Climate change is the biggest challenge facing nations worldwide, and time is running out to respond effectively. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and sequestering carbon should be top priorities for the government. While BSRB supports the government's climate goals, it emphasizes the need for more concrete actions, as climate change poses a significant threat to the security and quality of life for all.
Measures must be accelerated to reduce emissions from the industries primarily responsible for pollution in Iceland. Additionally, the development of public transport should be prioritized and maintained under public operation, along with other infrastructure projects aimed at addressing climate action and adaptation.
BSRB insists that a just transition be a guiding principle in actions taken against climate change and the changes that are inevitable. The goal of a just transition is to ensure that investments create green jobs and that lower-income groups do not bear a disproportionately greater burden. Green jobs are those that contribute to reducing emissions while ensuring decent wages, labor market rights, and a good working environment. BSRB believes that social partners must establish common goals for a just transition so that the rights and conditions of employees are guaranteed, no less than those of the business community.
BSRB further demands that the country's natural resources be considered national property and that everyone has access to clean drinking water. The utilization of natural resources must be sustainable, and there should be broad social consensus regarding their use. The aim is to achieve even further protection, along with a new provision in the constitution for the protection of nature, uninhabited wilderness, and the environment.