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Der heutige energetische Sanierungsbedarf des Gebäudebestands in Deutschland ist ein über Jahrzehnte qua irregeleiteter Auslegung produzierter. Inzwischen hat der technische Fortschritt erreicht, was zu erwarten war: Das Null-Energie-Haus, sogar das Plus-Energie-Haus sind heute möglich geworden. Beide sind auch "wirtschaftlich" - sofern man neu baut. Und selbstverständlich nur bei einem geklärten Verständnis von "wirtschaftlich", insbesondere im anstehenden Gebäude-Energie-Gesetz (GEG).
Addressing food waste prevention is one target of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and a major task for the UN Environmental Programme and the European Commission. It is promising in terms of its environmental saving potential. However, it also leads to consumers being able to save money, which they then are likely to spend, thus again causing a negative environmental impact. This dimension of the so-called indirect rebound effect, which prevents the desired ecological benefits from being achieved, is investigated in this paper. By using a single-region environmentally extended input-output model from a production perspective, the indirect rebound effects from food waste prevention in Germany are analysed. Any political action needs to consider not only a differentiation in income class, but also alternative concepts such as the principles of sufficiency in order to achieve all ecological benefits and specifically the third target of SDG 12.
What role do transaction costs play in energy efficiency improvements and how can they be reduced?
(2019)
Ex-ante policy evaluation requires a detailed understanding of how the subjects addressed by the policy react to its implementation. In the context of energy efficiency, policy measures typically aim at influencing investment decisions towards more efficient options.
As has been discussed widely in the context of the "energy efficiency gap", investments in energy efficiency improvements are frequently not conducted even though they seem cost-effective from a simple cost-benefit perspective, where transaction costs have been identified as one important barrier.
While transaction costs have been discussed widely from a conceptional perspective, empirical studies quantifying transaction costs and measures to reduce them are rare. This paper presents approaches, results and insights from a recently completed research project funded by the German Federal Energy Efficiency Center (BfEE), addressing transaction costs in various energy efficiency measures and the role of energy efficiency services to overcome the barrier.
We analyse a set of 11 energy efficiency investments covering private households, public institutions and the industry sector. We gather data on direct investment costs and energy cost savings and provide a detailed analysis of the various barriers and transaction costs associated with the implementation. We then analyse the costs of existing energy efficiency services using data provided by the BfEE. We compare the different cost elements and analyze the potential of energy efficiency services to reduce transaction costs.
We find that the role of transaction costs differs substantially between households, public institutions and companies and that the impact of energy efficiency services on transaction costs needs to be evaluated using different methodological approaches. We conclude that while data availability on disaggregated transaction costs is a major challenge, energy services can reduce transaction costs considerably.
To contribute to a better understanding of consumer food leftovers and to facilitate their reduction in out-of-home settings, our study analyzes the effects of two common intervention strategies for reducing leftovers in a holistic behavioral model. Based on a quasi-experimental baseline-intervention design, we analyzed how the display of information posters and the reduction of portion sizes take an effect on personal, social and environmental determinants in a structural equation model. Applying data from online surveys and observations among 880 guests (503 baseline, 377 intervention) during two weeks in a university canteen, the suggested model allows to assign effects from the two interventions on plate leftovers to specific changes in behavioral determinants. Portion size reductions for target dishes are found to relate to lower levels of plate waste based on conscious perception, represented in smaller portion size ratings. Effects from seeing information posters are found to base on changed personal attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control. However, depending on how an individual reacts to the information (by only making an effort to finish all food or by making an effort and additionally choosing a different dish in the canteen) there are opposite effects on these determinants and consequently also on plate leftovers. Overall, the differentiated results on intervention effects strongly support the benefits of more holistic and in-depth analyses of interventions to reduce plate leftovers and therefore to contribute to more sustainable food consumption in out-of-home settings.
Können Wissenschafts- und Kulturinstitutionen in ihrer gesellschaftlichen Wirkung davon profitieren, wenn sie sich einem temporären Perspektivwechsel unterziehen? Der Beitrag beschreibt das Design und den Anspruch eines Vorhabens von zwei Wuppertaler Institutionen, die sich mit dem zeitlich befristeten Ämtertausch ihrer Leiter einem solchen Experiment unterziehen werden: der Oper Wuppertal und dem Wuppertal Institut für Klima, Umwelt, Energie - einem führenden Nachhaltigkeits-Think-Tank.
Was ist synthetisches Gas?
