Environmental Politics
Environmental Politics are related to many different policy fields which is why the FFU pursues research in a variance of policy fields like biodiversity or research policy. A focus lies on the essential policy field of climate protection and energy, but there are also many projects dedicated to other areas like the politics of the "Energiewende". The scientists working at FFU are interested in sustainable economic politics as well as in the new and up-coming policy field Green Economy.
Please click on the policy fields listed in the left menu to see the projects pertaining to each fields. A list of all projects is available under "All Projects" to give you an overview.
Climate Politics
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The core concern of the GIZ program RE-ACTIVATE for the MENA region is to create favourableconditions to combine the goals of transforming the energy systems with a sustainable economic development that creates domestic employment effects. The research is intended to contribute to the creation of functioning renewable energy and energy efficiency markets and support employment in the region. (more)
The Indo-German Expert Group is an interdisciplinary working group of renowned experts from leading research institutions / political think tanks in India and Germany. It was set up in 2013 to enhance collaborative learning, contribute to informed decision-making in both countries and feed into the international debate on a green and inclusive economy.
since November 2013
Related Links
English version coming soon!
Über die personal- und arbeitspolitischen Besonderheiten in den Unternehmen der erneuerbaren Energiewirtschaft ist vergleichsweise wenig bekannt. In interdisziplinärer Kooperation zwischen dem Forschungszentrum für Umweltpolitik und dem Management-Department des Fachbereichs Wirtschaftswissenschaft (FU Berlin) zielt das von der Hans-Böckler-Stiftung geförderte Forschungsprojekt darauf ab, diese Lücke zu füllen, indem insbesondere die soziale Nachhaltigkeit in der Windenergiebranche in den Blick genommen wird.
Laufzeit: 01.02.2014 - 31.01.2016
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The project develops a classification to bring together the supply side of the market and the various demands with the aim to contribute to the success of the technology mechanism of the UN framework convention on climate change. For that purpose, the study will analyse the technology needs assessment of emerging economies and developing countries taking part in the UNFCCC’s technology mechanism. In addition to that, the FFU will study the conditions for successful technology transfers and develop a map of the relevant actors in Germany in this field.
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The Environmental Policy Research Centre participates in a large joint project with major German institutes ”Establishment of a research platform for nuclear waste material: Interdisciplinary analysis and development of criteria for assessment”.
Aim of the sub-project is primarily the policy and social analysis of the development of a strategy for a nuclear waste storage solution in Germany under participation of relevant stakeholders.
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Bioenergy Promotion 2 is a so called Extension stage project (ESP) under the EU INTERERREG IVB Baltic Sea Region Programme. The overall aim of Bioenergy Promotion 2 is to strengthen and implement key results from the Main stage project Bioenergy Promotion (2009-2011) through demonstration, testing and transfer measures in selected demo regions and beyond.
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Die gemeinnützige Klimaschutzagentur Bremer Energie-Konsens und die GEWOBA Aktiengesellschaft Wohnen und Bauen haben in Absprache mit den Koordinatoren des bundesweiten Projekts „Stromsparcheck“ von Caritas und eaD ein ähnliches Projekt in Bremen gestartet, den „EnergieSparCheck für GEWOBA-Mieter“. Dieses Projekt will mit einer Kombination aus Beratung und direkter Umsetzung von Maßnahmen die Ziele CO2-Emissionssenkung und Energiekostendämpfung erreichen.
Laufzeit: 01.01.2012 - 01.12.2012
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The Environmental Policy Research Centre (FFU) supports the project with its expertise in the field of “Green Economy”. Specifically, it supports the preparation of the country studies, summarizes and compares their main results so as to develop policy recommendations for the region as a whole, and prepares a comparable case study on “The German energy transition and its implications for green jobs”.
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Schools@University is an innovative inter- and transdisciplinary educational format at the Freie Universität of Berlin that builds bridges between academia and civil society. Fifth and sixth graders and their teachers are invited to the FUB twice a year to gain in-depth knowledge on sustainability issues and critical thinking skills empowering them to effect changes within their everyday world and in society at large. The format is based on two pillars:
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A one-week program for 10 -13 years-olds featuring 75 interactive and participatory workshops.
