Policy Brief | Ecologic Institute: Science and Policy for a Sustainable World

Pages

Publication

Current EU Climate Policy: An Optimality Assessment

CECILIA2050 Policy Brief No 1

The European Union (EU) and its Member States are debating the shape and substance of future EU climate policy. With partners from the CECILIA2050 project, Ecologic Institute produced reports on 8 EU Member States and the EU as whole, which take stock of current policies and their performance. In all 9 cases, the policy mix currently in place can be improved. A Policy Brief summarizing the findings is available for download.Read more

Publication

Challenges to Planning Climate Adaptation Strategies in Europe

BASE Policy Brief No. 1

How can adaptation reduce the impacts of climate change and, in some cases, even yield benefits and business opportunities? Decision makers at all levels in Europe currently face a number of significant challenges when devising appropriate and sustainable adaptation strategies. This policy brief is an output of the EU FP7 project "Bottom-up Climate Adaptation Strategies Towards a Sustainable Europe" (BASE) and summarises the following challenges: Uncertainties and insufficient knowledge, as well as the need to improve assessments and the mainstreaming of adaptation in policy.Read more

Publication

Going Out of the Town Hall

The Benefits and How They Can Be Achieved

From urban gardening and networks of sharing to community-owned wind farms: citizens' initiatives emerge all over Europe in a quest to find new answers to today's pressing challenges. This policy brief explores new forms of cooperation between local governments and these bottom-up initiatives. It argues that getting involved with initiatives helps local governments to be an active player in their community's change dynamics. This cooperation furthermore requires new ways of engaging and participating between the groups.Read more

Publication

How the EU can Support Local Transition Processes

This policy brief outlines the main characteristics of this approach and the challenges that these pose for research funders. It discusses whether and how this kind of research can be scaled up and how EU funding mechanisms could support solution-oriented, transformative research. The policy brief is available for download.Read more

Publication

Policy Brief

Biodiversity

Kulturlandschaften entwickeln, Ökosystemleistungen stärken

In this policy paper, a group of young researchers, among them Ecologic Institute's Holger Gerdes, provides possibilities and suggestions for a transformation of the approach taken in Germany towards ecosystem services, which should allow for the integration of this concept into relevant policy areas and cross-cutting issues. The policy paper is available for download.Read more

Publication

River Basin Network on Water Framework Directive and Agriculture

Practical Experiences and Knowledge Exchange in Support of the WFD Implementation (2010-2012)

Agricultural management is a key priority area for achieving the objective of good ecological status of European waters under the Water Framework Directive (WFD). This report presents the outcome of work by the River Basin Network (RBN) on WFD and Agriculture in the period from 2010 to 2012. The RBN is a technical network established within the Expert Group on WFD and Agriculture. Comprised of 21 River Basins representing 14 Member States, the RBN mandate was to facilitate exchange of practical experiences and knowledge on good practices in support of the WFD implementation. The publication is available for download.Read more

Publication

Financing Sustainable Transportation: An Overview of Finance Mechanisms and Cases from the U.S. and Germany

This policy report compares approaches to sustainable transportation financing in the U.S. and Germany, with a focus on Northern Virginia and the Stuttgart region. Max Gruenig and Dominic Marcellino, Senior Fellow Ecologic Institute Berlin and Fellow Ecologic Institute Washington DC respectively, are co-authors with Andrea Broaddus, PhD Candidate at the University of California at Berkeley. The policy report is available for download.Read more

Publication

Policy Brief

Mainstreaming

Environmental Policy Integration and Multi-Level Governance (EPIGOV)

This European Policy Brief gives an overview of the results of the project "EPIGOV" which aims to co-ordinate and synthesise the research on environmental policy integration. The policy brief summarizes the objectives of the research, the scientific approach as well as conclusions and impulses. Additionally, it provides key messages for policy makers, businesses, trade unions and civil society actors.Read more

Publication

Climate Change, Water Conflicts and Human Security in the Mediterranean, Middle East and Sahel

Findings and recommendations from the CLICO FP7 SSH research project (www.clico.org)

The final policy brief of the European Union research project "Climate Change, Hydro-conflicts and Human Security" (CLICO) presents the results of three years of research in the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and the Sahel (MMES). It also gives policy recommendations. The policy brief is available for download.Read more

Publication

Will States See More Water Conflicts as the Climate Changes?

CLICO Policy Brief No. 3

The third policy brief of the EU-funded research project "Climate Change, Hydro-conflicts and Human Security" (CLICO) presents preliminary results on the relationship between climate change and conflicts related to water in the Mediterranean, the Middle East and the Sahel region. The policy brief, written by Christiane Gerstetter and Rodrigo Vidaurre of Ecologic Institute, and a summary in eight different languages are available for download.Read more