(2019)
Die Dekarbonisierung des deutschen Wohngebäudebestandes stellt einen wichtigen Baustein zum Gelingen der Energiewende dar. Politisches Ziel ist ein "nahezu klima-neutraler" Gebäudebestand bis 2050. Trotz Erfolgen in der Vergangenheit und eines umfangreichen Policy-Mix verbleibt die energetische Sanierungstätigkeit sowohl hinichtlich der Sanierungstiefe als auch der Sanierungsbreite unterhalb des politisch geforderten und ökologisch notwendigen Maßes. Die Arbeit widmet sich daher der Frage, unter welchen individuellen und quartiersbezogenen Rahmenbedingungen Immobilieneigentümer energetische Sanierungsmaßnahmen durchführen und wie die energetische Sanierungstätigkeit durch Multi-Level-Governance gesteigert werden kann. Die Analyse erfolgt fallstudienbasiert für die Eigentümergruppe der privaten Kleinvermieter, die rund 37 Prozent des deutschen Wohnungsbestandes bewirtschaften. Anhand eines mixed method-Ansatzes wird zunächst durch problemzentrierte Interviews ein Modell zur Beschreibung des Investitionsentscheidungsprozesses entwickelt, was anschließend durch eine schriftlich-postalische Befragung und ihre regressions-analytische Auswertung bewertet wird. Durch die Triangulation können förderliche und hemmende Einflussfaktoren identifiziert werden. Aufbauend auf den theoretischen Vorüberlegungen sowie den empirischen Ergebnissen werden anschließend politische Handlungsempfehlungen abgeleitet.
Um den ungebremst fortschreitenden Klimawandel zu begrenzen, ist eine stufenweise Dekarbonisierung des Energiesystems notwendig, die bereits bis zur Mitte dieses Jahrhunderts schon weitgehend erreicht sein muss. Neben Unsicherheiten gehen von der Energiewende gleichzeitig Investitionsimpulse für Innovationen aus, wobei Systeminnovationen eine zentrale Treiberfunktion zur Dekarbonisierung des Energiesystems einnehmen.
Diese Arbeit fokussiert die Rolle von Innovationskaskaden in der Energiewende und analysiert die Überführung von Systeminnovationen in strategische Geschäftsmodellinnovationen vor dem Hintergrund der Frage, wie die Dekarbonisierung des Energiesystems für Unternehmen der Energiewirtschaft und THG-intensiven Industrie rentabel ausgestaltet werden kann.
Die Dissertation leistet einen substanziellen Beitrag zur Entscheidungsfindung im strategischen (Innovations-)Management für Unternehmen der Energiewirtschaft und der THG-intensiven Sektoren - Bereiche, die von einem erheblichen Transformationsdruck gekennzeichnet sind. Insbesondere für Unternehmen, die bedingt durch den Wandel des Energiesystems großen Herausforderungen gegenüberstehen, leistet diese Arbeit einen Beitrag zur Ableitung neuer, nachhaltiger und ökonomisch tragfähiger Geschäftsmodelle. Im Mittelpunkt stehen die Systeminnovationen Power-to-Gas (P2G) und Algae-to-X (A2X). Dabei wird der Begriff Algae-to-X erstmalig in die wissenschaftliche und praktische Diskussion eingeführt und konzeptionell fundiert. Mit einer ganzheitlichen Untersuchung der Innovationsprozesse, den damit verbundenen Chancen, Potenzialen, Unsicherheiten, Hemmnissen und visionären Zukunftsbildern von Power-to-Gas und Algae-to-X werden konkrete Handlungsansätze zur Förderung von Systeminnovationen und der Überführung in Geschäftsmodellinnovationen im window of opportunity der Energiewende herausgearbeitet.
Diese Forschungsarbeit trägt zur Weiterentwicklung der wirtschafts-wissenschaftlichen Theoriebasis in den Disziplinen des strategischen Managements und des strategischen Innovationsmanagements bei: Aufbauend auf einer breiten und tiefgreifenden Analyse bestehender Ansätze wird die Bedeutung von Systeminnovationen und Geschäftsmodellinnovationen herausgestellt und die tragende Rolle des in der Theorie noch relativ jungen Konzepts der Innovationskaskaden für die Umsetzung des systemischen Transformationsprozesses der Energiewende theoretisch fundiert und empirisch gestützt. Hervorzuheben ist, dass die Unsicherheiten, die mit der Entwicklung von tragfähigen Geschäftsmodellinnovationen einhergehen, ökonomisch fundiert sind, in den Beispielen in Abhängigkeit des Neuigkeitsgrades und damit der Entwicklungsstufe der Innovationskaskade aber technologisch (A2X) bzw. regulatorisch (P2G) bedingt sind. Bei der Überführung von Systeminnovationen in strategische Geschäftsmodellinnovationen über die Ableitung von Innovationskaskaden stellt diese Arbeit zwei neue, theoretisch fundierte und empirisch überprüfte innovationsauslösende Stimuli vor: Die systeminduzierten Impulse des system-push und des system-pull.
Der NaWis-Verbund verstärkt seine Bestrebungen, die gesellschaftlichen Wirkungen von transformativer Forschung abzubilden. Damit soll auch die Qualität der Forschungsarbeiten gesichert werden. Die bei der Impact-Messung zur Anwendung kommenden Ansätze unterscheiden sich bislang grundsätzlich. Der vorliegende Beitrag skizziert den Zugang des Wuppertal Instituts für Klima, Umwelt, Energie.