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A half-day practical teacher training to encourage application of lessons learnt in their respective schools.
We develop the workshop designs together with 100 partners from academia (students, scientists and administration staff), the state of Berlin, local businesses/companies, art and culture institutions, as well as NGOs.
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The German-Indian Sustainability and Climate Change Dialogue brings together decision-makers, scholars and future environmental leaders from Germany and India. They address climate protection and environmental governance and discuss the challenges and chances for bilateral environmental cooperation between both countries.
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With the EU Commission’s recommendation to all member countries to implement biomass action plans and with the Renewable Energy Directive 2009/28/EC, biomass is expected to contribute considerably to the goal of 20% share of renewable energy sources (RES) in energy supply in Europe by 2020.
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To mark the 20th anniversary of the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl the Federal Environment Ministry (BMU) in cooperation with the Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS), the Environmental Policy Research Centre (FFU) at the Freie Universität Berlin and the European East-West Academy for Culture and the Media (EOWA) planned to launch a series of events themed “Chernobyl +20” .
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The Climate Technology Initiative (CTI) has been set up in 1995 by principal member states of the OECD/IEA and European Commission in order “to promote the objectives of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) by fostering international co-operation for accelerated development and diffusion of climate-friendly technologies and practices for all activities and greenhouse gases”.
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The SUSTAIN EU-ASEAN project aims at establishing a more sustainable and integrated research and innovation cooperation between the EU and the ASEAN region in the areas of climate action, resource efficiency and raw materials. It will also improve the uptake and exploitation of respective research results by different user groups. The project's approach is to achieve this through:
- Creating a knowledge base on the strategic environment for sustainable cooperation, uptake and implementation of results of joint EU-ASEAN environment research
- Developing and testing tools for increased synergies, uptake, exposure and visibility of joint EU-ASEAN research
- Developing a roadmap and concrete proposals for upgrading joint research and innovation, for more sustainable and strategic future cooperation
- Identifying and cluster EU funded and relevant bilateral projects in the area of climate action, raw materials and resource efficiency
Politics of Biodiversity
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Biodiversity FFU is having the lead in managing the Impact Area ‘biodiversity, fauna and flora’ of projects like LIAISE-KIT, an internet platform for supporting practioners and policy makers in Impact Assessment. Under this Impact Area the functional aspects of different dimension of biodiversity are being explained and the most important political instruments for its protection and management are listed. The dimensions – or specific terms – that are being referred to are species numbers, species and habitat diversity, habitat connectivity and ecosystem services. The central focus of this Lead Editor role is on developing an expert network and inventorying and describing models for assessing impacts on biodiversity. |
Schools@University is an innovative inter- and transdisciplinary educational format at the Freie Universität of Berlin that builds bridges between academia and civil society. Fifth and sixth graders and their teachers are invited to the FUB twice a year to gain in-depth knowledge on sustainability issues and critical thinking skills empowering them to effect changes within their everyday world and in society at large. The format is based on two pillars:
-
A one-week program for 10 -13 years-olds featuring 75 interactive and participatory workshops.
-
A half-day practical teacher training to encourage application of lessons learnt in their respective schools.
We develop the workshop designs together with 100 partners from academia (students, scientists and administration staff), the state of Berlin, local businesses/companies, art and culture institutions, as well as NGOs.
