On behalf of GIZ, Ecologic Institute designed, organised and implemented a study tour for directors and assistant directors of various Chinese environmental agencies and the Chinese Ministry of Environment from 27 March to 9 April 2011. The training conveyed important aspects of European and German environmental policy to the participants through presentations, lectures and discussions. The programme was complemented by several excursions and visits of relevant institutions in Berlin and Hamburg (Europe’s 2011 environment capital).

A variety of programme formats (discussion events, lectures, excursions, a cultural framework programme) with the cooperation of representatives from different ministries, parliament, industry, think tanks and NGOs in Berlin and Hamburg (and the surrounding area) provided extensive insights into the topics.

The academic and political basis for the following topics was established through lectures held at Ecologic Institute’s Berlin offices:

• Introduction to European and German Environmental Policy
  (R. Andreas Kraemer, Director Ecologic Institute)
• Security through Energy Policy: Germany's Strategy in Context
  (R. Andreas Kraemer, Director Ecologic Institute)
• Agricultural and Rural Development Policy in the EU and Germany: Recent Developments and Perspectives
  (Ruta Landgrebe, Ecologic Institute, Fellow)
• Biodiversity Policy in Germany and the EU: Recent Developments and Perspectives
  (Sandra Naumann, Ecologic Institute, Coordinator Latin America, Fellow)
• European and German Waste Policy
  (Alexander Neubauer, Ecologic Institute, Coordinator European Research, Senior Fellow)
• Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control
  (Alexander Neubauer, Ecologic Institute, Coordinator European Research, Senior Fellow)
• General Overview of European Water Policy
  (Dr. Manuel Lago, Fellow, Environmental/Natural Resources Economics)
• Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control with focus on the Rhine/Danube-Basin
  (Dr. Darla Nickel, Coordinator Water Studies, Fellow)
• Gaining public acceptance: case study waste recovery
  (Andreas Fußer, Hand & Fußer Konzept und Kommunikation)

The programme also included the following activities in Berlin:

• German Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature and Nuclear Safety (BMU) with presentations on environmental policy and legislation in Germany, the German Climate Protection Programme as well as the energy concept of the German government
• Visit and presentations by NABU (Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union)
• Presentation and tour at ALBA Recycling GmbH
• Presentation on rainwater management and greywater recycling in inner-city areas

In addition, the group visited the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) in Dessau, toured the waste-fueled power station in the Magdeburg neighbourhood of Rothensee and gained insights into the conversion and use of former open-pit mines through a tour of the Lausitz artificial lake area.

An Ecologic Riverside Chat on "Linking Environment and the Economy - Opportunities for environment cooperation after the release of China’s 12th Five-Year Plan" gave the group the opportunity to speak with further experts from Berlin and to voice their own perspectives.

In Hamburg (Europe’s 2011 environment capital), the group visited the Agency for Urban Development and Environment (BSU) and attended lectures on Europe’s environmental capital, Hamburg’s climate protection concept and its sustainability strategy. The itinerary also included a tour through Hamburg’s HafenCity which focused on “Sustainable urban development. Sustainable Construction” and a tour of the Köhlbrandhöft sewage treatment plant.

Finally, the participants visited the representation of the BMU in Bonn and learned about waste policy in Germany. The group also listened to a lecture concerning the initiative “The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB).“ A biogas plant near Bonn was also visited.