Um die Klimaschutzziele der Bundesregierung zu erreichen sind im Rahmen der Energiewende die CO2-Emissionen besonders in den Sektoren Strom und Wärme durch geeignete Maßnahmen zu reduzieren. Aus diesem Grund liegt der Fokus auf einer Steigerung des Anteils regenerativer, CO2-freier Erzeugungsanlagen an der Energieversorgung. Kann man im Stromsektor bereits auf ein beachtliches Wachstum des Anteils erneuerbarer Energien in der Erzeugung zurückblicken, so stagnieren die Werte im Wärmebereich, obwohl dieser ein hohes Einsparpotenzial aufweist.
Zur Aktivierung der Wärmewende ist eine Vielzahl an Maßnahmen von Nöten. Eine Möglichkeit, erneuerbare Wärme in die Wärmeversorgung dicht besiedelter Stadtgebiete zu integrieren, stellen Wärmenetze dar. Die verlustarme Verteilung über weite Strecken ermöglicht eine verbrauchsferne Erzeugung, wodurch auch Gebiete ohne verfügbare Flächen beispielsweise mit solarthermischer Wärme versorgt werden können. Des Weiteren vereinfachen Wärmenetze die Kopplung der Sektoren Strom und Wärme, da sie durch die Brennstoff- und Erzeugungstechnologieoffenheit verstärkt durch Wärme aus Kraft-Wärme-Kopplungsanlagen (KWK) und Power-to-heat-Systeme gespeist werden können. Die fluktuierende, nichtregelbare Erzeugung und Einspeisung erneuerbarer Energien stellt die Netzbetreiber allerdings vor neue Herausforderungen zur Sicherstellung eines stabilen Netzbetriebes.
Die vorliegende Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit den Auswirkungen der vermehrten Einspeisung erneuerbarer Wärme auf alle weiteren Komponenten eines Energiesystems, welches aus Erzeugungs-, Verteilungs- und Speicherungsinfrastruktur besteht. Erneuerbare Wärmeerzeuger, insbesondere Solarthermieanlagen, sind durch eine fluktuierende, dargebotsabhängige Erzeugung charakterisiert. Aus diesem Grund sind der konventionelle Betrieb sowie bei Neubauprojekten die Auslegung der regelbaren KWK-Anlagen dahingehend anzupassen, dass ein möglichst hoher Anteil erneuerbare Wärme in die Versorgung integriert werden kann, ohne dass es zu wirtschaftlichen Einbußen für den Versorger kommt. Ebenso ist ein effizienter und stabiler Netzbetrieb zur Gewährleistung einer kontinuierlichen Versorgungssicherheit von höchster Priorität. Zu diesem Zweck erfolgt im Rahmen dieser Arbeit die Erarbeitung von zwei Simulationsprogrammen, mit denen zum einen Wärmenetze verschiedenster Größe und Topologie sowie zum anderen regelbare und regenerative Erzeugungsanlagen sowie alle weiteren Komponenten eines Energiesystems zur Betriebssimulation abgebildet werden können.
Die Auswahl von drei geeigneten Simulationsszenarien und aussagekräftigen technischen sowie ökonomischen und ökologischen Kennzahlen ermöglicht neben einer umfassenden Bewertung ebenso die Ableitung von Handlungsmaßnahmen, die eine verstärkte Einbindung der Wärmewende in die Energiewende ermöglichen.
With the introduction of the Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe (2011) and the more recent commitment of The Action Plan towards the Circular Economy (2015), the European Commission (EC) has expressed its fundamental interest to substantially improve the resource efficiency of the European economy and enable the transition towards the Circular Economy (CE). This policy push has meanwhile been complemented by some quite ambitious national programmes for RE and CE and institutional advances but it is not yet bound to targets or mandatory reporting.
Against this background, the objective of this paper is to give a comprehensive overview of the current policy frameworks at EU and a selection of MSs and provide insights into the elements shaping policy processes. The analytical framework relies on three essential interconnected components: the policy framework, the economic incentive system and economic side policies which are relevant in the context of RE and CE and actor constellations. The paper does this looking at the interface between EU-MSs. The analysis is based on different empirical surveys in which the policy development is observed and discussed (EEA 2011, 2016a, 2016b, EIO 2013, 2014, 2016) and a comprehensive review of legislative and policy frameworks at the EU and selected MSs, undertaken as part of the project POLFREE (Policy option for a Resource-Efficient Economy) (Domenech et al., 2014, Bahn-Walkowiak et al., 2014). The analysis reveals that policy frameworks for RE/CE are complex and fragmented as competing goals and visions reduce effectiveness of measures. The paper makes recommendations as to how EU and MS policies could improve RE in a coordinated way, but recognizes that achieving such coordination will be challenging in the current political context.
Was hat Design mit Umwelt und Nachhaltigkeit zu tun? Die globale Erwärmung und der Klimawandel lassen sich auf verschiedene Ursachen zurückführen. Design, das die Umwelt außen vor lässt, ist einer der Gründe. Viele Produkte und Dienstleistungen verbrauchen nämlich viel Energie und Ressourcen haben auch eine hohe soziale Relevanz - sie sorgen beispielsweise für Teilhabe oder Exklusion. Wie eine Transformation hin zu mehr Nachhaltigkeit in diesem Bereich besser gelingt, fasst der neue "Transition Design Guide" des Wuppertal Instituts und der Folkwang Universität der Künste in Kooperation mit der ecosign - Akademie für Gestaltung Köln und der Bergischen Universität Wuppertal zusammen.
