Cities | Ecologic Institute: Science and Policy for a Sustainable World

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Publication

RECARE Project – Finding and sharing solutions to protect our soils

This brochure describes the threats to soils in Europe, how the RECARE project has addressed these and provides clear examples of soil management options and policy solutions. Ecologic Institute's Ana Frelih-Larsen and Sandra Naumann contributed to the RECARE project brochure, which is available for download.Read more

Publication

Remediating Historical Soil Contamination

Effective Measures and Policy Solutions

The problem of historical contamination remains an important gap in European policymaking on soils. Political commitment is required to address the issue of historical contamination systematically by providing a common EU framework to guide and facilitate activities at the national level, where in turn establishing and implementing national strategies for managing soil contamination is important. Finally, improving knowledge, sharing, and availability of existing information, and engaging stakeholders in the process of remediating soil contamination is recommended by the authors, lead by Ana Frelih-Larsen and Sophie Ittner of Ecologic Institute. The RECARE policy brief is available for download.Read more

Publication

Subsoil Compaction – A threat to sustainable food production and soil ecosystem services

The persistent damaging impacts of subsoil compaction call for policy intervention in order to secure yields and adapt to climate change, as well as to sustain soil ecosystem services for future generations. The authors of this RECARE Policy Brief, including Ana Frelih-Larsen of Ecologic Institute, demand that policy responses need to address the underlying drivers of farmers' decision-making concerning field traffic through a systematic and coordinated approach for sustainable soil management in Europe. The RECARE policy brief is available for download.Read more

Publication

Soil Sealing and Land Take

Despite the extensive loss of productive soils and the valuable ecosystem services that soils provide, the awareness of the magnitude and negative implications of these processes remain relatively low. In this RECARE policy brief, Ecologic Institute's Sandra Naumann and Ana Frelih-Larsen together with Gundula Prokop from the Austrian Environment Agency illustrate the scale of the problem and identify ready-made solutions and steps policy makers and practitioners can take across different levels, from city planning to national and European level. The RECARE policy brief is available for download.Read more

Presentation

Taking Stock of NBS in European Cities and Related Policies

TimeLoc

9 July 2018 to 10 July 2018

Brasilia

Brazil

Sandra Naumann

In July 2018, Sandra Naumann from the Ecologic Institute joined the 2nd International Seminar on nature-based solutions in Brasilia (Brazil) to discuss the state of knowledge, experiences and challenges to implement nature-based solutions (NBS). She presented an overview of the almost 1000 NBS contained within the Urban Nature Atlas as well as results from the EU and national policy review conducted as part of the EU-funded NATURVATION project. Attendees included over 100 representatives of Brazilian and European cities, national and local authorities and decision makers, research, business and international organisations. The presentation slides are available online.Read more

Project

Co-designing Locally-tailored Ecological Solutions for Value-added, Socially Inclusive Regeneration in Cities (CLEVER Cities)

June 2018 to May 2023

With three quarters of the European Union's population living in cities and further increases expected, societies are increasingly facing socio-political shifts and marginalization. Limited availability of physical space, changing urban demographics, and increasing cultural diversity compound these challenges and create issues like high crime rates, social inequality, poverty, health threats, and unemployment. Some areas are particularly vulnerable, such as economically deprived, abandoned and neglected urban areas with a low share of green spaces. The Horizon2020 funded project “CLEVER Cities” responds to these challenges by designing and implementing locally tailored nature-based solutions (NBS) to foster sustainable and socially inclusive urban regeneration.Read more

Publication

Nature-based Solutions in European and National Policy Frameworks

Nature-based solutions (NBS) are increasingly being adopted as an effective tool to address urban challenges. But, to what extent do current policy frameworks support or hinder their implementation? This report examines if and how the concept of NBS is addressed in select EU and Member State policies and funding instruments. The report was published within the Horizon 2020 project NATURVATION and is available for download.Read more

Publication

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

Presentation

International Environmental Law

Assessing Urban Risk and Vulnerability and Prioritizing Action

TimeLoc

26 April 2018 to 28 April 2018

Bonn

Germany

Dr. Grit Martinez

From 26 to 28 April 2018, the Global Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation took place in Bonn (Germany), just after the March Cities IPCC Conference, a few days ahead of the midyear Bonn climate talks and a few months before nations review SDG 11 on cities and human settlements. For the INNOVA project, Dr. Grit Martinez of Ecologic Institute presented INNOVA's approach to risk assessment in the session "Assessing urban risk and vulnerability and prioritizing action." The presentation slides are available for download.Read more

Publication

Innovation, Renovation, Transformation

Good practice examples of projects promoting green growth across Central, Eastern and Southern Europe

Green growth brings about multiple social and economic benefits. Together with Ecofys, Ecologic Institute produced a brochure, which highlights examples of green growth that stem from a range of sectors (energy, buildings, transport, agriculture and industry) and are located throughout Central, Eastern and Southern Europe. The brochure presents cutting-edge technologies, forward-thinking entrepreneurs, smart combinations of financing options, and innovative project designs. The brochure is available for download. Read more