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Publication:Article
 
There is a consensus about the strategic importance of cities and urban areas for achieving a global transformation towards sustainability. While there is mounting interest in the types of qualities that increase the capacity of urban systems to attain deep transformations, empirical evidence about the extent to which existing institutional and material systems exhibit transformative capacity is lacking. This paper thereby seeks to determine the extent to which sustainability initiatives led by local governments and their partners reflect the various components that the literature claims can influence the emergence of transformative capacity as a systemic property of urban settings. The article is available for download.

Transformative Capacity and Local Action for Urban Sustainability

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Publication:Infographic
 
This infographic provides guidelines to policy-makers, interest groups and researchers who want to explore the potential of circular-economy transitions by conducting case studies. It visualizes the step-by-by step methodology developed within the CIRCULAR IMPACTS project in an intuitive way. It also highlights the most important aspects to consider when preparing such case studies.

Step-by-step Methodology for Case Studies on the Circular Economy

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Publication:Infographic
 
This infographic focuses on how the circular economy can be integrated into the European Semester. It illustrates the European Commission's role within the process and identifies obstacles to integration, along with possible suggestions to address these obstacles. Additionally, it provides a checklist for successful integration.

Integrating the Circular Economy into the European Semester

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Event:Conference
 
The conference "Impacts of the circular economy transition in Europe" took place in Brussels on 5 September 2018, organised as part of the CIRCULAR IMPACTS project. Around 150 people attended the event, including officials from the European Commission, national ministries, the public sector, industry, and NGOs. Ecologic Institute, as project lead, and the CIRCULAR IMPACTS project partners presented their findings on the impacts of moving towards a more circular economy in Europe, one that uses resources efficiently and maintains the economic value of materials. In addition to discussing their insights regarding the policy frameworks necessary for fostering a resource-efficient economy, team members presented evidence on the impacts and potential benefits of moving towards circular-economy approaches in three sectors: electric-vehicle batteries, car sharing, and building materials.

Impacts of the Circular Economy Transition in Europe – CIRCULAR IMPACTS Final Conference


Brussels, Belgium

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Publication:Article
 
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In Tanzania, the majority of the rural population still relies on fuelwood as their major source of cooking energy. The adaptation measures of small-scale farmers in response to increasing fuelwood scarcity play a key role in altering the course of nutrition insecurity, environmental degradation, and economic instability. This study delivers a classification of coping strategies that does not exist in the literature. Furthermore, it analyses the adaptation measures applied by small-scale farmers in the semi-arid region of Dodoma district in response to fuelwood scarcity. A comparison between two case study sites provides information on the choice of adaptation measures by households. Overall, 28 coping strategies from 24 studies are identified, then differentiated into preventive and acute measures that are arranged into eight clusters.

Fuelwood Scarcity and its Adaptation Measures

An assessment of coping strategies applied by small-scale farmers in Dodoma region, Tanzania

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Publication:Policy Brief
 
Shipping is vital for trade in the global economy and in particular for countries whose economies are closely tied to trading, like those surrounding the Baltic Sea. However, compared to other sectors, shipping is also a significant driver of environmental pressures, such as the spread of alien species or other physical influences. Underwater noise and emissions of nitrogen oxide and fine dust are additional significant pressures from shipping compared to other land and sea-based activities. Shipping is also a source of greenhouse gases (GHG). Ecologic Institute's policy brief presents an assessment of 20 policies with the potential to tackle the pressures from shipping. The policy brief is available for download.

Policies for Sustainable Shipping in the Baltic Sea – SHEBA Policy Brief

A ranking of 20 policy options

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Publication:Article
 
Hidden beneath the humus-rich topsoil, the subsoil usually receives little attention in agricultural practice. Yet, plants cover between 10 and 80% of their nutrient and water needs from subsoils. Measures to improve the subsoil could help in bridging droughts and stabilising yields. But how do farmers and other societal actors perceive different methods for subsoil management? Ecologic Institutes's Ana Frelih-Larsen, Mandy Hinzmann and Sophie Ittner published the first exploratory research results on the societal acceptance of subsoil management in the open access journal Sustainability.

