The Eurostat monitoring report, based on the EU set of sustainable development indicators and published every two years, provides an objective, statistical picture of progress towards the goals and objectives of the EU SDS. This 'lite' version of the 2013 monitoring report makes use of the universal language of visuals, offering a shortcut to the essence of the messages delivered through the full version of the monitoring report. It thus provides a snapshot of the key trends related to sustainable development in the European Union. Seven members of the Ecologic Institute contributed to this edition.
On 1 and 2 April 2014, Christiane Gerstetter, Senior Fellow on the Ecologic Institute's legal team, gave two presentations in Brussels on investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). She concluded that including ISDS in TTIP would entail incalculable risks for environmental regulation that are not counter-balanced by benefits. She therefore recommended not to include ISDS provisions in TTIP. The presentations are available for download.
A policy brief written by Katharina Umpfenbach and colleagues for DG Environment summarises the most relevant scientific insights and analyses the implications for policy making. It highlights novel policy ideas for triggering changes in consumer behaviour. The policy brief is available for download.
On 8 April 2014, the second monitoring report from the Federal Government and the joint statement from the Expert Commissions about the "Energy of the Future" monitoring process were presented. The Ecologic Institute supports the work of the Expert Commission by providing scientific input. The statement on the German "Energiewende", under review for the second year in 2012, had mixed findings. The major message is that while Germany is expected to meet its renewable energy targets, further efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve energy efficiency are necessary. The joint statement is available for download.
The existing measures in Germany are not sufficient to meet the efficiency targets of the Energy Concept and the requirements of the EU Energy Efficiency Directive. On behalf of the European Climate Foundation, Ecologic Institute has compared essential proposals aimed at increasing energy efficiency and deduced possible political demands.
Frelih-Larsen, Ana; Sandra Naumann and Elizabeth Dooley 2013: Soil Management for Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation. Framing and Integrating the Issue in the Evolving Policy Environment. 11th European IFSA Symposium – Farming Systems Facing Global Challenges: Capacities and Strategies. Heike Schobert et al. Berlin: IFSA Europe, Leibniz-Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.
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Dr. Stephan Sina, lawyer and Senior Fellow at Ecologic Institute, commented on the provisions regarding closed cycle management of bio-waste and sewage sludge (section 11 KrWG) and quality assurance in the field of bio-waste and sewage sludge (section 12 KrWG) in a new legal commentary on the Closed Cycle Management Act (Kreislaufwirtschaftsgesetz, KrWG). The legal commentary, edited by Jahn/Deifuß-Kruse/Brandt, was published by Kohlhammer in February 2014. It provides guidance to lawyers, administrative agencies, and waste management companies with respect to the application of the new Closed Cycle Management Act.
This project identified the most promising and cost-effective measures at the regional and farm levels to increase the resource efficiency and use of nutrients (N, P, K) and helped to close mineral cycles with a focus on saturated areas. Findings were translated into relevant practical measures for the farming community in highly nutrient-saturated regions in Europe. A consortium composed of BIO by Deloitte and Ecologic Institute, with the contribution of several European research institutes, conducted this project on behalf of DG Environment.
Climate change is perceived as a problem by most stakeholders (policy makers, administrations and civil society) on the Baltic Sea Coast. However, they do not agree on how to deal with it. Nico Stelljes, Doris Knoblauch, Robin Körth and Grit Martinez sum up the findings of different surveys and interviews and compare them in their article. Within the RADOST project, several stakeholders on the Baltic Sea Cost were interviewed using different methodologies. The topic of interest for all the surveys and interviews was stakeholders' views on adaptation to climate change on the Baltic Sea Coast.
from 2013 until 2018, the RECARE project applied a transdisciplinary approach, actively integrating and advancing knowledge of stakeholders and scientists in 17 case studies, to identify and develop effective measures for improved soil protection in Europe. Ecologic Institute developed policy briefs on the topics "Soil Sealing and Land Take", "Subsoil compaction" and "Remediating Historical Soil Contamination, as well as co-wrote the brochure with the most important project findings. The policy briefs and the project brochure are available for download.