Ecologic Institute

European cultural landscapes are significantly shaped by human activities and provide a multitude of ecological services which benefit human society. In an article published in the May 2010 issue of “Natur und Landschaft”, the concept of ecosystem services is evaluaten in regard to its limits and potentials to analyse conflicts between land use and nature conservation. Read more ...

As the impacts of climate change and global demand for marine resources have increased, the development of an integrated, holistic marine governance framework has become a key goal for the EU and US. Recent policy events on both sides of the Atlantic provide a window of opportunity to significantly improve marine governance in national and international waters. In line with the pursuit of this goal, the Ecologic Institute leads a transatlantic project team that will convene a multi-stakeholder dialogue allowing experts from the EU, US and other regions to develop best practices for integrated marine management. Read more ...

Sustainability of biofuel policies is a largely debated issue, particularly with regards to environmental impacts. To address these issues, European and national legislative initiatives have been designed that aim to ensure the sustainability of biofuels. Germany has been among the top runners in trying to implement sustainability criteria for biofuels. In August 2009 the German government set up the Biomass-electricity-sustainability ordinance (“Biomassestrom-Nachhaltigkeitsverordnung”, abbreviated “BioSt-NachV”). The background paper written by the Ecologic Institute in October 2009 provides an overview for plant operators who will need to proof their compliance with the new ordinance. Read more ...

The Ecologic Institute coordinates the five-year project RADOST (Regional Adaptation Strategies for the German Baltic Sea Coast). The Baltic coastline of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Schleswig-Holstein is one of seven model regions in Germany that are supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) through the funding activity KLIMZUG ("Managing climate change in the regions for the future"). The aim of the RADOST project is to develop regional adaptation strategies in a dialogue between research institutions, business, public administration and civil society. The research network project RADOST is held its first annual conference, which took place on the 24 - 25 March 2010 in Schwerin. The conference was conducted under the auspices of the Ministry of Economics, Labor and Tourism of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Please find a summary and some contributions at the project website Read more ...