Related Links
Politics of Energiewende
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The aim of the energy transformation (Energiewende) in Germany is the phasing out of nuclear energy by 2022, a substantial decarbonisation of energy supply by 2050 as well as a significant increase in energy productivity. It includes a reorganization of the energy supply in the areas of electricity, heat and transport and aligns their infrastructures. The transformation of the energy system is a complex social reform project, for which there is no master plan. Political decisions often must be made under uncertainty. Therefore, adequate and especially reflexive governance mechanisms are needed which allow for correction and adaptation of measures to new findings and challenges. Although all parties and most stakeholders in Germany share the objectives of the energy revolution, there is still no consensus on the way and the pace of implementation. Market mechanisms alone cannot bring the Energiewende about because market prices do not form the relevant economic costs of energy production. In addition, the energy transformation is hampered by the interests of powerful actors in the traditional energy systems which are challenged by new economic actors, citizens' initiatives and new value models of energy supply. The energy transition is to be implemented on several political and administrative levels, whose energy policies need to be integrated into an overall system. Therefore, the transformation process requires a long-term political control and coordination among actors and their interests, values and goals, between the levels of government in the federal system of Germany and between Germany and its European neighbors. The FFU is dedicated to the study of politics for the energy revolution, the relevant actor constellations and control challenges in a number of basic research-oriented and practice-oriented projects. |
The core concern of the GIZ program RE-ACTIVATE for the MENA region is to create favourableconditions to combine the goals of transforming the energy systems with a sustainable economic development that creates domestic employment effects. The research is intended to contribute to the creation of functioning renewable energy and energy efficiency markets and support employment in the region. (more)
The Indo-German Expert Group is an interdisciplinary working group of renowned experts from leading research institutions / political think tanks in India and Germany. It was set up in 2013 to enhance collaborative learning, contribute to informed decision-making in both countries and feed into the international debate on a green and inclusive economy.
since November 2013
Related Links
English version coming soon!
Über die personal- und arbeitspolitischen Besonderheiten in den Unternehmen der erneuerbaren Energiewirtschaft ist vergleichsweise wenig bekannt. In interdisziplinärer Kooperation zwischen dem Forschungszentrum für Umweltpolitik und dem Management-Department des Fachbereichs Wirtschaftswissenschaft (FU Berlin) zielt das von der Hans-Böckler-Stiftung geförderte Forschungsprojekt darauf ab, diese Lücke zu füllen, indem insbesondere die soziale Nachhaltigkeit in der Windenergiebranche in den Blick genommen wird.
Laufzeit: 01.02.2014 - 31.01.2016
Related Links
English version coming soon!
Im Rahmen der deutsch-ukrainischen Zusammenarbeit hat das Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit, einen Konsultationsprozess eingeleitet, in dessen Verlauf umsetzbare Projekte im nicht-nuklearen Bereich identifiziert und entwickelt werden.
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Research Politics
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The transformation of a society towards sustainable development requires not only innovative policy approaches, but also new knowledge to support, promote and analyze these transformation processes. In order to provide this knowledge, the science system must transform itself (see also: transdisciplinary research). At the same time the corresponding framework in research policy must be created to produce knowledge to answer socially relevant issues. This includes on the one hand, that research programs are created to promote projects on sustainability-related topics. On the other hand, evaluation criteria are necessary. Researchers and scientists offer incentives to become more oriented to the social relevance and political connectivity of their research. Activities in this field will find this both in the national context, e.g., the initiatives to transdisciplinary sustainability research, as well as on the international level in the discourses on, for example, Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI). The FFU engages itself in research activities with the development of such criteria oriented towards research in social problems. Such a contribution should be made in addition to academic excellence to ensure the political connectivity of research. The possibilities of joint development of research programs with researchers, research funders and policy makers are the subject of research at the FFU. Decision makers and funding agencies can be involved not only in research processes, but also an exchange should made possible at the conceptual level. The aim is to develop research programs whose projects are evaluated according to both criteria of scientific excellence as well as provide knowledge that contributes to the solution of socially relevant issues and is usable in the policy process. |
The Indo-German Expert Group is an interdisciplinary working group of renowned experts from leading research institutions / political think tanks in India and Germany. It was set up in 2013 to enhance collaborative learning, contribute to informed decision-making in both countries and feed into the international debate on a green and inclusive economy.
since November 2013
Related Links
English version coming soon!
Die zentrale Begründung für den Aufbau eines Horizon Scanning Systems liegt in der erkennbaren Beschleunigung ökologischer Prozesse einerseits und sozioökonomischer Veränderungen andererseits. Für die Politik stellt sich damit die Frage, ob reaktiven Kurzatmigkeiten durch frühzeitigere Problembewältigung begegnet werden. Denn speziell die Umweltpolitik in Deutschland ist dem Vorsorgeprinzip und dem Gedanken der generationenübergreifenden Nachhaltigkeit verpflichtet.