Der Leitfaden gibt interessierten Gestaltenden, Entwickelnden, Transformatorinnen und Transformatoren sowie Forschenden in Universitäten, Unternehmen und Kommunen 16 Praxis-Werkzeuge an die Hand, um Produkte, Dienstleistungen, soziale Räume oder andere Erfahrungswelten nachhaltiger und umweltbewusster zu entwerfen. Anhand der Arbeitsblätter lassen sich gestalterische Ideen und Konzepte auf ihre Nachhaltigkeitspotenziale untersuchen und weiterentwickeln. Nachhaltigkeitsaspekte werden dabei mit den Methoden und Arbeitsschritten eines klassischen Designprozesses zusammengeführt. Ausführliche Hintergrundinformationen ergänzen die Themen der Tools inhaltlich.
Transformative Wissenschaft versteht sich als Katalysator für gesellschaftliche Veränderungsprozesse. Sie musste sich in den vergangenen Jahren innerwissenschaftlicher Kritik und Dekonstruktion stellen. Daneben muss sie sich aber auch an ihrer gesellschaftlichen Wirkung messen lassen. Als Zwischenbilanz aus fünf Jahren Debatte um die transformative Wissenschaft halten wir fest: Die nächste Phase in der Weiterentwicklung transformativer Wissenschaft braucht Orte, an denen ihre gesellschaftlich produktive Wirkkraft erfahrbar wird und erprobt werden kann.
This report explores the future role of the voluntary carbon market and its potential to contribute to raising the ambition of climate policy. For this purpose, desk research was complemented by interviews with voluntary carbon market representatives. The report finds that the current roles of the voluntary market are set to change fundamentally due to the Paris Agreement. For the future of the voluntary market as an investor, three roles were identified, each of which is associated with specific challenges: The market may maintain its current role of buyer of carbon neutrality credits, it may become a supporter of NDC implementation, or it may become a driver of ambition. With regard to the future role of private certification standards, the Paris Agreement may hold the possibility of using such standards in the context of compliance activities. Overall, the findings indicate that the voluntary market has some potential to contribute to ambition raising. Whether this potential will actually be unlocked depends on how the concept of ambition raising will be operationalized under the Paris Agreement and to what degree it can be integrated into the voluntary market's activities and business models.
The "fuzzy front end" of innovation is argued to be crucial for the success and sustainability impact of a final product. Indeed, it is a promising area of focus in efforts to achieve the United Nations' 2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which provide a globally accepted framework for sustainability. However, the usability of the 17 goals and the large number of sub-goals represent barriers to innovation practitioners. Moreover, this early innovation stage proves to be a challenge for corporate practitioners and innovators, largely due to the concept's intangible, qualitative nature and the lack of data. To help overcome these barriers, this article proposes a four-stage approach for structuring the innovation process using an online tool called the "SDG-Check", which help assess an innovator's sustainability orientation in the early phases of product and service development. It is a semi-quantitative tool to gather and combine assessments by experts involved in innovation processes with implications for the United Nations' SDGs. Furthermore, this article presents our first experiences in applying the SDG-Check based on three living lab innovation cases. The results indicate that the tools can support and inspire a dialogue with internal and external stakeholders with regards to sustainability considerations in the early design stages of product and service development.
Germany and Japan have both gained substantial experience with hydrogen production and applications, albeit with focus on different sectors. They also share similar drivers for hydrogen development and, of course, similar technical and economic opportunities and challenges. However, there also are relevant differences in the policy priorities and approaches.
Notwithstanding differing emphases and patterns, the two countries share three main drivers for hydrogen development and deployment: climate mitigation and other environmental goals, energy supply diversification, and technological leadership. In this context, hydrogen has been identified by the German and the Japanese governments during the Energy Policy Dialogue as having potential for closer cooperation.
The authors of this study provide an overview of demand-side deployment by sector (residential, transport, industry, power generation and power-to-x) for both countries, as well as of their hydrogen policy debates, key institutions, R&D programs and demonstration projects. They also present a short survey on relevant international platforms and initiatives in which Japan and Germany participate.
On the basis of a meta-analysis of the role of hydrogen in 18 long-term energy system scenarios for Germany and 12 scenarios for Japan, this study draws conclusions on the possible role of hydrogen in the long term energy policy debates of both countries. Subsequently, the authors discuss sustainability criteria and certification schemes for clean hydrogen, compare the greenhouse gas intensity of different hydrogen supply chains and provide a data-based analysis to identify countries which could become important suppliers of clean hydrogen.
Improvements in energy efficiency have numerous impacts additional to energy and greenhouse gas savings. This paper presents key findings and policy recommendations of the COMBI project ("Calculating and Operationalising the Multiple Benefits of Energy Efficiency in Europe").
This project aimed at quantifying the energy and non-energy impacts that a realisation of the EU energy efficiency potential would have in 2030. It covered the most relevant technical energy efficiency improvement actions in buildings, transport and industry.
