In a three-day series of events in Brussels from 5 to 7 December 2023, partners from the Kopernikus project Ariadne present important findings from their work that are relevant for the further development of EU climate and energy policy. They discuss these with representatives from political institutions, science, civil society and business. Participants can look forward to a varied program with workshops on current topics such as the future electricity market design, challenges of the energy transition, improvement of the EU governance mechanism, the role of household surveys in climate policy or the integration of negative emissions into the ETS.
The EU Commission is planning an initiative on tackling the issue of non-intentional inputs of microplastics into the environment. The areas of textile fibres, tire abrasion, and pellet loss are specifically discussed at the EU level as part of the initiative.
To support the development and application of emissions trading systems in the region, from 27 February to 3 March 2023, the International Carbon Action Partnership (ICAP) will convene an online Seminar, focusing on Latin America and the Caribbean. As an entry-level training, the one-week Seminar will introduce participants to the basic concepts and key elements of emissions trading.
In this webinar session, the International Carbon Action Partnership (ICAP) presented its latest report "Offset Use Across Emissions Trading Systems", followed by a discussion with an expert panel drawn from policy making, offset project origination, and an offset crediting standard. Questions discussed included the role that offsets can play in carbon pricing instruments, the benefits and risks of their use, policy solutions to maintain the integrity of the emissions trading system, and implications of offset use for the market for emission allowances.
From 13 to 15 December (1 – 4pm CET), the International Carbon Action Partnership (ICAP) convened a three-day workshop on monitoring, reporting, verification of emissions and the accreditation of verifiers (MRVA) in emissions trading systems (ETS). Participation in the online workshop was open to anyone with an interest in, or professional link to, climate policy and the implementation of MRVA systems for carbon pricing mechanisms. Over 100 participants attended the event from across the globe.
While policymakers are currently mulling over the EU-ETS reform, it is a good time for analysts and scientist to take a step back and discuss the analytical tools used to project the outcome – specifically: the expected, predicted or necessary carbon price(s) towards 2030. To that end, the Potsdam-Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and Ecologic Institute organize a workshop in Brussels on 30 November 2022.
With the Fit-for-55 package about to be put into law, and the RePowerEU plan adopted in response to the energy crisis, EU climate and energy is undergoing the most profound change in years, getting the EU on track to a post-fossil energy system. In a three-day series of events, partners from the Ariadne research project presented key insights from their work that is relevant for the further development of EU climate and energy policy, and discussed these with representatives from political institutions, academia, civil society and business. The events served to share research insights, to discuss and validate findings and their relevance for EU policy process, and to gather inputs for further research.
The International Carbon Action Partnership (ICAP) resumed in-person trainings with the 2022 edition of its flagship training activity, the two-week ICAP Summer School on Emissions trading. The training took place in Florence (Italy) from 22 August to 2 September 2022. Participation in the summer school was open to applicants from emerging economies and developing countries. The course was aimed at public officials or stakeholders from the non-governmental, academic and private sectors who are or will be involved in deciding on, designing and implementing carbon pricing mechanisms.
The results of the research focus "Plastics in the Environment" will be presented in a webinar series. The participation in the webinars is free of charge; registration in advance is required.
From 16 to 26 May 2022, the International Carbon Action Partnership (ICAP) will convene a two-week ETS training course to provide basic training on emissions trading in Asian countries. Over two weeks consisting of eight course days, participants will learn the basic concepts and key elements of emissions trading through a mix of presentations from expert speakers and policy practitioners as well as interactive activities. Each session will draw on examples and experiences from existing ETS to explain the main design choices for setting up new ETS and to convey solutions for their implementation.
At the theme day on plastics in the environment on 6 May, children, young people and adults could inform themselves at more than 20 interactive exhibition stands and talk to researchers from all over Germany. In addition to a photo exhibition, a science and poetry slam, improvisation theatre and discussion rounds, participants had the opportunity to get involved in exciting hands-on activities. For example, water samples will be taken directly from the Spree to test for microplastic contamination.
Berlin can look back on an eventful history of the New Social Movements. Numerous Berlin pioneering organizations from that time are still active: Kraut & Rüben, the Schokofabrik, Oktoberdruck, the Regenbogenfabrik and many more. At the same time, many new alternative-economy enterprises are currently emerging in Berlin - the city that is considered a melting pot of alternative economy. But what is new about today's ideas compared to the motives of over 40 years ago? What can those active today learn from the successes and failures of that time? What experiences can, and should they build on? And: What role do changed framework conditions play? What has become possible or impossible today compared to the past?
With the Fit for 55 package, the European Commission made far-reaching proposals in July 2021 to align the architecture of European climate policy with the goal of climate neutrality. These proposals include the strengthening of the existing emissions trading scheme, the introduction of new emissions trading for transport and buildings, a border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) to protect against carbon leakage and the tightening of regulatory instruments for transport and buildings. However, the proposals raise a number of questions – from distributional effects and acceptance to the consistency of the instruments. In the course of this two-day hybrid event, researchers from the Ariadne consortium discussed these issues with stakeholders and decision-makers at the European level.
A Cities Talk Nature Global Engagement Event was organized as part of the INTERLACE project in Envigado, Colombia and streamed online on 23 and 24 November 2023 to explore these topics in more depth. Entitled ‘Rethinking urban-rural linkages for people and biodiversity’, the conference convened over 100 municipal actors and practitioners from Europe and Latin America interested in harnessing the potential of NBS in their cities and regions. Co-organised by UCLG, Humboldt Institute Colombia and Ecologic Institute, the event featured diverse formats, including field visits, practical workshops, and peer-to-peer discussions.
The CLEVER Cities project's final conference "Nature in the City – Advancing social impact through nature-based solutions (NBS)" was held on 26 and 27 September 2023. McKenna Davis, Senior Fellow at Ecologic Institute, moderated the session "Putting Theory into Practice: Mainstreaming Nature-based Solutions into Policy". The session explored the fundamental question: How can we integrate NBS into the fabric of urban policy and governance to bridge the gap between theory and action?
Doris Knoblauch moderated the networking meeting of innovative climate protection projects in the framework of the National Climate Initiative (NKI) for Ecologic Institute on 7 and 8 June 2023.