Season's greetings to all our readers. May the coming year be a fruitful, healthy, and sustainable one for you and yours! 

1. Second background paper on „Water Framework Directive meets Common Agricultural Policy“ published
2. Capacity Building on Climate Change Action Post-2012 – Event announcement
3. IPPC-Information Day – Presentations online
4. European Liberalisation Trends: Effects on the Water Sector in Germany - Lecture
5. Valuing Ecosystem Services for WFD Implementation? – Lecture
6. Ecologic welcomes Dr. Ingo Bräuer as a Fellow
7. Ecologic is pleased to introduce two new researchers

1. Second background paper on „Water Framework Directive meets Common Agricultural Policy“ published
The second background paper entitled “WFD and Agriculture – Linkages at the EU level. Final Report about Rural Development Programmes” of the project CAP & WRRL has been published and can be downloaded. It will also be discussed at an international conference in Vienna on 2 - 3 March 2006. Within this sixth Framework Programme (FP6) project, Ecologic and the Warsaw Agricultural University (WAU) are analysing the interlinkages between both policies in order to elaborate future synergies while implementing, planning, financing and controlling the various requirements of the WFD and the CAP.
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2. Capacity Building on Climate Change Action Post-2012 – Event announcement
On 23 - 24 January 2006, Ecologic will host the Conference "Future EU Climate Change Policy - Challenges and Opportunities for New Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries" in Warsaw. Polish Minister of the Environment Prof. Jan Szyszko will open the Conference. The conference is the first of a series of events aimed at facilitating an open-minded societal debate in new EU Member States, Acceding and Candidate Countries on the challenges and opportunities arising from future climate change policy. Views will be exchanged on how the EU, and in particular its new and future Member States, should build on the Kyoto Protocol and how countries should work together after 2012 to fight climate change.
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3. IPPC-Information Day – Presentations online
This conference, organised by Ecologic on behalf of the Ministry for Environment Baden-Württemberg, demonstrated that the IPPC Directive creates additional obligations and requirements for operators and authorities yet is an effective remedy against environmental dumping in the EU. Participants agreed that good co-operation between administration and operators is an essential condition for successful implementation of the IPPC Directive. The presentations held on the IPPC Information Day are now available on the internet.
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4. European Liberalisation Trends: Effects on the Water Sector in Germany - Lecture
Debates and discussions are still taking place on the aims of the European Commission as regards the strengthening of competition in the water sector. The question is: What would the consequences be for the German water and wastewater sector, if water provision was to be increasingly subjected to competition, public procurement and internal market rules? In Germany, the modernisation strategy aims at creating environmental and customer-friendly water providers which also remain competitive. The Handelsblatt 2005 conference on the water and wastewater sector in Germany provided a platform for stakeholders to exchange views on the further development of the water supply and sanitation system. Ecologic's Director R. Andreas Kraemer gave a presentation on the current European trends towards liberalisation and their impacts on the German water and wastewater sector. Read more ...

5. Valuing Ecosystem Services for WFD Implementation? – Lecture
During an international capacity-building workshop for participants from Central and Eastern Europe which was convened from 29 September to 1 October 2005, Nicole Kranz discussed the application of a valuation of ecosystem services for the implementation of the requirements of the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD).
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6. Ecologic welcomes Dr. Ingo Bräuer as a Fellow
Building on his broad background in both biology and economics, Ingo Bräuer is focusing on environmental economics, the EU Water Framework Directive, and waste management.
CV Dr. Ingo Bräuer

7. Ecologic is pleased to introduce two new researchers
Anna Leipprand complemented her first degree in biology with a master's in European Studies; her work at Ecologic focuses on agriculture, water, climate, and emissions trading at the European level, as well as nature conservation and biodiversity.
CV Anna Leipprand
Katrina Marsden studied Earth Sciences as well as Environmental Change and Management at Oxford before joining Ecologic.  She is working on European agricultural policy and its effects on the environment, rural development and water issues.
CV Katrina Marsden