Quantified impacts include reduced air pollution (and its effects on human health, eco-systems), improved social welfare (health, productivity), saved biotic and abiotic resources, effects on the energy system and energy security, and the economy (employment, GDP, public budgets and energy/EU-ETS prices). The paper shows that a more ambitious energy efficiency policy in Europe would lead to substantial impacts: overall, in 2030 alone, monetized multiple impacts (MI) would amount to 61 bn Euros per year in 2030, i.e. corresponding to approx. 50% of energy cost savings (131 bn Euros).
Consequently, the conservative CBA approach of COMBI yields that including MI quantifications to energy efficiency impact assessments would increase the benefit side by at least 50-70%. As this analysis excludes numerous impacts that could either not be quantified or monetized or where any double-counting potential exists, actual benefits may be much larger.
Based on these findings, the paper formulates several recommendations for EU policy making:
(1) the inclusion of MI into the assessment of policy instruments and scenarios,
(2) the need of reliable MI quantifications for policy design and target setting,
(3) the use of MI for encouraging inter-departmental and cross-sectoral cooperation in policy making to pursue common goals, and
(4) the importance of MI evaluations for their communication and promotion to decision-makers, stakeholders, investors and the general public.
A significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions will be necessary in the coming decades to enable the global community to avoid the most dangerous consequences of man-made global warming. This fact is reflected in Germany's 7th Federal Energy Research Program (EFP), which was adopted in 2018. Direct Air Capture (DAC) technologies used to absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere comprise one way to achieve these reductions in greenhouse gases. DAC has been identified as a technology (group) for which there are still major technology gaps. The intention of this article is to explore the potential role of DAC for the EFP by using a multi-dimensional analysis showing the technology's possible contributions to the German government's energy and climate policy goals and to German industry's global reputation in the field of modern energy technologies, as well as the possibilities of integrating DAC into the existing energy system. The results show that the future role of DAC is affected by a variety of uncertainty factors. The technology is still in an early stage of development and has yet to prove its large-scale technical feasibility, as well as its economic viability. The results of the multi-dimensional evaluation, as well as the need for further technological development, integrated assessment, and systems-level analyses, justify the inclusion of DAC technology in national energy research programs like the EFP.
The current global momentum for carbon pricing has lately produced innovative hybrids: carbon taxes allowing the use of offsets from emission sources not targeted by the carbon tax for compliance with the tax load. This study aims at filling the knowledge gap in existing literature by exploring the potential impacts of domestic offset components in carbon taxes on mitigation of national emissions, including the country examples Colombia, Mexico and South Africa.
The findings indicate that the use of offsets in carbon taxes may significantly influence mitigation of national emissions both positively and negatively. On the one hand, this model may result in real emission reductions from offset projects and positive spillover effects of efforts to reduce emissions from emission sources covered by the carbon tax to other emission sources. Furthermore, the offsetting component can be used as a bargaining chip in political negotiations facilitating the introduction of mitigation policies and measures and/or strengthening their ambition level. On the other hand, it also entails serious risks: Offsetting could compromise the environmental integrity of the carbon tax through low-quality offsets. Furthermore, offsets reduce incentives to curb emissions in the emission sources covered by the carbon tax, potentially leading to carbon lock-in effects. Moreover, an offsetting component could provoke opposition to further climate policies and measures for emission sources generating offsets, as replacing the offsetting component with mandatory emission reduction policies would eliminate revenues from offset credits. General opposition of stakeholder groups to the introduction of offsets may even hinder the introduction of carbon pricing instruments and offsetting altogether.
The study identifies options that could be employed to increase potential positive effects of introducing an offset component to a carbon tax and mitigate related risks, pointing to the country examples included, where appropriate.
The implementation of energy efficiency improvement actions not only yields energy and greenhouse gas emission savings, but also leads to other multiple impacts such as air pollution reductions and subsequent health and eco-system effects, resource impacts, economic effects on labour markets, aggregate demand and energy prices or on energy security. While many of these impacts have been studied in previous research, this work quantifies them in one consistent framework based on a common underlying bottom-up funded energy efficiency scenario across the EU. These scenario data are used to quantify multiple impacts by energy efficiency improvement action and for all EU28 member states using existing approaches and partially further developing methodologies. Where possible, impacts are integrated into cost-benefit analyses. We find that with a conservative estimate, multiple impacts sum up to a size of at least 50% of energy cost savings, with substantial impacts coming from e.g., air pollution, energy poverty reduction and economic impacts.
Footprint calculators are efficient tools to monitor the environmental impact of private consumption. We present the results of an analysis of data entered into an online Material Footprint calculator undertaken to identify the socioeconomic drivers of the Material Footprint in different areas of consumption, from housing to holidaymaking. We developed regression models to reveal (1) the impact of socioeconomic characteristics on Material Footprints of private households and (2) correlations between the components of Material Footprints for different arrays of consumption. Our results show that an increasing Material Footprint in one array of consumption comes with an increasing Material Footprint in all other arrays, with the exception of housing and holidaymaking. The socioeconomic characteristics of users have a significant impact on their Material Footprints. However, this impact varies by the array of consumption. Households only exhibit generally bigger Material Footprints as a result of higher incomes and larger dwellings. We conclude that indicators which strive to monitor resource efficiency should survey disaggregated data in order to classify the resource use to different population groups and arrays of consumption.
