Book Section | Ecologic Institute: Science and Policy for a Sustainable World

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The Transformative Potential of Local Climate Change Strategies

In this chapter Ewa Iwaszuk, Linda Mederake and Doris Knoblauch (all Ecologic Institute) analyse the extent to which municipal long-term climate strategies contain formulations and measures aimed at promoting urban transformative change (defined as non-linear change for sustainability that profoundly transforms cities and the systems they form part of). The methodology is applied to the strategies of three cities from around the world (Austin, Texas, USA; Berlin, Germany; Melbourne, Australia) to understand the extent to which the visions outlined in these local-level strategies can be said to be transformative.Read more

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Climate

Energy

Smarter, Greener, more Inclusive? – 2019

Indicators to Support the Europe 2020 Strategy

On 7 October 2019, Eurostat published its most recent flagship publication "Smarter, greener, more inclusive?". The report assesses the EU's progress in implementing the Europe 2020 strategy. Commissioned by Eurostat, Katharina Umpfenbach and Amely Gundlach of Ecologic Institute edited the chapter on climate change and energy. It discusses progress towards the so-called 20-20-20 targets which aim at cutting EU greenhouse gas emissions, increasing renewable energy supply, and improving energy efficiency. The publication is available for download.Read more

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Water

Drought Governance in the Eifel‐Rur Region

The Interplay of Fixed Frameworks and Strong Working Relationships

The book "Facing hydrometeorological extremes: a governance issue" collects field investigation from several EU research projects on hydrometeorological extreme events and the successful examples of multilevel governance in response to them. Scientists from Ecologic Institute led or contributed on three book chapters, summarizing the regulatory framework as well as focusing on specific case studies. In this chapter Rodrigo Vidaurre presents an analysis of drought governance in the Eifel‐Rur region of Germany.Read more

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Water

Multilevel Governance for Drought Management in Flanders

Using a Centralized and Data Driven Approach

The book "Facing hydrometeorological extremes: a governance issue" collects field investigation from several EU research projects on hydrometeorological extreme events and the successful examples of multilevel governance in response to them. Scientists from Ecologic Institute led or contributed on three book chapters, summarizing the regulatory framework as well as focusing on specific case studies. In Chapter III Jenny Tröltzsch presents a summary of the governance analysis of drought‐related issues in the Flanders region of Belgium.Read more

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Water

European Actors and Institutions Involved in Water Scarcity and Drought Policy

The book "Facing hydrometeorological extremes: a governance issue" collects field investigation from several EU research projects on hydrometeorological extreme events and the successful examples of multilevel governance in response to them. Scientists from Ecologic Institute led or contributed on three book chapters, summarizing the regulatory framework as well as focusing on specific case studies. Dr. Ulf Stein and Ruta Landgrebe contributed a chapter explaining the political and institutional framework on Water Scarcity & Droughts policies in Europe. Read more

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The Evolving Role of Cities as Non-state Actors in the International Climate Regime

While hardly anyone would argue against the importance of cities and local governments in the implementation of climate policies, what remains contested is their role in the international climate regime. This analysis by Ecologic Institute uncovers how the activities of cities and transnational city networks, which have been evolving over the years, have gradually broadened the international climate regime, although cities are not subjects of international law. The analysis is available for download.Read more

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Book Section

Climate

32 Gründe, warum Europa eine verdammt gute Idee ist

The EU Member States have committed to be climate neutral by the second half of this century. Nils Meyer-Ohlendorf calls this a fundamental challenge that no EU member state can address alone and that makes the EU indispensable for effective climate protection. This is one of 32 reasons why Europe is a "damn good idea". The eponymous book was published in the run-up to the 2019 European elections. It presents numerous achievements of the European Union in an understandable way, explains complex interrelationships and shows the positive effects of the EU for its citizens. Read more

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Cities

Soil

Land Take and Soil Sealing – Drivers, Trends and Policy (Legal) Instruments

Insights from European Cities

Urbanisation is an ongoing global trend that results in a considerable level of new land take and the loss of soil and its functions. This article reveals how different EU cities have addressed these issues through specific approaches with a focus on efficient land use. Lead by the Ecologic Institute, this analysis was carried out as part of the FP7 project "Preventing and Remediating Soil Degradation (RECARE)".Read more

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Utilizing Urban Living Laboratories for Social Innovation

Can urban living labs support social and governance innovations and therewith contribute to sustainable urban planning? Can they serve as a tool to assist cities in adapting to new emerging challenges? This chapter of the Urban Planet book address these questions. The chapter introduces a brief history of urban living labs and the governance challenges they intend to address, and subsequently explores whether urban living labs hold potential as a new forum for urban governance innovation experiments to support positive transformative change. The open access chapter and book are available for download.Read more

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Trade

Ecologic Legal

Substance and Style – How the WTO Adjudicators Legitimize their Decisions

The dispute settlement mechanism of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) is one of the most active international courts. How the WTO's adjudicators decide cases is the topic of a book chapter authored by Christiane Gerstetter, Senior Fellow at Ecologic Institute. The book, entiteld "The Judicialization of International Law: A Mixed Blessing?" is edited by Andreas Follesdal and Geir Ulfstein and published by Oxford University Press. It deals with the influence of decisions by international courts on international law.Read more