MOVE.BG has published a special report, "Mission Green Innovation: A Prosperity Compass," which contains over 200 ideas for developing green innovation as a path to positive public development. The recommendations in the Compass are based on the ideas of 50 leading experts, who MOVE.BG brought together to formulate systemic solutions for the development of green innovation.
The five stops in the Compass
The Compass includes five stops on the road to public prosperity with the help of green innovation: Democracy, Education, Economy, Municipalities, and Finance. Each stop presents the ideas of leading Bulgarian experts with proven experience in the fields of science, business, sociology, the civil sector, the media, as well as representatives of political parties and the financial sector.
Today, we present the ideas from the Democracy Stop, which is dedicated to the link between the state of democracy and green development. This stop includes recommendations for tackling disinformation and propaganda, as well as for restoring people's trust in institutions.
Democracy Stop
The following experts took part in the panel dedicated to democracy and green development:
- Sasha Bezuhanova, Founder of MOVE.BG and Co-founder of SCION Society, Panel Moderator
- Ana Doneva, Expert at MOVE.BG
- Borislav Sandov, Member of the Executive Board of the Green Movement, Deputy Prime Minister for Climate Policies, and Minister of the Environment and Water (2021-2022)
- Boyan Zahariev, Programme Director at Open Society Sofia Institute
- Veselin Stoynev, Journalist, Political Analyst at the Bulgarian section of Deutsche Welle
- Elena Darieva, Sociologist, Founder of NASOCA Agency
- Nikolay Denkov, Member of Parliament for We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria, Prime Minister (2023-2024), Minister of Education and Science (2017; 2021-2022)
- Rumiana Bachvarova, Senior Associate Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Democracy, Deputy Prime Minister (2014-2017) and Minister of the Interior (2015-2017), Chief of Cabinet of the Prime Minister (2009-2014), Member of Parliament in the 42nd, 43rd, and 44th National Assembly
The experts participated in their personal capacity rather than as representatives of the institutions or organisations where they worked as of January 2025.
Before we present the ideas of the experts, let us have a look at the topic of the panel and the place of green development in it.
Green development and democracy: why do we discuss them together
Several months before the 30th jubilee session of the Climate Change Conference in Brazil, the world’s leading economy, the United States of America, withdrew from the Paris Agreement on Climate change and will not attend the session in Brazil.
The US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement became a top headline in the news about the inauguration of President Donald Trump.
However, was it really the top piece of news about national climate-related commitments?
In 2025, we will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. In 2015, 195 countries and territories signed the fundamental international document to combat climate change.
The Paris Agreement set several goals, among which the major ones were to reduce global warming to hold global temperature increase to 2 degrees and pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees by the end of the century. Another important goal of its Protocol is to achieve a net-zero emissions economy and society by 2050, i.e., to generate as many greenhouse gas emissions as nature can absorb and neutralise in a natural way.
Ten years on, the Parties have failed to attain any of these goals, as indicated in the most recent UN Synthesis Report of national climate policies. Current national climate plans fall miles short of what is needed to stop global heating from “crippling every economy, and wrecking billions of lives and livelihoods across every country”, as stated by the United Nations.
This implies a democracy problem: ten years after they committed themselves to limiting global warming and achieving net zero emissions by 2050 to prevent a disaster caused by climate change to people, nature, and economies, the Parties still fail to fulfil any of those commitments.
The failure to tackle climate change poses a risk to democratic development.
“Several climate-related consequences are intricately connected to democratic and institutional stability. Global warming will probably increase the likelihood of food insecurity and might trigger economic recessions and financial instability. It could deepen inequalities and climate injustice and cause social unrest, conflicts, and an increase in climate-related migration. On the other hand, efforts to tackle global warming could contribute to the strengthening of democracy by inspiring innovation, social mobilization, and collaboration. The overall picture indicates, however, that the effects of the climate crisis will have a very negative impact on the global advancement of freedom and could pose an existential risk for democracy”, according to the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance.
Still, governments not only fail to fulfil their commitments, but they have also allowed rampant propaganda against climate change and the prevalence of fears in the public agenda without any adequate response by the institutions.
For this reason, another significant democracy problem has occurred, i.e., climate denial is once again on the public agenda, including social media and the involvement of influencers. Campaigns against climate policies go hand-in-hand with campaigns against democracy as a national development path.
“Voters in Europe, including the UK, are being bombarded with misinformation about climate change at a time when politicians are struggling to implement necessary policies required to accelerate action and mitigate the damaging impacts of climate change on voters’ lives and livelihoods. By deliberately distorting truth and promoting misinformation about climate change, Reform UK and their counterparts in the rest of Europe are attempting to undermine democracy and public trust”, reads an analysis in the blog of the London School of Economics.
