Moby, MTV join EU climate change battle

Moby performs during a concert at the Exit music festival in the northern Serbian town of Novi Sad early July 12, 2009.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Music star Moby will kick off a series of concerts across Europe next month aimed at raising climate change awareness among young people, the European Union's executive arm said on Wednesday.

The concerts are part of the European Commission's "Play to stop - Europe for climate" campaign organized jointly with MTV.

"Events like this are vital, because young people are a tremendously important pressure group. They will be most affected by climate change -- so their voices are the most important," Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said in a statement.

Moby will perform in Stockholm on August 20, with other artists taking to the stage in Budapest and Copenhagen in the coming months. Each concert will take place alongside a major climate change event in the respective cities.

The six-month campaign, to be held in the run-up to international climate talks in Copenhagen in December, will run in 11 EU countries and include TV spots, webcasts and games. MTV will provide editorial content on tackling climate change.

The European Union wants to cut greenhouse gases by 20 percent by 2020 and reduce energy consumption by 20 percent through increased energy efficiency.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, editing by Paul Casciato)