The legal significance of article 11 TFEU for EU institutions and member states

Sustainable development is an overarching, global societal goal, encompassing the search for a balance between economic development, social justice and environmental protection. The ultimate objective is the achievement of the best possible world for all of humanity and the boundaries within which the balancing must take place is the preservation of our ecosystems as the very basis of our existence.2 Sustainable development has a strong legal position among the ultimate objectives of the European Union, underpinned by the growing recognition in the EU of the inextricable entity of humanity, our natural environment and our economic system. The principle of sustainable development is the key, requiring the integration of environmental protection requirements in all areas, with the aim of achieving sustainable development.3 The threat of climate change and to global biodiversity accentuates the necessity of recognising and respecting the ecological limits within which all social and economic development must take place.The principle of sustainable development is codified, following the changes made by the Lisbon Treaty, in an enhanced version of the rule now enacted in Article 11 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).4