<p>The international debate on biofuels is mostly dominated by environmental and economic aspects while the question of how biofuels can be produced in a socially acceptable way is not systematically tackled. The project "Biofuel as Social Fuel" examines for two regions in Germany and Brazil the social dimension of biofuel production. Timo Kaphengst gave a lecture at the project`s kick-off event stressing the role of certification systems in biofuel governance.</p>
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Christiane Gerstetter, Fellow at the Ecologic Institute, contributed a paper to and gave a presentation at the Amsterdam Conference on the Human Dimensions on Global Environmental Change. She discussed how the Dispute Settlement Bodies of the World Trade Organization (WTO) deal with international environmental law, thus contributing to the conference’s section on actors in international environmental governance. The paper and the presentation are available for download.</p>
Since 2007, on initiative by the European Parliament, the European Commission (DG Relex) has sponsored transatlantic dialogues with a view to developing new approaches for handling global challenges. A conference in Brussels on 16 November 2009 reviewed the results of the first 5 pilot projects. R. Andreas Kraemer presented the outcomes of the Arctic Transform dialogue initiated by Ecologic Institute.
Christiane Gerstetter, Fellow Ecologic Legal, spoke on the legal feasibility of adopting a climate change act in Germany, modeled on the UK Climate Change Act. The presentation was a contribution to a seminar entitled "How legally-binding targets can promote more effective national climate change policy" held in the British Embassy. The presentation was based on an earlier legal expertise by Ecologic Legal on the topic, which the WWF had sponsored. It is available for download.
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On 5 November 2009, the Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (BiK-F) in Frankfurt/Main hosted a workshop focusing on “Opportunities and limits of the ecosystem services concept.” Holger Gerdes, Fellow at the Ecologic Institute, gave a presentation on the application of the ecosystem services concept in policy consultancy.</p>
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The Indiana University European Union Center organized a full-day conference entitled "European Union Regulatory Policy: Lessons for Indiana." Dominic Marcellino gave a presentation on the development of EU energy and climate policy over the past decade, pointing out trends and possible future developments, and highlighting implications for Indiana.</p>
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From 15-16 October 2009, the Center for Foreign Trade Law at the Institute for Public Economic Law of the Westphalian Wilhelms University in Münster hosted its 14th Foreign Trade Law Day, focusing on energy and climate change. At this conference, Benjamin Görlach, economist for the Ecologic Institute, delivered a presentation entitled ‘Economic Instruments between Kyoto and Copenhagen: quo vadis Climate Protection?’</p>
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At the sixth and final EPOS Network Meeting that took place on the 15th and-16th October 2009 in Budapest, Doris Knoblauch presented the analysis of the stakeholder participation processes that took place within the federal or national sustainable development strategies in five European countries. The project revealed that a major challenge was how to deal with all the input generated through the participation processes.</p>
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The potential for renewable energies is greater in the US than in Germany, and foundations can do much to unlock growth, help create jobs, stabilise communities, and phase out fossil energies and atomic power. R. Andreas Kraemer of Ecologic Institute presented the German experience at the EGA Fall Retreat in Anchorage, Alaska, on 2 October 2009.</p>
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In a Carleton University Podcast Interview conducted by Helen Morris, R. Andreas Kraemer, Director of Ecologic Institute in Berlin, discusses policy co-operation in the area of European environmental governance. He focuses on some of the challenges facing different policy communities such as transport, energy, and agriculture when trying to work together on environmental concerns. He also highlights the potential for sharing ideas and for Canadians and Europeans to learn from each others' experiences.</p>
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Successive policy challenges and EU enlargement have added layers of policy, legislation, and institutions to create the current system for addressing environment, climate, energy, and sustainable development. R. Andreas Kraemer of Ecologic Institute was invited to speak on "European Environmental Governance: Options for Cooperation" at the Centre for European Studies of Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, on 28 September 2009.</p>
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"Emerging Stronger from the Recession to Tackle the Challenges of Social Cohesion and Sustainable Development" was the theme of an expert workshop convened by the European Commission (DG Employment) in Brussels on 9 September 2009. Ecologic Institute contributed a background paper, and R. Andreas Kraemer was invited as keynote speaker on "Taking Advantage of the Crisis: Synergies between Environmental Policy and Social Inclusion".</p>