The opinion of experts
What happens to democracy and green development in Bulgaria?
This section of the Report presents a summary of the opinions that experts expressed in the panel discussion dedicated to democracy and green development. The participants in the panel discussed the issues facing the development of democracy in Bulgaria, which hampered the success of the green transformation and the development of green innovation. They also shared ideas on how to improve governance mechanisms and policies in order to use the opportunities brought about by climate and green policies, and how green innovation could be promoted at the government level.
The ideas are summarized and grouped together by the team of MOVE.BG without any claims that they have been approved unanimously by all participants in the panel.
Challenges
Challenges relating to the lack of a democracy development strategy in Bulgaria
- Lack of a democracy development strategy in Bulgaria – we as a society do not know what we want from democracy and what we wish to achieve through democratic development
- Spread of populist movements – public parlance is dominated by diverse forms of populist movements, manipulating people’s fears
- Rise of a sovereigntist trend – various populist movements come to the fore with demands for self-isolation of Bulgaria, including withdrawal from the EU and NATO. They continuously inculcate tension and fear that “the national sovereignty” is at risk of destruction
- Marginalisation of the civil society sector – rise of an anti-NGO narrative and attempts at ousting the civil society sector from social life
- Existence of powerful feudalism – loss of economic freedom, loss of hopes for prosperity, loss of trust in institutions, and the functioning of democracy
- Non-performing institutions – lack of power checks and balances, lack of a professional administration. Civil servants at government institutions are afraid of layoffs and they stop working at times of political uncertainty. An example to this effect is the failure of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan and the resulting loss of resources and opportunities for developing various sectors and regions
- Domination of fear-oriented political communication – it is a common practice to make fear prevail in political communication. Fear as a category is volatile and, therefore, it is constantly abused with. New “fears” come into existence, old fears are “resurrected”, and current ones are exaggerated. There is no sufficiently strong response to the manipulation of fears
- Lack of trust in institutions – the general public does not trust the information provided by institutions due to mounting disappointments and failed hopes
- Refusal to use scientific expertise in the decision-making process – decisions tend to be made without underlying information, and the use of expert assessments
- Presentation of lies as an alternative viewpoint – rise of the theory that lies, propaganda, and disinformation are the alternative viewpoint and need to be “protected” as part of the freedom of speech in a democratic society. Is there an alternative viewpoint to the truth? This is the question we need to answer as a society at all levels, including the political class and government institutions
- Purposeful promotion of conspiracy theories – inculcation of the opinion that there are secret forces behind any problem or solution, and everything is decided in advance, which undermines people’s faith in democracy and its principles
Challenges relating to the ersatz discussion about green development
- Loss of the dialogue with citizens – the representatives of government institutions do not explain the need for climate policies to citizens
- Formalised parlance of experts and policy makers – people are not talked to as citizens who are not climate change experts. Instead, the information made available on this topic is complicated, voluminous, and incomprehensible, and easily gives way to distrust, propaganda, and disinformation. There is no understanding that citizens who are not climate experts have enough work and family duties to fulfill, and they hardly have the time to follow continuously the extensive and complicated information about climate change and climate policies
- Failure to understand the link between climate disasters and polluting technologies, including coal burning and diesel vehicles, the denial of the linkage between polluted air and coal burning is observed even in regions where air is highly polluted
- Lack of a narrative on how the green transition helps the poorest, the most vulnerable people are not a target group to be explained the need for climate policies and the opportunities they create
- Existence of a well-developed propaganda machine against climate policies – the propaganda machine functions very well against climate policies. Therefore, the debate on the need for climate policies and the opportunities brought about by green development is supplanted by purposeful fears generated because of vested political and/or economic interests
- Fear-based communication developed by the adversaries to climate policies – fears are inculcated all the time. The main themes are that the world we are living in might change disastrously and that cheap electricity will disappear, although electricity is not cheap at all
- Emergence of a new propaganda thesis relating to resources: “We need to use all natural resources as quickly as possible, lest we lose them”. It runs counter to the scientific evidence in support of the need to reduce the use of natural resources in order to preserve them
- Lack of a single centre to counter propaganda and climate disinformation
- Lack of data on the propaganda machine operating against green development and inaction of government institutions – institutions fail to investigate the propaganda which undermines fundamental government policies, such as climate goals and commitments. This propaganda is a real and serious threat to Bulgaria’s national security
- Underestimation of the authentic green industry and its opportunities – political parties and government institutions alike fail to understand the importance of the green economy and its benefits
- Insufficient knowledge of journalists working on topics related to climate policies – because of the low staff levels, the media do not have journalists specialising in specific topics, including the important issues of climate change. Some journalists are not sufficiently knowledgeable of climate topics and therefore they cannot challenge lies communicated to the public on air. Media tend to invite guest speakers without any expertise in serious matters relating to green development instead of inviting experts with good knowledge of the subject. A pertinent example was the water crisis and its media coverage, where guest speakers invited to talk shows were “jacks-of-all-trades” who were visibly incompetent in the management of water resources
