<p>&#13; Emissions trading systems emerging in the United States offer the opportunity of a future trading link to the European carbon market. While such a link promises more efficient allocation of resources in a larger and more liquid market, differences in the design of trading systems can undermine the effectiveness of the linked trading systems. In a presentation at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, Michael Mehling and Jason Anderson provided legislators and their staff with an update of recent policy developments in the US and identified the prospects of an eventual market link across the Atlantic. This presentation and a series of commissioned background studies helped brief EU parliamentarians visiting the US in 2009.</p>&#13; <p>&#13; </p>

<p> In view of rising food and energy prices with impacts on vulnerable groups of society, the European Commission (DG Employment) convened a conference in Brussels on 24 February 2009 on social impacts of sustainable development, and policies aimed at making production and consumption more sustainable.&nbsp; R. Andreas Kraemer of Ecologic Institute presented the success case of the German ecological tax reform, which creates jobs, helps stabilise social security systems, and induces improvements in energy efficiency and structural change.</p>

<p>&#13; In the run up to the NATO Summit in Strasbourg-Kehl in April 2009, NATO Public Diplomacy Division and Carnegie Europe launched a discussion on "The Next Generation of Security Threats" and the reprogramming of NATO. They invited R. Andreas Kraemer of Ecologic Institute to provide keynote commentary on the question: "Should Climate Change be a Priority?" at the inaugural event of a new series.</p>&#13;

<p> The need to better understand and monitor the linkages between social exclusion and unsustainable development, and the quest for a toolkit to assess the social impacts of environment policy measures, the European Commission (DG Employment) convened a workshop for scientific support for promoting social fairness in sustainable development in Brussels on 23 February 2009.&nbsp; R. Andreas Kraemer of Ecologic Institute was invited to speak on social exclusion and a poor environment.</p>

<p>&#13; At the EnergyAgency.NRW expert conference on future energies, expert speakers addressed the subject of efficient energy generation, especially regarding biomass, energy storage, geothermal energy, wind energy research and power plant technology. Aaron Best, Ecologic Senior Fellow, spoke in the opening plenary session, highlighting the nascent energy and climate policies of the new Obama administration.</p>&#13;

<p>&#13; In the wake of the financial and economic crises of 2008, the role of public policy in promoting a shift towards low-carbon technologies, energy efficiency and renewable energies is reassessed.  On 29 October 2008, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, Sustainable Prosperity, and the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) hosted a Canadian-German Dialogue in Ottawa, Ontario, on "Business, Environment, and Energy" and invited Hans-Joachim Ziesing of Ecologic to address the question "Government Policy: Helping or Hindering Sustainable Growth in the New Energy Economy?"</p>&#13;

<p>The exchange of experiences related to the treatment and reuse of wastewater in the Mediterranean region and Europe was the purpose of the INNOVA-Med capacity building course in Ismailia, Egypt. Cornelius Laaser, Researcher at Ecologic, presented precautionary and mitigation measures in agricultural wastewater reuse, based on a case study from Wolfsburg, Germany.</p>

<p>&#13; Against a backdrop of increasing scarcity of and potential conflict over fossile energy resources, and a reassessment of the impact of climate change on national or collective security, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation Washington DC, and the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security (AIGS) convened a Roundtable on Transatlantic Energy Security in Washington DC on 2 December 2008.  Camilla Bausch of Ecologic and Neil Brown, Special Advisor on Energy and Environment to Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN) provided the introduction and set the theme for the event.</p>&#13;

<p>&#13; In an explorative study commissioned by the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Ecologic Institute is currently analysing the long-term impacts of climate change on Germany’s financial budget. On 26 November 2008, Ingo Bräuer presented first results to the Ministry’s Working Group on Public Finance and discussed methodological questions with the experts in the audience.</p>&#13;

R. Andreas Kraemer of Ecologic Institute gave a keynote presentation on "Threats and Opportunities in a Changing Arctic: Policy Challenges and Transatlantic Relations" at the John H. Chafee Center for International Business of Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island, on 14 November 2008. The presentation draws on the transatlnatic Arctic Transform dialogue.

<p>&#13; Since the Security Council debated the security implications of climate change in April 2007, security aspects of climate change rank high on the political agenda of the UN. In a presentation at Haus Rissen Hamburg, Nils Meyer-Ohlendorf discussed the contribution of the UN to environmental security.</p>&#13;

<p>&#13; Border Adjustment Measures (BAM) have been discussed as a tool to equalize costs that industries with stringent greenhouse gas requirements have to bear, as some international competitors do not face these costs and allegedly enjoy a free ride. At a workshop of the German Federal Environment Agency (UBA), Nils Meyer-Ohlendorf and Michael Mehling discussed whether BAM are an adequate tool to address competitiveness concerns arising from the EU's ambitious climate change policies.</p>&#13;

<p>&#13; This workshop from 28-29 August 2008 in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) aimed towards a common understanding between representatives of Latin America, Asia, Europe and the US on future biofuel development. Timo Kaphengst outlined in his presentation the renewable energy policy of the European Union, more specifically the main controversies within decision-making bodies of the EU on biofuel targets and sustainability standards.</p>&#13;

<p>&#13; The meeting, which took place at COPA-COGECA in Brussels, was attended by representatives from different agricultural unions of the EU. Thomas Dworak focused his lecture on the main links between the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and the Common Agricultural Policy.</p>&#13;