ICE at the Opening Panel of WARM Paris 2025
Bringing the CEE Perspective to Europe’s Climate and Geopolitical Debate On 5 November 2025, ICE Director Katarína Cséfalvayová spoke at the opening panel of the inaugural WARM Paris conference, hosted by 2050NOW and Les Echos Le Parisien. The event brought together leaders from business, finance, and policymaking to discuss how Europe can remain resilient amid rising geopolitical tensions while accelerating the green transition. The session, titled “What direction for Europe between climate ambition and geopolitical tensions?” explored how European governments and companies are adapting to a more unstable world. Katarína contributed the perspective of Central and Eastern Europe, a region whose climate debate is strongly shaped by its recent history and ongoing transformation. Key insights from the CEE perspective:
- Three transitions in three decades: from authoritarianism to democracy, from a planned to a market economy, and now toward a low-carbon model.
- Understanding backlash: for many citizens, the European Green Deal is perceived as yet another externally imposed burden after years of socially difficult transformations.
- Untapped potential: the region’s industrial base, engineering talent, and innovation capacity position CEE as a possible driver of Europe’s green transformation.
- Innovation as the turning point: technological, industrial, and social innovation can turn laggards into leaders.
- The role of companies: major investors operating in CEE must communicate their climate goals, progress, and responsibilities more clearly — this visibility can help shape public opinion and support a just, fair transition.
ICE congratulates the organizers for launching a dynamic new platform that connects climate ambition, industrial strategy, and geopolitics. We are proud to contribute to this important conversation and look forward to future editions of WARM Paris.
