The input paper emphasizes the need to advance national and European resource policies in the upcoming legislative term. It argues that an ambitious resource policy results in economic opportunities. Due to a range of specific barriers such as financial risks, information deficits, or the externalization of environmental impacts, these potentials cannot be tapped by market mechanisms alone.

Therefore, the paper argues for ambitious resource saving targets. Monitoring mechanisms should be introduced to make economical potentials and environmental effects more visible, thus giving direction and impetus to innovation and investments. Moreover, policy instruments should aim at fostering innovations, knowledge generation and the internalization of external costs.