The decarbonization of the German energy system, the so-called German "Energiewende," was officially adopted with the introduction of the "Energy Concept" of September 2010 and the energy policy decisions of June 2011. These decisions foresee the development of a highly efficient energy system based on renewable sources by the year 2050. In order to make the progress visible, a monitoring process was established, accompanied by an independent expert commission. This project includes the scientific support of Dr. Hans-Joachim Ziesing and the other members of the expert commission for the "Energy of the Future" monitoring process.

The German Government set up the monitoring process "Energy of the Future" in a Cabinet Resolution on 19 October 2011 to review the implementation of the German Energy Concept and additional energy policy decisions. As a result, the corresponding German Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy is conducting monitoring reports which outline the goals, measures, and related indicators. Every three years a progress report will be presented with a more detailed analysis of how the goals are expected to be achieved.

Through this initiative, the German Government called for a commission of energy experts, which includes Prof. Dr. Andreas Löschel, Prof. Dr. Georg Erdmann, Prof. Dr. Frithjof Staiß, and Dr. Hans-Joachim Ziesing, to contribute to the monitoring process. The expert commission supports the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy in preparing the monitoring report and provides a joint statement in order to point out possible challenges and provide suggestions for improvement.

Ecologic Institute provides scientific support to this work. The focus is on the key topics that Dr. Hans-Joachim Ziesing and the expert commission have selected for their joint statement. In addition, the Ecologic Institute also supports the expert commission in giving scientific advice and assistance to the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. Ecologic Institute also participates in internal and public events as part of the monitoring process.