Series of events 2006-2007

In the context of the negotiations on further climate change action (post 2012), a series of six capacity building workshops and two conferences for the new EU Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries was held in 2006 and 2007. The project convened about 350 participants from business, politics, academia and civil society. Ministers of Environment of the respective host country opened these respective meetings. The project produced a number of recommendations for future climate change policies:

The following events took place:

• Opening Conference 2006 in Warsaw,
• 4 Country-specific Workshops and 2 Strategy Workshops in Riga (2006), Sofia (2006), Ljubljana (2006) and Prague (2007)
• Final Conference in Budapest, October 2007.

These events were designed to bring together policy makers, businesses, non-governmental organisations, public authorities, scientists and others. They were intended to:

• help facilitate discussions in the new Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries on further climate change action;
• create additional public awareness and networks of relevant stakeholders;
• strengthen the capacity of the new Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries to contribute to the negotiations on future EU and global climate policy.

Below are the details of each event.

Opening Conference, Warsaw, 23-24 January 2006

Participants: 74

The conference was the first of a series of events which are aimed at facilitating an open-minded societal debate in new EU Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries on the challenges and opportunities arising from future climate change policy. Views were exchanged on how the EU, and in particular its new and future Member States, should build on the Kyoto Protocol and how countries should work together after 2012 to fight climate change.

The conference brought together 74 key players and opinion leaders from politics, business, non-governmental organisations, research institutes and think tanks in the new Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries. Thereby it gave representatives from a broad range of institutions and stakeholder groups an opportunity to contribute to the debate on the future of EU and global climate policy. Speakers included experts representing a wide range of institutions, from both new and old Member States as well as Acceding and Candidate Countries.

Key issues

Plenary and breakout sessions focused on the following key issues:

• Expected future emission trends and climate change impacts at a regional scale
• Experiences from climate-related policies and measures in old and new EU Member States
• Costs and benefits of possible climate change action
• Business opportunities and early movers' advantages
• Options for the future international climate policy regime and their consequences for the EU and its new Member States
• The future role of Joint Implementation and the Clean Development Mechanism
• The role and contribution of new Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries in future EU climate policy
• Capacity needs of new Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries for full participation in the debate on future climate policy

Conference organisers

The conference was organised by Ecologic - Institute for International and Environmental Policy, Berlin, in co-operation with the Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD), Warsaw, the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM) at the Free University of Amsterdam, the Foundation for International Environmental Law and Development (FIELD), London, the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), Berlin, and a network of experts from additional institutions in the old and new Member States.

Workshop, Riga/Jurmala, 25-26 April 2006

Participants: 42

In light of beginning negotiations on further action / post 2012, Ecologic – Institute for International and European Environmental Policy – organised the workshop "Future Climate Change Policy in the Baltic States: Looking beyond 2012". The workshop was the second in a series of events commissioned by the European Commission and organised in cooperation with

• the Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD), Warsaw,
• the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM) at the Free
  University of Amsterdam,
• the Foundation for International Environmental Law and Development (FIELD), London,
• the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), Berlin as well as
• a network of experts.

Against this background, it was the workshop's aim to:

• help facilitate a societal debate in the Baltic States on the
  challenges and opportunities arising from future climate change policy,
• exchange views on how the EU, and the new Member States, in particular the Baltic States, should build on the Kyoto Protocol and how countries should work together after 2012 to fight climate change,
• involve relevant political actors in the discussions,
• carry out a needs assessment in the Baltic States.

The workshop brought together 42 key players and opinion leaders from politics, business, non-governmental organisations, research institutes and think tanks in the Baltic Countries as well as European Institutions.

Workshop, Sofia, 14-15 June 2006

Participants: 37

In light of beginning negotiations on further action / post 2012, Ecologic - Institute for International and European Environmental Policy - organised the workshop "Future Climate Change Policy in the Accession and Candidate Countries: Looking beyond 2012". The workshop was the third in a series of events commissioned by the European Commission.

Against the background of the beginning negotiations, it was the workshop's aim to:

• help facilitate a societal debate in the Accession and Candidate Countries on the challenges and opportunities arising from future climate change policy,
• exchange views on how the EU, and the new Member States, in particular the Accession and Candidate Countries, should build on the Kyoto Protocol and how countries should work together after 2012 to fight climate change,
• involve relevant political actors in the discussions,
• carry out a needs assessment in the Accession and Candidate Countries.