Green Information Systems in general, and footprint calculators in particular, are promising feedback tools to assist people in adopting sustainable behaviour. Therefore, a Material Footprint model for use in an online footprint calculator was developed by identifying the most important predictors of the Material Footprint of the calculator's users. By means of statistical learning, the analysis revealed that 22 of the 95 predictors identified accounted for 74% of the variance in Material Footprints. Ten predictors out of the 95, mainly from the mobility domain, were capable of showing a prediction accuracy of 61%. The authors conclude that 22 predictors from the areas of mobility, housing and nutrition, as well as sociodemographic information, accurately predict a person's Material Footprint. The short and concise Material Footprint model may help developers and researchers to enhance their information systems with additional items while ensuring the data quality of such applications.
Europe needs a new vision of progress. An energy transition has this potential. It can give the "European idea" a future-oriented content. The goal for 2050 is clear: a Europe without fossil and nuclear energy! This is not a utopia. Studies, resolutions of the EU and some member states prove that this vision is feasible and has many advantages: more jobs, more security of supply, fewer premature deaths due to air pollution, reduction of resource conflicts, falling energy costs. New green lead markets for renewable energies and resource efficiency are emerging. A European energy transition requires an alliance, ideally fuelled by neighbours France and Germany. Many are hoping for Germany as a driver of nuclear and coal phase-out. But deciding on "revolutionary goals" is not enough: finally implementing them is what Germany and Europe are waiting for. This report shows which concrete steps can advance this vision of progress.
"400,000 new homes per year are needed in German cities." This figure has been cited repeatedly in political discussions, media, and statements of different groups for a couple of years now. Living space is needed to mitigate the (further) inordinate increase of rents in some cities and regions and to ease finding appropriate flats at affordable prices for low- and medium-income households. But how to activate investors and the real estate market?
Having the triangle of sustainability in mind with its ecologic, social and economic cornerstones the discussion - metaphorically spoken - currently pulls the three corners: Which should have the highest priority?
The economically driven most favourable solution is lowering the requirements for new buildings such as the energy performance to make building cheaper. The social perspective prefers an increase of public social housing investments regardless of efficiency standards. And the ecological side argues that a high performance is needed to reach energy and climate targets in the buildings sector.
Starting at this point of discussion, firstly, the paper reflects the assumptions behind the numbers of new homes needed against a sufficiency background.
Secondly, it presents current changes in German building policies: a new legislation for energy supply and efficiency is currently in preparation.
It discusses the potential to integrate sufficiency aspects in building policies, focussing specifically on the new regulation, financial incentives, and energy advice.
The paper analyses if and to what extent it is likely to balance the three cornerstones of sustainability by integrating sufficiency aspects into efficiency policies. Household experiences with prepayment meters are used as an example to illustrate the potential for tapping efficiency and sufficiency potentials in low-income households considering social, economic, and ecological aspects. Based on the identified (in)consistencies, thirdly, it suggests further development in German policies to make better use of synergies between the ecologic, social and economic demands on buildings.
Zivilgesellschaftliche Organisationen sind zentrale Akteure für den Wandel in Richtung Nachhaltigkeit. Sie treiben dieses zutiefst kulturelle Zivilisationsprojekt auf vielerlei Weise voran. Dabei bewirken sie immer dann besonders viel, wenn sie ihre Rolle als Mahner, Mittler und Motor gut zu kombinieren verstehen.
In the context of the German-Korean Energy Policy Dialogue, integration of renewable power sources and smart grids have been identified as topics with high relevance. This study aims to support mutual learning and exploration of new fields for collaboration by identifying similarities and differences in the respective status quos, strategies and policies in both countries.
After a short introduction to the South Korean energy situation, Chapter 2 provides an overview of the South Korean power market, its situation regarding renewable power sources and the Korean definition of smart grids. Chapter 3 of this study highlights the major South Korean energy strategies and regulatory frameworks relevant to integration of renewable energies and smart grids. In Chapter 4, the status and perspectives of renewable energy sources integration and smart grids in South Korea are discussed, presenting various demonstrative examples, new business models and the current situation of technology deployment. Chapter 5 puts South Korea in the global context and compares it to Germany. Finally, Chapter 6 draws conclusions and presents recommendations on suitable areas for mutual learning.
Sustainable Urban Mobility Pathways examines how sustainable urban mobility solutions contribute to achieving worldwide sustainable development and global climate change targets, while also identifying barriers to implementation and strategies to overcome them. Building on city-to-city cooperation experiences in Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America, the book examines key challenges in the context of the Paris Agreement, UN Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda, including policies needed to achieve a sustainable, low-carbon pathway for transport and how an integrated policy strategy is designed to provide a basis for political coalitions.
