A key focus of the project is extending the lifespan of everyday goods by enabling them to be passed on to new users instead of being discarded after their first use. This approach helps conserve valuable resources, reduces waste generation, and contributes to lower greenhouse gas emissions.

As part of the EU Mission "Restore our Ocean and Waters", the project EUMission4WaterPollution is receiving technical support through the programme "Studies to Support Communities of Actors to Achieve the EU Mission", coordinated by the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA). The aim of the project is to strengthen the coastal resilience of the Albanian port city of Durrës and to develop strategies to tackle plastic and microplastic pollution.

The project analyses the development of environmental crime in Germany between 2013 and 2024, based on data from the Police Crime Statistics (PKS) and the law enforcement statistics of the Federal Statistical Office. The analysis provides both an overview of long-term trends and an in-depth assessment of individual categories of environmental offences.

In spring 2025, the Plastic Pirates were active on the Danube River once again. School classes and extracurricular youth groups were invited to collect their own data on plastic pollution and get to know the Danube better as an important habitat and transport route. The aim of the campaign was to raise young people's environmental awareness and give them a hands-on approach to scientific work. Participation was free of charge.

The Plastic Pirates Plus project focuses on where participation in education needs to be particularly promoted: in school classes with a higher proportion of pupils from socially disadvantaged households. The aim is to give these young people access to the world of science through a low-threshold, practical programme – regardless of their financial or social circumstances. Participation in the project is free of charge and thus deliberately designed so that no child is excluded.

Ecologic Institute is preparing an assessment report on "Technological options for reducing plastic waste in the oceans". The report will provide a systematic overview of technologies designed to remove plastic waste from water bodies. The analysis will evaluate technical, ecological and economic aspects as well as risks and benefits. The report will present the current state of knowledge in a concise and scientifically robust manner, identify gaps in knowledge and provide a basis for informed decisions.

In the context of the political goal of strengthening the reuse of used goods, the project aimed at supporting and executing re-use measures in Berlin in order to foster structures and actors in Berlin that bring the used goods market out of its niche. To do so, the project draws on the experience of several predecessor projects including initial pilot tests, networking activities and the opening of the Re-Use Superstore.

With ZirTeNet, Ecologic Institute supports the networking and coordination of sixteen research and innovation projects funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) under the programme "Resource-efficient circular economy – circular textiles".

Digital technologies have the potential to close economic loops, reduce CO2-emissions and increase resource efficiency. However, the possibilities of digitalisation for shaping a comprehensive circular economy are far from exhausted. This research project investigates how digital solutions can support consumers in aligning their consumption with sustainable and circular criteria.

In the course of the project, a comprehensive research, analysis and evaluation of certification systems for recycled plastics will be carried out. A central aim of the project is to enable a simple and quick comparison of the identified, analysed and evaluated certification systems.

This project will help identify cross-sectoral (climate action) policies, instruments, and programmes that contribute to a carbon-neutral circular economy in the EU. It aims to identify options to optimise the policy interplay in different regions in order to support the achievement of the European climate action targets and to accelerate ambition increases in this decade and the next.

Despite Germany's Circular Economy and Waste Management Act "Kreislaufwirtschafts- und Abfallgesetz" of 1996, the country's economy remains essentially linear. To transition from this status quo and lead the way towards a genuinely circular and resource-efficient economy, the development of a National Circular Economy Strategy (Nationale Kreislaufwirtschaftsstrategie) (NKWS) is now in progress. The project provides scientific support to the development of this strategy, as much as to the related debate.

In this research and dialogue project on behalf of the Climate Neutrality Foundation, Ecologic Institute analyzes the complex landscape of Germany's bilateral and plurilateral partnerships in the fields of energy, climate and raw materials, with a focus on partnerships with countries of the Global South.

The overall goal of SCALE-UP is to support regional multi-actor partnerships, consisting of private businesses, governments and policymakers, civil society organisations, and researchers in identifying and scaling-up innovative and sustainable bio-based value chains that build on regional resources. Through its approach, SCALE-UP will adapt, implement and evaluate tools to help regional actors to overcome the apparent bottlenecks towards fully exploiting bioeconomy potentials in their region.

In the context of the political goal of strengthening the reuse of used goods, the project aimed at supporting and executing re-use measures in Berlin in order to foster structures and actors in Berlin that bring the used goods market out of its niche. To do so, the project drew on the practical experience of initial pilot tests in 2018, networking activities since 2019 and the opening of the Re-Use Superstore in 2020.