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Ecologic Institute Welcomes the Paris Climate Agreement

On 12 December 2015, 194 countries and the EU adopted the new "Paris Agreement" under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Ecologic Institute’s Ralph Bodle and Lena Donat had supported the German Delegation for several years and were on the EU negotiating team up to and in Paris.

Publication

Report

Governance

Ecologic Legal

Evaluation of the Strengths, Weaknesses, Threats and Opportunities Associated with EU Efforts to Combat Environmental Crime

Evaluation of the role of the EU and SWOT analysis

One of the main outcomes of the EU-funded FP7 project "European Union Action to Fight Environmental Crime" (EFFACE) is the report 'Evaluation of the strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities (SWOT) associated with EU efforts to combat environmental crime'. This SWOT analysis brings together insights gained during the previous EFFACE research and evaluates the current approaches of the EU and its Member States in combating environmental crime. The analysis is available for download.Read more

News

Climate

Global Environment

Ecologic Legal

Ecologic Institute Delegation at the International Climate Summit COP21 in Paris

The 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was held in Paris from 30 November to 11 December 2015. Ecologic Institute supported the negotiations via its legal expertise and is also presented the results of different research projects at COP side events.

Publication

The ILVA Industrial Site in Taranto

Analysis for the ENVI Committee

The present briefing provides an overview of the history of the plant, and of the legal measures taken to address the company's failure to comply with applicable environmental legislation, as well as the environmental, economic and health impacts of the lack of environmental compliance. The briefing is available for download.Read more

Event

Closing the Post-Paris Ambition Gap: Enhancing Ambition before 2020 and the Role of Climate Action Pioneers

TimeLoc

27 October 2015

Berlin

Germany

The fourth expert workshop of the discussion series "Improving climate protection – for Paris and beyond" dealt with the topic "Closing the post-Paris ambition gap: enhancing ambition before 2020 and the role of climate action pioneers." The event took place on 27 October 2015 in Berlin.Read more

Publication

Policy and Regulatory Framework

Bodle, Ralph (2015): Policy and Regulatory Framework, in: UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/19/INF/2: Update on Climate Geoengineering in Relation to the Convention on Biological Diversity: Potential Impacts and Regulatory Framework.Read more

Project

Legal and Institutional Aspects of the Future Climate Regime

October 2015 to March 2019

The international negotiations on the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) currently mainly focus on the design of the future climate regime. Ecologic Legal provides expert advice to the German Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation, Construction and Nuclear Safety, especially on the development and assessment of German and EU positions. The project builds on the work of the earlier project "Further legal and institutional aspects of the international post-2012-climate negotiations."Read more

Event

Climate and Energy Matters in Trade Agreements: Options for TTIP

TimeLoc

1 October 2015

Geneva

Switzerland

Speaker

Ingrid Jegou

Markus Gehring

Jan Gerrit Westerhof

Lena Johansson

Dr. Christiane Gerstetter

Several recent regional trade agreements (RTAs) include provisions on clean energy and on climate action. They may take the form of concrete commitments of reductions of tariffs or non-tariff barriers, or of commitments on institutional collaboration. Many RTAs also contain institutional provisions which are also of relevance to the implementation of existing environmental, including climate-related, commitments. As such, they constitute important opportunities for trade policy to contribute concretely and positively to a scale-up of clean energy and foster climate action.Read more

Event

Obligations of States to Avert Climate Change

TimeLoc

15 September 2015

Berlin

Germany

Speaker

Dr. Nils Meyer-Ohlendorf

In the "Oslo Principles on Global Climate Change Obligations," a group of high-level lawyers and philosophers addresses obligations of States and enterprises to avert the critical level of climate change – irrespective of already existing obligations resulting from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change or a (potential) follow-up agreement to the Kyoto Protocol. The group argues that existing legal sources including human rights law, environmental law and tort law oblige states to take measures leading to drastic emissions reductions that ensure that the global temperature increase does not exceed pre-industrial temperatures by more than 2°C.Read more

Presentation

Substance and Style – How the WTO Adjudicators Legitimize their Decisions

TimeLoc

11 September 2015

Oslo

Norway

Dr. Christiane Gerstetter

The dispute settlement system of the World Trade Organization (WTO) is one of the most active and influential international courts. How the WTO dispute settlement bodies decide cases was the topic of a presentation that Christiane Gerstetter, Senior Fellow in Ecologic's legal team, gave at an international law conference in Oslo. The presentation slides are available for download.Read more