How do decision makers in Poland and the Baltic states perceive climate change and climate change adaptation? What impact will climate change have in coastal regions, and how can stakeholders there prepare themselves? What information is available to them? What programs have already been implemented? A series of workshops organized by Ecologic Institute in cooperation with various partners has addressed these questions. The workshops in Szczecin, Gdansk, Klaipeda, and Riga were commonly organized by members of the Baltadapt, "Regional availability of climate knowledge in the Baltic Sea region" (Circum Mare Balticum) and RADOST projects. The presentations are available for download.

Fostering sustainable industries and industrial development requires the use of effective indicators. Though a multitude of indicators exist, their applicability to sustainable industries remains largely unaddressed to date. In this project, Ecologic Institute reviewed scientific knowledge in order to evaluate existing indicators and derive recommendations concerning their usability and potential need for further indicator development. Ecologic Institute published a shorter version of the project results as a policy brief. The policy brief is available for download.

This article provides a stock-take of the state of the European Union's (EU) position heading into the climate change negotiations in Durban in late 2011. A long-time champion of an effective global system under the auspices of the UN, the EU finds itself in a difficult position as the future of the Kyoto Protocol is seen to being a stake at the summit in South Africa. With a number of other industrialised countries jumping ship and declaring their unwillingness to continue the Protocol in a Second Commitment Period, the EU is feeling ever more exposed and under pressure to declare for the continuation of Kyoto.

Elizabeth Tedsen, Transatlantic Fellow, attended the International Arctic Legal Forum: "Protection and Sustainable Development of the Arctic: Legal Aspects" in Salekhard (Russia) and presented Ecologic Institute's EU Arctic Footprint and Policy Assessment projects. The Forum brought together Russian and international policymakers, attorneys, researchers, and diplomats to discuss changes in the Arctic and ideas for sustainable development in Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District and beyond.

Assessing the sustainable development of megaprojects in the Circumpolar North involves looking at socio-economic and environmental impacts, while studying the processes that enable citizen participation. Two megaprojects in Iceland and Canada are evaluated through these lenses, and lessons learned are derived for the sustainable planning of future megaprojects. The publication is available online.

Dr. Wolgang Urban, Fellow at Ecologic Institute, presents guidelines for the further expansion of biogas in the conference proceedings "Biogas in Agriculture - Status and Perspectives." These proceedings contain the specialists' contributions of the second FNR/KTBL Congress "Biogas in Agriculture – Status and Prospects", dealing with current biological, processual, and operational measures to stabilize and improve the investment process. In addition, new conversion methods, the effects of system damages, and legal developments for biogas production are discussed. The proceedings can be purchased at the price of 25 Euro in KTBL online shop.

As part of the EU's efforts to define its role in Arctic management and decision making, the European Commission Directorate-General for the Environment funded the EU Arctic Footprint and Policy Assessment to determine its impact, responsibilities, and policy options to protect the Arctic. This article summarizes the key findings from the study, and presents an overview of the EU's Arctic footprint. The article is available for download.

Using a case study approach, selected policies have been reviewed in specific countries in the Mediterranean, Middle East and Sahel region region; case studies of individual strategies and initiatives were also conducted at the United Nations and European Union level. As the case studies have shown, very few policies today explicitly address the link between climate change, water, human security and conflict or cooperation. Of the few policies that explicitly address the link, most are located at the international level. However, at the national level, some adaptation and sectoral policies do address risks for human security linked to water and climate change in more indirect manners, such as water user associations in Egypt or an agricultural insurance scheme in Turkey.

In October 2011, delegates from Norway's Statsbygg visited Ecologic Institute to gain new perspectives on European and German approaches to sustainable renewable energy solutions, smart grid implementation and smart buildings.

On 24 and 25 October 2011, Stephan Sina, Senior Fellow at Ecologic Legal, and Gesa Homann, Researcher at Ecologic Institute, held a seminar on current issues in German and European environmental law at the Berlin Academy of Public Administration (Verwaltungsakademie Berlin).