With the purpose of providing scientific evidence to support the development of a policy framework for renewable energy communities in Eastern European Member States, this article compares key factors for the development of such communities in Bulgaria and Germany, combining a literature review with expert interviews to collect primary information on Bulgaria.

This article gives an example of how to use Segrass in a sustainable way. "Using Seagrass as Insulation Material" by Nico Stelljes is published in the "Baltic Stories Magazine" that is devoted to promoting cooperation around the Baltic Sea, joint initiatives and projects of the European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR). The article is available online.

The EU Climate Action Regulation governs 60 percent of EU emissions. To achieve the climate targets for 2030 and 2050, the upcoming reform of the regulation must be a success, writes Nils Meyer-Ohlendorf in the Tagesspiegel. He makes a number of reform proposals. The article is available online.

A comparative study indicates that the collective memory of the 1872 storm is related to the background knowledge about floods, the damage extent, and the response to the storm. Flood marks and dikes help to remember the events. In general, coastal flood defence is to the largest degree implemented in the affected areas in Germany, followed by Denmark, and is almost absent in Sweden, corresponding to the extent of the collective memory of the 1872 storm. Within the affected countries, there is local variability of flood risk awareness associated with the collective memory of the storm.

Wehrmann, Dorothea et. al. 2021: Wie können wir die Ozeane retten? Die Bedeutung der transdisziplinären und kollaborativen Meeresforschung. Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE): Bonn.

The Conference on the Future of Europe is now in full swing. This political process could become a milestone in EU climate policy making – provided that its recommendations are specific and focus on the EU's ability to act, writes Nils Meyer-Ohlendorf in the EU Observer. He makes three proposals how the conference could become a success for EU climate policies. The article is available online.

Focusing on urban and rural development at the regional and local level as key areas of application for climate services, the paper characterizes this valley of death and suggests options to bridge the gap. The authors, among them Ecologic Institute's Dr. Grit Martinez, suggest that reframing of the concept of climate services can help expand their applications and effectiveness, taking local non-climate challenges, opportunities and narratives into account.

The Conference on the Future of Europe begins on 9 May 2021. This political process can become a milestone in EU climate policy making – provided that its recommendations are specific and focus on the EU's ability to act, writes Nils Meyer-Ohlendorf in the Tagesspiegel. He makes three proposals how the conference can support EU climate policies.

The "Plastic Pirates" are a citizen science project for young people to research litter pollution in German rivers. The article describes the background and objectives of the project, explains the scientific methodology and presents some of the results from the first years of the project.

This paper deals with how culture is expressed through the interplay of socially, politically, and economically driven processes and practices in place-based biophysical contexts as well as the role played by narrative expressions in the formation of coastal risk management, knowledge and action. It draws upon ethnographic, comparative, and historical approaches to understand how culture frames what we know and how we respond differently to risks.

This article co-authored by Sandra Naumann and McKenna Davis from the Ecologic Institute provides an overview of the state of the art of the environmental European policy framework and the recognized role of nature-based solutions (NBS) and sustainable urban planning (SUP) in reaching defined objectives and outlines insights on where NBS and SUP could play a larger role within this framework. Finally, it derives recommendations for a better integration of such concepts into the current framework. The article is available for download.

Legally binding reduction targets for Member States should be the unequivocal starting point of making EU laws fit for new EU climate targets. Based on a new distribution formula, national targets should continue until climate neutrality is achieved in 2050, writes Nils Meyer-Ohlendorf in Euractive.

In this publication, we present the results of an acceptance study in two case study regions in Germany. We investigated farmers' and other soil experts' perceptions of subsoil amelioration as an approach to adapt to climate change. In addition, we analyzed the factors that influence their willingness to adopt specific measures to improve the subsoil. Applying q-method and focus groups, we surveyed overall 86 actors in the agricultural sector. The article is published in Frontiers in Agronomy, Volume 3, April 2021 and is available for download.

In the context of the European Green Deal, the introduction and design of border adjustment measures is currently subject to much controversy. Upon invitation to contribute to the series "Green Deal reloaded" by the Stiftung Genshagen and the Institut Montaigne, Dr. Camilla Bausch (Ecologic Institute) analyzes the opportunities and challenges provided by the proposed border adjustment mechanism.

Drinking water protection in North Rhine-Westphalia is based on mandatory requirements as well as voluntary measures agreed on between farmers and water suppliers. A study conducted by Ecologic Institute and HYDOR Consult for the Ministry of the Environment, Agriculture, Nature Conservation and Consumer Protection in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) evaluated the outcomes of drinking water protection within the framework of the cooperative water protection model in NRW. The results were summarised in two articles in the journal “Korrespondenz Wasserwirtschaft”.