The book explores which institutional framework creates sufficient political stability and continuity to foster the take-up of and long-term support for sustainable transport strategies. The linkages of climate change and wider sustainable development objectives are covered, including success stories, best practices, and quantitative analysis for key emerging economies in public transport, walking, cycling, freight and logistics, vehicle technology and fuels, urban planning and integration, and national framework policies.
This report on urban mobility performance measurement is aimed at enabling stake- holders of the city of Bucharest and the public to understand their current urban mobility situation through a point-based results framework. It shall provide the city of Bucharest with a yardstick to measure its performance and benchmark the progress against some of its counterparts. It measures the urban mobility and compares it with 13 other European cities: Berlin, London, Vienna, Brussels, Moscow, Rome, Zurich, Paris, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Oslo, Budapest and Madrid.
Similar to many other European cities, Bucharest employs a Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) in order to continuously improve urban transport and mobility and to make it more sustainable. In this respect, the report should also be regarded as a document which supports the stakeholders in Bucharest in their efforts to develop transport and mobility in the city more sustainable.
While the Paris Agreement (PA) has enshrined ambitious long-term objectives, the current level of action of the Parties to the Agreement falls far short of this ambition, as is recognised in the very COP decision adopting the Agreement. The Global Stocktake (GST) established in Art. 14 of the PA is a key element to address this problem. Its purpose is to review the implementation of the PA and to assess the progress made towards the collectively agreed goals.
The aim of this report is to develop recommendations on how to maximise the potential impact of the GST. The report starts from a perspective of what the GST could ideally do, irrespective of decisions already taken under the UNFCCC and other political constraints. In the second step, the report takes these limitations into account and suggests ways for how to nonetheless work towards the desired outcome.
Diese Studie untersucht Notwendigkeiten und Möglichkeiten, Wasserstoff und Strom zu nutzen, um den Verkehrssektor in Deutschland perspektivisch zu dekarbonisieren. Basis der Untersuchung ist das Dekarbonisierungsszenario des Wuppertal Instituts von 2017, welches den Verkehrssektor Deutschlands unter der Maßgabe dekarbonisiert, dass Deutschland einen adäquaten Beitrag dazu leistet, den Klimawandel auf 1,5 °C mittlere Temperaturerhöhung gegenüber dem vorindustriellen Zeitalter zu begrenzen.
Das Dekarbonisierungsszenario nimmt eine ambitionierte Verkehrswende an, um dieses Politikziel zu erreichen. Es zeichnet sich durch eine besonders effiziente Mobilität aus, indem es umfangreiche Vermeidungs- und Verlagerungsmaßnahmen vorsieht und dadurch der Energieverbrauch besonders gering bleiben kann. Dennoch werden selbst in diesem Klimaschutzszenario signifikante Mengen erneuerbaren Stroms für den Verkehrssektor benötigt.
Es findet eine möglichst "direkte Elektrifizierung" statt, also ein Strombezug von batterie-elektrischen Pkw aus dem Netz, sowie über Oberleitungen für die Schiene und für große Lkw auf Bundesautobahnen. Es ist aber auch eine "indirekte Elektrifizierung" nötig, indem aus erneuerbarem Strom unter der Hinnahme von Wirkungsgradverlusten Wasserstoff (H2) und als Folgeprodukt auch synthetische Kraftstoffe hergestellt werden. Diese strombasierten Produkte werden im Dekarbonisierungsszenario für große Pkw und Lkw verwendet.
Die vorliegende Studie berechnet zusätzlich den H2- bzw. PtX-Bedarf des internationalen Flug- und Seeverkehrs. Sie bestimmt außerdem das Lastprofil für eine ungesteuerte Ladung von Elektro-Pkw im Zieljahr. Die Berechnungen verdeutlichen, dass die Dekarbonisierung des Verkehrssektors in Zukunft sehr viel stärker mit dem Stromsystem wechselwirkt. Für Klimaschutz im Verkehr bedarf es neben einer drastischen Energieverbrauchssenkung und einem beschleunigten Ausbau erneuerbarer Energien auch die Infrastruktur für Strom und strombasierte Produkte.
Digitalisation is in full swing and it is changing and influencing the world of the 21st century as no other dynamics of change has done before. Dealing with its impacts and at the same time shaping digitalisation itself is therefore a core task for achieving a globally sustainable transformation (German Advisory Council on Global Change - WGBU, 2019). But which direction should digitalisation take to ensure that it makes e ective contributions to globally sustainable development? And what is the specific approach needed to steer digitalisation in the right direction?
Many countries are increasingly investing in renewable energy technologies to meet growing energy demands and increase the security of their energy supply. This development is also evident in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, where renewable energy targets and policies have evolved rapidly in recent years. There is a steady increase in both the number of planned and implemented solar photovoltaic (PV) but also of solar thermal projects in form of Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) plants. Many of these installations are designed as large utility-scale systems. Despite the fact that these types of large-scale projects can have significant effects on local communities and their livelihoods, the existing research into the social impacts of such large-scale renewable energy infrastructures at local level is limited. However, assessing and managing these impacts is becoming increasingly important to reduce risks to both the affected communities and to the project and businesses activities. In order to provide more robust evidence on the local effects, this research study reviews the social impacts of large-scale renewable energy infrastructure in the MENA region based on a case study of the NOORo I CSP plant in Ouarzazate, Morocco. Data collected during two empirical field studies, in combination with expert interviews and secondary data analysis, provides detailed evidence on the type and significance of livelihood impacts of the NOORo I CSP plant. The analysis results in a consolidated list of 30 impacts and their significance levels for different stakeholder groups including farmers, young people, women, community representatives and owners of small and medium enterprises. The results show that, overall, the infrastructure development was received positively. The review also indicates that factors identified as having effects on the sustainability of local livelihoods are mainly related to information management and benefit distribution, rather than physical or material aspects.
