The report aims at providing an in-depth analysis of the expected benefits of better implementation and enforcement of EU waste legislation, and the means with which this can be achieved. The report is available for download.

From 7-11 May 2012, Ecologic Institute organized and implemented a program for 20 international experts and journalists in order to present and discuss climate and energy efficiency policy in Europe and Germany, as well as its engagement in the pre Rio+20 process. Participants were able to speak with representatives from ministries, parliament, think tanks and NGOs.

This report contains the results of a survey of the EU Committee of the Regions about the impacts of the financial and economic crisis on SMEs. It points out how the affected regions and cities reacted to this challenge by supporting their local businesses in various ways. Furthermore it concentrates on the question, whether these steps were of any help and what could have been solved in a better way. The report is available for download.

The Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) recognized that there remain significant gaps in the understanding of the impacts of geoengineering on biodiversity, while also noting the relevance of other treaties and organizations for filling such gaps. A highly authorative group of experts, among them Dr. Ralph Bodle, Senior Fellow at Ecologic Institute, contributed to the publication's first part, entitled "Impacts of Climate-Related Geoengineering on Biological Diversity." A team of authors from Ecologic Institute, consisting of Dr. Ralph Bodle as leading author, Gesa Homan, Simone Schiele, and Elizabeth Tedsen wrote the publications second part entitled "The Regulatory Framework for Climate-Related Geoengineering Relevant to the Convention on Biological Diversity." The publication is available for download.

"To the Point", a daily radio program of KCRW in Santa Monica, CA, produced a segment called "The Consequences of Climate Change and the Cost of Denial" on 14 August 2012.
 
 The host, Warran Olney, led a discussion with his guests about the current state of climate science, the political and cultural impediments to meeting the challenge in the United States, the need for action, and also the example that Germany’s climate change and renewable energy policies may hold for the United States.

Ecologic Institute launched its 2012 Arctic Summer College, a virtual course and network aiming to strengthen Arctic communication and build a lasting, policy-oriented network of Arctic professionals.

On the occasion of the publication of the second climate report for the Baltic Sea (BACC 2 Report), Dr. Grit Martinez from Ecologic Institute moderated a podium discussion at the International BACC Conference on 7 September 2012 in Tallinn that included representatives from the scientific community, the Helsinki Commission (HELCOM), the Estonian Ministry for the Environment, and the Council of the Baltic Sea States. The discussion focused on the experience with and possibilities for communication and dissemination of recent research findings about climate change in the Baltic Sea region.

Sustainability and demographic change are very topical themes not only in politics and science, but also in civil society. While they may seem dissimilar at first glance the challenge of social change is paramount in both areas. The thesis addresses the question of how these two issues can be linked to each other and how the implementation of a dynamic simulation model can foster this process. Case study region there is North Frisia in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.