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Klaus Jacob will be a member of the Expert Group that has been established by the European Commission in order to write a report that reflects the state of the art of responsible innovation, both in terms of what is to be understood under responsible research and innovation and what type of actions are already being conducted in Europe.
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Resource Politics
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Germany has committed itself to an ambitious resource policy. The National Strategy for Sustainable Development of the Federal Government formulates the aim of doubling the resource productivity until 2020 (compared to 1994). Following the European resource strategy, the German government has adopted the German resource efficiency strategy in 2012. |
The project aims at supporting and stimulating the emerging political and social debate on resource policies from a political science, legal and economic perspective. For this purpose the discussion on targets and indicators will be analyzed and options identified for selecting, operationalizing and prioritizing targets on resource policy.
Related Links
Schools@University is an innovative inter- and transdisciplinary educational format at the Freie Universität of Berlin that builds bridges between academia and civil society. Fifth and sixth graders and their teachers are invited to the FUB twice a year to gain in-depth knowledge on sustainability issues and critical thinking skills empowering them to effect changes within their everyday world and in society at large. The format is based on two pillars:
-
A one-week program for 10 -13 years-olds featuring 75 interactive and participatory workshops.
-
A half-day practical teacher training to encourage application of lessons learnt in their respective schools.
We develop the workshop designs together with 100 partners from academia (students, scientists and administration staff), the state of Berlin, local businesses/companies, art and culture institutions, as well as NGOs.
Related Links
Currently, an environmentally recyclable concept of a socio-ecological, sustainable growth and social model is missing, which would be a reference point for future economic and social prosperity and corresponding transformation processes. With this background, the main point of this study is the technical analysis and discussion of the following aspects:
1) theoretical and practical approaches of ecological and sustainable-oriented social and economic models – based on a national or macro-economic view.
2) conceptual and empirical reform efforts for the measurement of social welfare and economic prosperity.
Related Links
20th anniversary of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety
The SUSTAIN EU-ASEAN project aims at establishing a more sustainable and integrated research and innovation cooperation between the EU and the ASEAN region in the areas of climate action, resource efficiency and raw materials. It will also improve the uptake and exploitation of respective research results by different user groups. The project's approach is to achieve this through:
- Creating a knowledge base on the strategic environment for sustainable cooperation, uptake and implementation of results of joint EU-ASEAN environment research
- Developing and testing tools for increased synergies, uptake, exposure and visibility of joint EU-ASEAN research
- Developing a roadmap and concrete proposals for upgrading joint research and innovation, for more sustainable and strategic future cooperation
- Identifying and cluster EU funded and relevant bilateral projects in the area of climate action, raw materials and resource efficiency
Sustainable economy / Green economy
| Today’s economy – ranging from its production structures to its consumption patterns - is a driving force of many ecological problems worldwide. In recent years this finding has reached mainstream debates on economic policy in Germany, and also at European and international levels. Resource efficiency, decarbonisation, environmental innovations and the ecological modernization of the economy have been included in the list of objectives by economic policy-makers and are being discussed as a source for new innovation and sustainable growth. A multitude of concepts by various authors are currently competing with each other – ranging from the OECD Green Growth to UNEP's Green Economy or the Sustainable Growth in the European flagship initiative for a resource-efficient Europe – just to name a few. What the concepts have in common is the idea that making changes in the economic structure will not only benefit the economy, but also will reduce their environmental impacts. Individual concepts differ with respect to the question what percentage of the problem solving can be provided through technological innovations (resource efficiency, renewable energies, emissions-free forms of mobility, etc.), or how much cultural change, especially in western industrial societies, is necessary. Many critical contributions place emphasis on the need for such a cultural change, and in light of absolute ecological boundaries call for the departure from the growth orientation of economic policy. The studies conducted at the FFU on sustainable economic policies and the Green economy cover the various competing concepts, their objectives, instruments and their effects on the environment and on employment. The study of these covers both international comparisons of the various concepts as well as the analysis of concrete individual cases, such as certain policy instruments or policy mixes in specific sectors. |
The core concern of the GIZ program RE-ACTIVATE for the MENA region is to create favourableconditions to combine the goals of transforming the energy systems with a sustainable economic development that creates domestic employment effects. The research is intended to contribute to the creation of functioning renewable energy and energy efficiency markets and support employment in the region. (more)
The way public finances are raised and spent can be used as an important lever to affect various environmental problems and challenges – ranging from the Energiewende, climate protection, the management of increasingly scarce resources to the balancing of public budgets and the question how to build a form of sustainable growth. A greening of public finances can make a contribution to these challenges.