The "Invisible" Subsoil

An Exploratory View of Societal Acceptance of Subsoil Management in Germany

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Publication:Conference Paper
 
With its comprehensive research programme, the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research is funding 20 research projects which have the overall aim to noticeably decrease the amount of plastics in the environment. This conference reader, published by Ecologic Institute, presents the aims of the overall research programme as well as the 20 research projects spanning a wide range of research areas such as Green Economy, Consumption, Recycling, Freshwater Systems as well as Seas and Oceans, and the accompanying research of PlastikNet. The PlastikNet conference reader is available for download.

Plastics in the Environment - Sources • Sinks • Solutions

Overview of the Joint Research Projects

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Publication:Report
 
This report summarizes the activities and findings of the 1st COACCH co-design workshop, held in Brussels in May 2018. The event included around 40 participants, with representation across the four COACCH working groups: policy makers, investors, business and industry, research and civil society. The workshop presented the COACCH co-production protocol and identified the key end-users needs of stakeholders. It discussed the in COACCH prepared report on "Knowledge Synthesis and Gap Analysis on Climate Impact Analysis, Economic Costs and Scenarios", with working sessions by sectors to identify stakeholder priorities and help inform the COACCH research agenda. Further stakeholder sessions were held on climate and socio-economic scenarios and on for stakeholder interesting tipping points, to provide additional inputs for the design of COACCH's research questions. Finally, the workshop discussed possible joint knowledge products and started the evaluation of the co-design process with a first survey.

First Working Group Meeting, Bi-lateral Meetings, and Scenario Workshop

COACCH deliverable D1.3

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Publication:Report
 
This COACCH project report is a stock-take of the knowledge on the economic costs of climate impacts and policy challenges in Europe. It describes the status quo and gaps in the existing knowledge on impact analysis and economic costs for 13 sectors. It provides an overview of existing knowledge on climate and socio-economic tipping points. The report is available for download.

Knowledge Synthesis and Gap Analysis on Climate Impact Analysis, Economic Costs and Scenarios

Deliverable of the H2020 COACCH project

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Publication:Case Study
 
This case-study paper focuses on concrete recycling in France as a means of understanding circular-economy transitions in the building-materials sector. The EU, including France, produces large volumes of construction and demolition waste (CDW) per year and aims to increase the re-use of these materials, reducing landfilling and negative environmental impacts. Recycling concrete is seen as a way to contribute to these objectives by ensuring that a portion of this waste is turned into a product with value. Currently, France does not recycle CDW as much as some other Member States. This case study paper carries out a scenario analysis comparing two future scenarios for 2030, providing insights into important environmental and economic impacts of an increased concrete recycling rate in France.

Sustainable Building

A Case Study on Concrete Recycling in France

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Event:Digital Event
 
The Arctic Summer College brings together Arctic experts, professionals, and students for a transdisciplinary exchange on key Arctic issues. The webinar series, which was conceived by Ecologic Institute in 2011, covered in 2018 four thematic modules: (1) Environmental Sciences, (2) Energy and Resources, (3) International Governance, and (4) Social Sciences. The webinar series is available online.

Arctic Summer College 2018

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Berlin, Germany and Washington DC, United States

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Event:Digital Event
 
The Arctic Summer College brings together Arctic experts, professionals, and students for a transdisciplinary exchange on key Arctic issues. The webinar series, which was conceived by Ecologic Institute in 2011, covered in 2018 four thematic modules: (1) Environmental Sciences, (2) Energy and Resources, (3) International Governance, and (4) Social Sciences. The webinar series is available online.

Arctic Summer College 2018

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Berlin, Germany and Washington DC, United States

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Event:Climate Talk
 
On 11 July 2018, the latest edition of the Climate Talk series discuss whether a "green" revolution is underway on the financial market, and how the EU Sustainable Finance Action Plan can benefit Climate Protection. Close to 40 participants contributed to the lively discussion. Sabine Pex (ISS-Oekom), Eva Kracht (BMU) and Karsten Löffler (Frankfurt School of Finance & Management) introduced the topic and sketched their expectations for the future.

A "Green Revolution" on the Financial Market?


Berlin, Germany

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