The workshop brought together 37 key players and opinion leaders from politics, business, non-governmental organizations, research institutes and think tanks in the Accession and Candidate Countries as well as European Institutions.

Workshop, Ljubljana, 11-12 October 2006

Participants: 46

In light of beginning negotiations on further action / post 2012, Ecologic Institute organised the workshop "Future Climate Change Policy: Looking beyond 2012". The workshop was the fourth of a series of events commissioned by the European Commission. On the first day, the workshop discussed "Future Climate Change Policy in Cyprus, Hungary, Malta and Slovenia". On the second day, the workshop dealt with "Post 2012: The International Climate Change Negotiating Context and the new Member States, Accession and Candidate Countries".

Workshop goals

Taking into account the specific circumstances in the new Member States, Accession and Candidate Countries, this workshop intended to discuss the specific needs of these countries as well as realistic negotiation scenarios for the post-2012 commitments. Views were exchanged on how the EU, and in particular the countries addressed, should build on the Kyoto Protocol and work together after 2012 to fight climate change. The workshop provided representatives from a range of institutions and stakeholder groups an opportunity to contribute to the debate on the future of EU and global climate policy.

The workshop assembled 46 representatives from politics, business, science and non-governmental organisations in the new Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries. Government representatives from the EU-15 as well as the European Commission also attended.

International Workshop, 11-12 April 2007, Prague

Participants: 58

In light of beginning negotiations on further action / post 2012, Ecologic organised the workshop "Future Climate Change Policy: Looking beyond 2012". The workshop was the fifth in a series of events commissioned by the European Commission. On the first day, the workshop discussed "Future Climate Change Policy in the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia". On the second day, the workshop dealt with "International and EU Climate Change Policies after COP 12 / MOP 2: Challenges and Opportunities for the New Member States and Candidate Countries".

Workshop goals

Taking into account the specific circumstances in the new Member States and Candidate Countries, this workshop intended to discuss the specific needs of these countries as well as realistic negotiation scenarios for the post-2012 commitments. Views were exchanged on how the EU, and in particular the countries addressed, should build on the Kyoto Protocol and work together after 2012 to fight climate change. The workshop allowed representatives from a range of institutions and stakeholder groups an opportunity to contribute to the debate on the future of EU and global climate policy.

The workshop assembled about 58 representatives from politics, business, science and non-governmental organisations in the new Member States and Candidate Countries. Government representatives from the EU-15 as well as the European Commission also attended.

Closing Conference, Budapest, 15-17 October 2007

Participants: 78

The event consisted of a regional consultation workshop on the recent Commission's Green Paper on Adaptation ("Adapting to Climate Change in Europe -- Options for EU Action", 15 October 2007), the Conference "Future Climate Change Policy in the New Member States and Candidate Countries" (16 October 2007) and an informal governmental round table on future climate change policies (17 October 2007).

The regional workshop on adaptation discussed the recent Green Paper on Adaptation and allowed stakeholders to contribute to the on-going consultation process on adaptation. The workshop was one in a series of events conducted in several European countries and was intended to facilitate the debate on adaptation.

The conference on the 16th of October concluded a series of events in the new Member States and Candidate Countries. Taking into account the specific circumstances in the new Member States and Candidate Countries, this Conference intends to discuss the findings of the series. The Conference intended to produce recommendations to policy makers on how the EU, and in particular the countries addressed, should build on the Kyoto Protocol and work together after 2012 to combat climate change. The conference brought together approximately 80 to 100 key players and opinion leaders from politics, business, non-governmental organisations, research institutes and think tanks in the new Member States and Candidate Countries. Government representatives from the old Member States as well as the European Commission also attended.

On the 17th of October, high-level governmental consultations were held on the opportunities and challenges of future climate change policies of the New Member States and Candidate Countries as well as adaptation issues in the countries. These consultations were opened by a brief presentation and discussion of the main findings from the first two days of the event. Participants in the round table had been invited by the European Commission.

Conference organisers

The conference had been organised by the European Commission and Ecologic - Institute for International and Environmental Policy in Berlin, in co-operation with the Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD) in Warsaw, the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM) at the Free University of Amsterdam, the Foundation for International Environmental Law and Development (FIELD) in London, the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) in Berlin, and a network of experts from additional institutions in the old and new Member States.