Challenges relating to the absence of green innovation from the policy agenda
- Unawareness of the importance of green innovation – failure to understand the role of green innovation for the economy and society
- Lack of policies to develop the green economy – there are no central and local government policies to promote the green economy in Bulgaria
- Lack of a special green fund to support young entrepreneurs who have innovative ideas in support of the green transition – there is no special fund within the Fund of Funds to promote green innovation. The lack of specialised funds prevents private capital from joining. For all these reasons, green entrepreneurship is absent from the public agenda, and it is not perceived as an attractive development area
- Inefficient performance of the Fund of Funds – the institution is politicised and its performance is strongly dependent on the political situation in the country
- Lack of a special focus on green innovation at the Bulgarian Development Bank (BDB) – the government does not use the BDB as a tool to support the development of green innovation, unlike other European countries and their state-owned development banks (Germany, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands)
- Unawareness of the EU programmes to support the development of innovation – lack of information about the ways to apply for support and lack of experience of entrepreneurs in preparing the relevant documentation, as a result of which Bulgarian innovators rarely apply for support from the large-scale programmes of the European Commission (e.g. the programmes of the European Innovation Council, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, LIFE programme)
Solutions Compass
Ideas of the experts in relation to the improvement of democratic mechanisms to implement climate policies
- Establish a single National Green Development Board to counter climate disinformation and restore trust in climate science – this structure should be independent and bring together scientists, representatives of the civil society sector, businesses, and the government (central government and local authorities). It could be established at the Council of Ministers by an Act of Parliament rather than by secondary legislation such as an ordinance of the Council of Ministers to ensure its independence and viability and to avoid repeating the inefficiency of the EU Green Deal Advisory Board (GDAB)
- Conduct a survey on people’s fears relating to green development – data is needed to identify people’s concerns and address them adequately. The survey should be commissioned by the Board mentioned above
- Carry out a public awareness campaign on the reasons for climate change – the National Green Development Board should prepare and carry out a public awareness campaign on the reasons for climate change, since propaganda has undermined the trust in scientific data and brought about various conspiracy theories, including the denial of climate change and the role of human activity. Therefore, it is necessary to once again explain the reasons for climate change in a way that is easy to understand. The preparation of the campaign should involve representatives of the Ministry of the Environment and Water, the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works, the Ministry of Energy, the Ministry of Innovation and Growth, the Ministry of the Economy and Industry, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the Ministry of Health, the National Association of Municipalities in the Republic of Bulgaria, scientists, representatives of the civil society sector, communication and digital storytelling experts
- Present the link between climate change and polluting technologies, including coal burning, in an easily comprehensible manner as part and parcel of the campaign described above
- Carry out a public awareness campaign on the opportunities created by green development – the National Green Development Board should prepare and carry out the campaign. It should cover measures to communicate the diverse opportunities, depending on the target group: cleaner air and environment for children to grow; healthier people and less healthcare costs; more economic opportunities, including higher wages and improved competitiveness. The preparation of the campaign should involve representatives of the Ministry of the Environment and Water, the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works, the Ministry of Energy, the Ministry of Innovation and Growth, the Ministry of the Economy and Industry, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the Ministry of Health, the National Association of Municipalities in the Republic of Bulgaria, scientists, representatives of the civil society sector, communication and digital storytelling experts
- Replace the terms “climate policies”, “green development”, and “green transformation” by a single inclusive term that is not charged with negative connotations and propaganda cliches
- Work out a mechanism to continuously inform the public about climate change and its effects in Bulgaria – the mechanism should be established by law. The information presented through the mechanism should be regular, honest, sincere, and easy to understand. The information should explain how the climate crisis affects specific sectors and regions and what measures are implemented by the institutions to address the challenges
- Work out a mechanism to continuously provide the public with data on how green development improves the living environment – the mechanism should be established by law. It should obligate the institutions responsible for the implementation of climate policies to provide information on how climate measures improve the living environment and to carry out public awareness campaigns, e.g. how the quality of air or water is being improved
- Extend the outreach of the institutional communication on climate change and green development to various groups in society – the communication by government institutions should reach out to young people, senior citizens, and people living in small communities
