Mobility

Mobility

Project
 
Europe and the European Union are facing profound changes and the importance of environmental policy is growing. In response to this, Daimler-Benz Research & Technology has asked Ecologic to prepare a report on trends in European environmental policy.

Trends in the European Environmental Policy

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Publication:Report
 
As part of the project CECILIA2050, which examines policy options to improve European climate policies, this report specifically analyzes greenhouse gases reduction potential in the transport sector. After giving an overview of policy instruments in this sector, the authors review transport elasticities and highlight limits to carbon pricing in the road transport sector.

Climate Policies and the Transport Sector

Analysis of Policy Instruments, their Interactions, Barriers and Constraints, and Resulting Effects on Consumer Behaviour

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Publication:Book Section
 
In a chapter for the edited volume Metropolitan sustainability: Understanding and improving the urban environment, Max Grünig from the Ecologic Institute discusses non-technical approaches for developing sustainable transport and mobility plans in urban areas. The chapter 'Sustainable urban transport planning' emphasizes that it is important to understand consumer behavior and the characteristics of different urban transport choices in order to find the best solution for different urban areas.

Sustainable Urban Transport Planning

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Publication:Report
 
Electric vehicles have the potential for significant contributions towards achieving the EU’s climate protection goals in the transport sector. However, the environmental impacts of a large scale introduction of electric vehicles are still unknown. This project has developed scenarios for the increased dissemination of electric vehicles in the EU until 2050 and formulated policy recommendations from these findings. The full report of this project is available for download.

Impacts of Electric Vehicles – Summary Report

Report for the Directorate General Climate

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Publication:Report
 
The European Union (EU) wants to increase the share of renewable energy in the transport sector to 10% by 2020. This 10% target was set in the Renewable Energy Directive (RED). However, it currently focuses on the use of biofuels in transport and assumes a grid-average for electricity used in transport. No methodology is available for biomethane and hydrogen from renewable sources. The study "Shifting Renewable Energy in Transport into the Next Gear" was performed to determine whether there are conditions under which it is possible and beneficial to amend the RED to include new methodologies for renewable electricity, hydrogen and biomethane to count towards the 10% transport target. The final report is available for download.

Shifting Renewable Energy in Transport into the Next Gear

Developing a methodology for taking into account all electricity, hydrogen and methane from renewable sources in the 10% transport target - Report for the Directorate General Energy

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Publication:Policy Brief
 
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.

Financing Sustainable Transportation

An Overview of Finance Mechanisms and Cases from the U.S. and Germany

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Publication:Policy Brief
 
In the early 2000s, biofuels were seen as a panacea for several environmental and economic challenges. In more recent years, however, their promotion has faded substantially. With the ongoing expansion of biofuel production worldwide, serious doubts have been raised about their sustainability and potential to reach environmental targets. This Ecologic Brief provides an assessment of the extent to which social aspects of biofuel production are addressed in current EU policies. It also explores possible ways of enhancing, reshaping, or extending existing policies in order to ensure the sustainable production of biofuels. The Ecologic Brief is available for download.

The Social Dimension of EU Biofuel Policy

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Publication:Article
 
Over the last 40 years, Germany has retooled policies to promote more environmentally sustainable growth. Michael Mehling contributed to an article focusing on four case studies from Germany in the areas of energy, urban infrastructure, and transportation. The article identifies potential opportunities for policy transfer from Germany to the United States as well as barriers that may hinder such transfer.

How Germany Became Europe's Green Leader

A Look at Four Decades of Sustainable Policymaking

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Publication:Article
 
An European study shows that the rebound effect repeal energy and resource savings between 10 and 30 percent. Therefore, the adverse effect should already taken into account when designing policy instruments to improve efficiency. If the measures are combined skillfully, the rebound effect can be decreased. The results of the project conducted by BIO Intelligence Service, GVSS, and Ecologic Institute are summarized in the journal articel. The article is available for download.

Zwei Schritte vor, einer zurück

Der Rebound-Effekt schränkt die Wirkung von Effizienzprogrammen ein

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Publication:Video
 
Road transport is the most important driver for increasing greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union and is therefore critical to achieving the EU's 20 % greenhouse gas reduction target in 2020. The objective is to decouple economic growth and the demand for transport with the aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This video (8:36 Min.) visualizes European data on economic growth, transport and greenhouse gas emissions.

Decoupling: Economic Growth – Transport – Greenhouse Gas Emissions

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Publication:Policy Brief
 
This policy brief draws upon a series of background papers, expert meetings, and interviews to provide an overview of the international and EU governance options for addressing the rapid changes underway in the region. While reflecting the opinions of its authors, this policy brief benefits from the opinions and insights of the experts participating in the five thematic working groups of Arctic TRANSFORM.

Transatlantic Policy Options for Supporting Adaptation in the Marine Arctic

Summary for Policy Makers

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Publication:Report
 
In his 2010 State of the Union address, President Obama declared the need for "serious investments in clean energy" because "the nation that leads the clean energy economy will be the nation that leads the global economy". In a new paper funded by the German Marshall Fund of the United States under the Transatlantic Climate Bridge initiative, authors from the Ecologic Institute in Washington DC and Berlin identify investment needs and policy incentives required to achieve this transition to a clean energy economy.

Transforming Economies through Green Investment

Needs, Progress and Policies

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Publication:Policy Brief
 
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.

Die Biomassestrom-Nachhaltigkeitsverordnung (BioSt-NachV)

Eine kurze Einführung für AnlagenbetreiberInnen

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Publication:Brochure
 
Indicators are a major source of information for efficient economic and political decisions and provide basic quantitative support for the elaboration and implementation of policies. On behalf of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management (BMLFUW), Ecologic analyses the environmental situation of Austria in the context of the EU-27 Member States published in a brochure in November 2008.

Untersuchungen zur Umweltqualität in Österreich im europäischen Kontext

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