On 11 and 12 November 2014, stakeholders and decision-makers, including municipalities, businesses, and scientists, met at the congress "100% Renewable Energy Regions" in Kassel to exchange best practices for the energy transition. In a forum on the "Masterplan 100% Climate Protection" chaired by Arne Riedel (Ecologic Institute), three participants from counties Osnabrück and Steinfurt as well as the municipality Neumarkt discussed their approaches providing insights into the ongoing process of implementation.

250 participants took part in the 2nd National Resources Forum, which was hosted by the German Federal Environmental Agency in cooperation with VDI and with the support of Ecologic Institute in Berlin on 12 November 2014. The presentations and photos from the forum are now available on the conference website of the German Federal Environmental Agency.

Nearly 370 participants from over 40 countries participated in the 2nd European Resources Forum, which was hosted by the German Federal Environment Agency in Berlin on 10 and 11 November 2014 with the support of Ecologic Institute.

The UN climate negotiations are currently working towards a new global climate agreement, to be concluded at the end of 2015 in Paris. Until then, a marathon of negotiation sessions is scheduled to take place. In the run-up to the third of four rounds of negotiations in October 2014 in Bonn and just a few weeks before the start of the 2014 climate summit in Lima, Peru (COP-22), a group of 30 interested experts came together at Ecologic Institute for a Climate Talk to take stock.

On 13 October 2014, the first in a series of discussions covering different aspects of Arctic science and policy during the Canadian chairmanship of the Arctic Council was held at the Embassy of Canada. Ecologic Institute plays an active role in organizing the series in partnership with the Embassy of Canada, Berlin, International Arctic Science Committee (IASC), Alfred-Wegener Institute Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), and Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS).

Christiane Gerstetter, Senior Fellow at Ecologic Institute, participated in a panel discussion at the representation of the German state of Baden-Württemberg in Berlin. She presented among other things the results of a study on regulatory cooperation in the context of the planned Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). The presentation is available for download.

On 7 October 2014, Ecologic Institute's Rodrigo Vidaurre held a presentation on regional governance responses to increasing drought risks at the 2014 international conference "Our Climate – Our Future". The talk, part of the Conference Session on "Integrated strategies for climate change mitigation and adaptation", presented the methodology and insights generated by an analysis of the regional governance settings. The presentation slides are available for download.

The SWITCH-ON workshop brought together developers and end-users of a variety of open data based water information products from all over Europe to test these tools hands-on and to discuss their opportunities and challenges. The goal of the 1.5-day workshop was to identify the potential and operational needs of water-related information tools and services based on open data. SWITCH-ON develops state-of-the-art information products and services for water management and environmental awareness.

From 5 until 11 October 2014, Ecologic Institute together with GIZ implemented a program on the German Energy Transition for 17 international experts and journalists. Participants were able to meet and discuss with representatives from ministries, think tanks, NGOs and business representatives in Berlin. Both national policies and examples of local and regional implementation of the German energy policy were highlighted during the tour.

The EU has stated its commitment to transitioning into a post-carbon society. Though the goal of living in a post-carbon society is clear, the road to get there is not so easy. How can we build the EU of the future while overcoming technological, political, societal, economic and behavioural challenges? The Research for a Post-Carbon Future conference on 17 September 2014 explored ways to transform these challenges into opportunities and help propel the EU towards a more sustainable future.

Following the conference "Research for a Post-Carbon Future," on 17 September 2014 in Berlin, a cocktail reception celebrated Ecologic Institute’s 20th year as an organisation. During this reception, the official change in management was announced.

On the 15 of September 2014, the polar explorer Robert Swan held a presentation at Ecologic Institute regarding his trip to the North and the South Pole. The English environmentalist Robert Swan has the honour of being the first man to reach both geographical poles on foot. Starting from his expeditions onward, Swan has dealt with the local environmental and political problems. As a visiting professor and motivational speaker, Swan makes himself available to organisations such as Ecologic Institute and associated groups to discuss and promote solutions to environmental issues such as global warming, glacial melting and pollution. He also publishes works on these subjects.

A new economic paradigm and its multiple facets for future development were intensively discussed at the international "Degrowth Conference" in Leipzig from 2. until 6. September 2014. The Ecologic Institute contributed through presentations, workshops and moderations. Dr. Martin Hirschnitz-Garbers and Susanne Langsdorf presented results obtained in a "Horizon Scanning"-exercise done as part of the SimRess-project. The presentation slides are available for download.