- Organise meetings with workers in the mining industry and other affected sectors – the meetings should be organised by the relevant ministries and municipalities. People should be listened to and heard rather than attacked for their fears. They should be explained in a comprehensible eye-to-eye format what new opportunities are created by green development. The talks should involve climate change experts who will provide the relevant data and communication experts to explain the data and the need for climate policies. Representatives of the institutions should also participate to reassure the people that the government will not leave them behind and to present the support measures they have planned
- Introduce a mechanism to ensure the citizens’ participation in the adoption of climate policies and the monitoring of their implementation – the mechanism should be established by law. It should encourage the participation of citizens from different social groups and regions of the country. The mechanism could envisage municipal climate assemblies, public debates and reporting with the participation of citizens. People with different views should participate because of the need to listen to their concerns with empathy and understanding
- Establish a collaborative mechanism for scientists and civil society representatives – scientists and civil society representatives should develop a mechanism to collaborate continuously on green development issues
- Organise meetings with journalists – the collaborative mechanism described above could be used to organise such meetings. Journalists should meet experts in the various areas of green development to build relations of trust
- Organise trainings for journalists – climate change is a complex and comprehensive challenge, and therefore, trainings of journalists are needed in the main areas of climate policies. The trainings should be organised by scientists, civil society organisations, and professional associations (the Association of European Journalists – Bulgaria)
Ideas of the experts in relation to the institutional measures to be implemented in support to the green innovation development
- Establish a National Green Innovation Development Board – it should be set up at the Ministry of Innovation and Growth and regulated by law. The Board should be comprised of representatives of the business sector, science, the civil society sector, municipalities, and all competent ministries and state agencies in this area (this is a way to mainstream the topic at the central government level). It should foster the attainment of climate goals through the development of green innovation and explain the importance of green innovation to citizens and businesses
- Carry out an analysis of Bulgaria’s potential to develop green innovation and draft a strategy based on that analysis – this task should be assigned to the Green Innovation Development Board described above
- Coordinate the efforts of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and universities – they should join their efforts to develop green innovation in the priority areas for Bulgaria as identified in the strategy described above. The Ministry of Innovation and Growth should support this coordination
- Develop a campaign to position Bulgaria through green innovation – to be organised by the Ministry of Innovation and Growth
- Support the participation of Bulgarian companies in global networks for green innovation development – a mechanism for the implementation of this task should be set up at the Ministry of Innovation and Growth
- Set up municipal green innovation development boards, bringing together representatives of the business sector, science, the civil society sector, and municipalities. The Ministry of Innovation and Growth and the National Association of Municipalities in the Republic of Bulgaria should support the process of establishing these municipal boards
- Reform the Fund of Funds – deploy a mechanism to ensure the independence of this entity
- Establish a Green Innovation Development Fund within the Fund of Funds
- Develop a special green innovation focus at the Bulgarian Development Bank
- Work out a training programme on how to apply for participation in EU innovation programmes – the programme should operate at the Ministry of Innovation and Growth with at least two training sessions per year to be held either in regional centres or online
- Develop a green innovation focus within the National Trust Eco Fund
- Create a market for payment of emissions through green innovation development – Bulgaria should propose such an idea at the EU level
- Propose a policy package on the greening of the conventional economy – the policies should envisage meetings with businesses to explain the benefits from these policies for improving their competitiveness
- Develop a mechanism to maintain continuous links between science and business – the establishment of the mechanism should be coordinated by the Ministry of Innovation and Growth. The mechanism should be used to have science and business meet and talk about climate change and green innovation issues
- Develop an upskilling programme dedicated to the role of green innovation – the programme should be a joint initiative of the Ministry of Innovation and Growth, municipalities, and the business sector. The programme should provide training on the importance of innovation and how to tackle it at work and in everyday life
- Introduce an integrated approach to climate policies and green innovation in tertiary education – students should study the link between climate change and green development within the curriculum of their studies
- Work out a national strategy and a roadmap for the development of green innovation accelerator programmes in tertiary education, including support to spin-off companies with protected rights of young entrepreneurs. Provide central and/or local government funding for the implementation of the ideas
- Develop a university programme for green innovation management – introduce studies in the management of the processes of creating and developing green innovation
- Establish joint master’s programmes with European universities in the area of climate change and green innovation
The challenges and solutions outlined here are based on the ideas which the participants in the panel generated. The ideas are summarized and grouped together without any claims that they have been approved unanimously by all participants in the panel.
Check all recommendations in the Compass here (in ENG).
Mission Green Innovation
The Compass is part of the Mission Green Innovation, an initiative of MOVE.BG in support of green innovators in Bulgaria. At MOVE.BG, we know that Bulgaria has the potential to be among the green and innovative leaders in Europe. Therefore, we should support the creators of innovation that can change the face of the Bulgarian economy from a resource-based to a value-based one.
Learn more about the various initiatives of MOVE.BG in support of green and innovative development in Bulgaria here (in ENG).