Project timeframe: 02/2014 - 10/2015
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The Indo-German Expert Group is an interdisciplinary working group of renowned experts from leading research institutions / political think tanks in India and Germany. It was set up in 2013 to enhance collaborative learning, contribute to informed decision-making in both countries and feed into the international debate on a green and inclusive economy.
since November 2013
Related Links
English version coming soon!
Über die personal- und arbeitspolitischen Besonderheiten in den Unternehmen der erneuerbaren Energiewirtschaft ist vergleichsweise wenig bekannt. In interdisziplinärer Kooperation zwischen dem Forschungszentrum für Umweltpolitik und dem Management-Department des Fachbereichs Wirtschaftswissenschaft (FU Berlin) zielt das von der Hans-Böckler-Stiftung geförderte Forschungsprojekt darauf ab, diese Lücke zu füllen, indem insbesondere die soziale Nachhaltigkeit in der Windenergiebranche in den Blick genommen wird.
Laufzeit: 01.02.2014 - 31.01.2016
Related Links
The project develops a classification to bring together the supply side of the market and the various demands with the aim to contribute to the success of the technology mechanism of the UN framework convention on climate change. For that purpose, the study will analyse the technology needs assessment of emerging economies and developing countries taking part in the UNFCCC’s technology mechanism. In addition to that, the FFU will study the conditions for successful technology transfers and develop a map of the relevant actors in Germany in this field.
Related Links
English version coming soon!
Die zentrale Begründung für den Aufbau eines Horizon Scanning Systems liegt in der erkennbaren Beschleunigung ökologischer Prozesse einerseits und sozioökonomischer Veränderungen andererseits. Für die Politik stellt sich damit die Frage, ob reaktiven Kurzatmigkeiten durch frühzeitigere Problembewältigung begegnet werden. Denn speziell die Umweltpolitik in Deutschland ist dem Vorsorgeprinzip und dem Gedanken der generationenübergreifenden Nachhaltigkeit verpflichtet.
Related Links
The project aims at supporting and stimulating the emerging political and social debate on resource policies from a political science, legal and economic perspective. For this purpose the discussion on targets and indicators will be analyzed and options identified for selecting, operationalizing and prioritizing targets on resource policy.
Related Links
The Environmental Policy Research Centre (FFU) supports the project with its expertise in the field of “Green Economy”. Specifically, it supports the preparation of the country studies, summarizes and compares their main results so as to develop policy recommendations for the region as a whole, and prepares a comparable case study on “The German energy transition and its implications for green jobs”.
Related Links
This project contributes to measurement of progress towards Green Economy and its understanding for political decision making process in Germany. Based on a synopsis of rele-vant measurement concepts it identifies deficits of available concepts and develops suggestions for an adequate indicator system.
December 15, 2011 - September 30, 2014
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Currently, an environmentally recyclable concept of a socio-ecological, sustainable growth and social model is missing, which would be a reference point for future economic and social prosperity and corresponding transformation processes. With this background, the main point of this study is the technical analysis and discussion of the following aspects:
1) theoretical and practical approaches of ecological and sustainable-oriented social and economic models – based on a national or macro-economic view.
2) conceptual and empirical reform efforts for the measurement of social welfare and economic prosperity.