Ecologic Newsletter No 115 ? June 2012
1. Green Economy in the Context of Sustainable Development and Poverty Eradication – Videos for Rio+20
Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, released four videos addressing the themes of the upcoming Rio+20 Conference. The videos tell stories in which the fictional journalist Marta Wisdom investigates the topics of green growth, green economy, and poverty in the EU. In her reportages and interviews she uses EU statistics. The videos explain what green growth could mean for the EU’s sustainable development, how Europeans consume and produce electricity, whether poverty is only a question of income, how Europeans feel about poverty in different cities, and how evenly income is distributed in the EU. Ecologic Institute was involved in the development and production of the videos.
http://ecologic.eu/4823
2. Adaptation Measures in the EU: Policies, Costs, and Economic Assessment – Climate Proofing Report #2
In this second part of the published report, existing policies were shown to be partly insufficient for satisfying adaptation needs, and thus the inclusion of new measures into existing policies is required. Based on the review of existing measures suitable for climate change adaptation in key policies as well as interviews with key EC representatives, additional measures and adjustments to existing measures have been identified that are necessary to respond to the impacts of climate change. This includes consideration of possible support for “climate proofing.” The report is available for download.
http://ecologic.eu/4778
3. Climate Adaption, Water, and Security at the International Level ? CLICO Working Paper
The EU-funded research project “Climate Change, Hydro-conflicts and Human Security” (CLICO) investigates how climate change influences water, human security, and conflicts in the Mediterranean, Middle East, and the Sahel region. Ecologic Institute recently published a working paper written by Elizabeth Tedsen that examines current initiatives of the European Union and United Nations relating to these themes of climate, water, human security, and conflict. The paper provides a broad overview and selection of primary programs and policies for these issues, focusing on linkages between thematic areas. It is available for download.
http://ecologic.eu/4858
4. Adaptation Measures on the German Baltic Sea Coast- Evaluation of a Qualitative Survey of Actors at Different Administrative Levels – Publication
Actors from different levels of government were the focus of this survey on adaptation to climate change, which was carried out as part of RADOST. The following questions were explored: What are possible climate impacts? What can be understood as an adaptation measure on the Baltic coast? Who is responsible for the implementation of these adaptation measures? The report is available for download.
http://ecologic.eu/4821
5. Engaging Stakeholders in Formulating National Adaptation Strategies in the Baltic States – Presentation
The BaltClim project supports the formulation of national adaptation strategies for climate change in the Baltic States. At a working meeting in Tallinn, Estonia, on 29 and 30 May 2012, Dr. Grit Martinez of Ecologic Institute was part of a German group of experts that shared their experiences in formulating and implementing adaptation strategies with representatives from Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. Her presentation focused on insights from the RADOST (Regional Adaptation Strategies for the German Baltic Sea Coast) project with regard to stakeholder consultation and participation. The presentations of the German group of experts are available for download.
http://ecologic.eu/4860
6. International Approaches to the Integrated Assessment of Aquatic Ecosystems – Review
The goal of this project was to support the implementation of the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). Ecologic Institute has produced a study reviewing international practice examples of Integrated Ecosystem Assessments (IEAs). It analyzes their applicability to the MSFD along with the Directive’s requirement for initial assessment. The study concludes by proposing a series of key requirements for IEAs. The final report is available for download.
http://ecologic.eu/4148
7. Communicating Research: Getting your Message Across – Presentation
In May 2012, as part of the World Congress on Water, Climate and Energy in Dublin (Ireland), Ecologic Institute organized a Special Session entitled “Communicating research: Getting your message across.” The event, led by Darla Nickel, Ulf Stein, and Johanna von der Weppen, all experts from Ecologic Institute, targeted water researchers as well as practitioners with an interest in catalyzing the transfer and use of EU-funded research outputs in order to meet the objectives set out in the Water Framework Directive and related directives. The presentations and results of the special session are available for download.
http://ecologic.eu/4856
8. Memorandum Regarding Social-ecological Research – Sign Now
The memorandum “Understand ? Evaluate ? Shape. Transdisciplinary knowledge for a sustainable society” has been presented by leading actors in the field of transdisciplinary sustainability research. They hope to ensure that social-ecological research can be deepened and expanded in the coming years – regarding content, organization, and institutions. Ecologic Institute welcomes this memorandum and calls for others to sign it. The memorandum was submitted to the German Federal Minister of Research Annette Schavan for consideration, but the opportunity to sign it and show your support for social-ecological research still exists. The Director of Ecologic Institute, R. Andreas Kraemer, wrote the memorandum as part of an expert group.
http://ecologic.eu/4817
9. Ecological Research Network (Ecornet) – Now Online
Seven pioneering institutes of sustainability research in Germany have linked up with one another and formed the “Ecological Research Network” (Ecornet), a network of leading non-university institutes in Germany focusing on sustainability research. The mission of Ecornet: to create the scientific basis for a societal transformation toward sustainability. The Ecornet institutes produce practice-relevant research across the borders of traditional scientific disciplines for the development of a post-fossil, post-nuclear society.
http://ecologic.eu/4813
10.Further information and news
o Working Together to Deliver on Water Policy Objectives – 3rd European Water Conference
The presentations as well as videos from the livestream are available online.
o Is it Time for a Societal Change? A View on the Global Environmental Crisis and the Great Questions of Tomorrow – Presentation
The presentation slides are available for download.
o BALTADAPT: Climate Change Adaptation in the Baltic Region – Policy Forum
o Ecosystem Services and Land Use (2012) – University Course
o Environment and Sustainability 2012 – ITESM Summer School
o Emerging Leaders in Environmental and Energy Policy Summit
o Audit Certificate for Ecologic Institute’s Financial Statement 2011