envisage de réduire de plus de 30 % le budget de l'Ademe"
Miquelon, the first French village threatened by marine submersion
• The village of Miquelon in Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon began its complete relocation in 2025 due to the threat of submersion from rising sea levels, a consequence of climate change confirmed by its red-zone classification in the Coastal Risk Prevention Plan since 2014.
• This relocation involves the active participation of residents and planning by the town hall in partnership with Métamorphoses Urbaines, to secure the population and preserve the local ecological area.
• President Emmanuel Macron's visit is expected to formalize state financial support to build more than sixty additional homes and a refuge against extreme climate hazards.
Source: Vert le media – "À Miquelon, les habitants contraints de déménager face à la submersion marine : Ça fait mal de me dire que cet endroit disparaîtra sous l'eau un jour"
Pesticides in France: impunity in the face of sick children
• Journalists Nolwenn Weiler and Sophie Chapelle published "Pesticides Kids" in September 2026, a book gathering testimonies from children affected by serious conditions, families, health professionals, and researchers, documenting the health impact of pesticides in France.
• The investigation highlighted the persistent gap between scientific knowledge on toxicity, societal mobilizations, and the late establishment of compensation schemes and specialized consultations.
• This book aims to provide the public and decision-makers with an overview of the health, social, and regulatory consequences, while underscoring the need to strengthen prevention and support for victims.
Source: Reporterre – "Enfants victimes des pesticides : Ce sont des vies fracassées par la maladie"
Environmental racism against Travellers under scrutiny
• William Acker, a jurist from the Traveller community and general delegate of the ANGVC, documented in his book the environmental racism faced by these populations, notably revealing that in France, 52% of designated halting sites are located near polluting sources and more than 70% outside residential areas.
• This situation has translated into serious health consequences, including a life expectancy 10 to 15 years below the national average, and increased exposure to industrial and climate risks.
• By calling out this form of discrimination, Acker urged legal and political recognition of this systemic racism to mobilize both anti-racist and environmental actors.
Source: Vert le media – "Une forme de gestion de l'indésirable : le juriste William Acker documente le racisme environnemental subi par les gens du voyage"
The 12-mile zone: the government maintains factory-ship pressure
• The French government maintained factory ships' access to the 12-mile coastal strip, although the National Fisheries Committee and the vast majority of artisanal fishers had called for their exclusion.
• This decision heightened tensions between industrial players and local fishers, while NGOs and experts warned of the threat to the preservation of fish stocks and the economy of coastal areas.
• The absence of a ban perpetuates imbalances in the exploitation of marine resources, raising questions about regulatory management and food sovereignty.
Source: Reporterre – "Des monstres des mers près des côtes : l'État laisse le champ libre aux navires-usines"
Local alternatives to coffee: a major ecological challenge
• The daily coffee consumption of most French adults and nearly two billion people worldwide has generated a significant ecological footprint, notably in terms of deforestation, water use, and greenhouse gas emissions, as well as human rights violations in its supply chain.
• Climate change has worsened these problems, causing a drop in production and rising prices, which encourages the search for local, lower-impact alternatives such as chicory, barley coffee, or lupin coffee.
• These substitutes, mostly produced in France, aim to reduce the environmental and social pressure of the coffee sector in favor of more responsible and resilient consumption.
Source: Vert le media – "Chicorée, café d'orge ou de lupin : quelles sont les alternatives au café les plus écologiques ?"
"Un commun accord", a citizens' assembly to weigh on the 2027 presidential election
• Jean-Marc Jancovici initiated the citizens' assembly "Un commun accord", bringing together 156 randomly selected citizens, funded by a crowdfunding campaign and endowed with a €3 million budget, to reflect on major climate, economic, and energy issues, with sessions launched at the CNAM in Paris.
• The work, supported by expert contributions and integrating broad representativeness, aimed to resolve concrete dilemmas affecting society and companies alike.
• The recommendations from this civil-society initiative are due to be presented in February 2027, a few weeks before the presidential election, to feed the political debate on the environmental and social transition.
Source: Vert le media – "Nous nous sommes auto-saisis : l'Assemblée citoyenne de Jean-Marc Jancovici est lancée et compte peser sur la présidentielle"
French youth calls for a climate mobilization on September 26
• A collective of middle- and high-school pupils, students, and young people in precarious situations launched a call for a national mobilization on September 26, 2026 in France for climate, biodiversity, and social justice, drawing on the immediate impacts of the climate emergency: more than 7,300 heat-related deaths and 100,000 hectares of forest destroyed by fires over the summer.
• This initiative underscored young people's concern for their future and that of vulnerable populations, while denouncing the responsibility of economic choices and government passivity.
• The signatories called for a profound transformation of society to guarantee human dignity and planetary habitability.
Source: Vert le media – "L'urgence climatique nous oblige, c'est notre futur très proche qui est en jeu : l'appel de la jeunesse à manifester le 26 septembre"