This doctoral research is located in the branch of sustainability sciences that has the realisation of sustainable development as its core subject of research. The most broadly accepted notion of sustainable development is that which evolves along the resolutions, declarations, and reports from international processes in the framework of the United Nations (UN). The consensual outputs from such processes feature global-generalised and context-free perspectives. However, implementation requires action at diverse and context-rich local levels as well. Moreover, while in such UN processes national states are the only contractual parties, it is increasingly recognised that other ("nonstate") actors are crucial to sustainability. The research presented here places the attention on bottom-up initiatives that are advancing innovative ways to tackle universal access to clean energy and to strengthen small-scale family farmers. This means, the focus is on bottom-up initiatives advancing local implementation of global sustainability targets, more precisely, targets that make part of the Sustainable Development Goals two and seven (SDG 2 and SDG7). The research asks how such bottom-up initiatives can contribute to the diffusion of sustainability innovations, thereby also contributing to social change.
This study focuses on smart grids and integration of renewable energy sources in Japan. It first elaborates on the current status of the Japanese power market, its electricity grid, and the trends taking place which result in the need for smart grids. It proceeds with strategic and legislative framework setting relevant for smart grids and renewables, and with current status of smart grids and renewables. Further, it focuses on relevant stakeholders, new business models, and public acceptance relevant for smart grids and renewables. It then puts the Japanese developments in international context and, where possible, compares it to Germany. Lastly, it derives recommendations and identifies where Japanese and German policymakers, regulators and private sector stakeholders might profit from closer collaboration.
"Politisches Engagement ist wichtiger als privater Konsumverzicht", meint Michael Kopatz. Moralische Appelle machen nur schlechte Stimmung, ändern aber nicht unsere Routine. Wie erfolgreich Protest sein kann, zeigt aktuell die Fridays for Future-Bewegung, die für neue, der Situation angemessene Strukturen kämpft, statt für persönliche Verhaltensänderungen. Kopatz fordert die Politik auf, ihrer Verantwortung gerecht zu werden und intelligente Standards und Limits zu setzen - damit "Öko" zur Routine wird und die erhobenen Zeigefinger verschwinden.
This paper offers a comparative analysis of small wind electrification programmes targeted at remote sheep farming households in two of the windiest regions of the world, Argentine Patagonia and the Falkland Islands/Islas Malvinas. Despite comparable environmental conditions and local livelihoods, their impact was vastly different. Insights from socio-technical systems and strategic niche management approaches offered a deeper understanding of the local context and development dynamics, facilitating the identification of the critical success factors that contributed to these two distinct outcomes and finally highlighting those that can inform the design of future such initiatives. The research is based upon a series of semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders, observational field visits and review of archival sources. The critical factors identified by this case study research include strong and consistent institutional support, investment in robust equipment creation of effective feedback loops from the field and hybridisation. Additionally, a user centred approach that assesses whether small wind is really the right option for each individual household and if so, matches an appropriate energy system to their unique and evolving needs. Finally, empowering users to take on as much responsibility for maintenance as possible by integrating maintenance practices with local culture and ensuring the support of an effective decentralised maintenance network.
Each year, approximately one-third of the food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted worldwide. The waste of resources used for this food has significant environmental impacts in terms of land and water use as well as greenhouse gas emissions. Consequently, one of the targets of the UN sustainable development goals is to halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains by 2030. However, sufficient knowledge about the suitability of instruments for food waste prevention is still lacking. The purpose of this paper is therefore threefold: first, it outlines the generation and causes of food losses and waste. Second, it discusses good practices from different countries, such as laws to reduce food waste, voluntary agreements, awareness campaigns and results from behavioural economics. Finally, based on these findings, this paper identifies barriers to as well as requirements for the implementation of effective and efficient instruments.
Digitalization is a transformation process which has already affected many parts of industry and society and is expected to yet increase its transformative speed and impact. In the energy sector, many digital applications have already been implemented. However, a more drastic change is expected during the next decades. Good understanding of which digital applications are possible and what are the associated benefits as well as risks from the different perspectives of the impacted stakeholders is of high importance. On the one hand, it is the basis for a broad societal and political discussion about general targets and guidelines of digitalization. On the other hand, it is an important piece of information for companies in order to develop and sustainably implement digital applications. This article provides a structured overview of potential digital applications in the German energy (electricity) sector, including the associated benefits and the impacted stakeholders on the basis of a literature review. Furthermore, as an outlook, a methodology to holistically analyze digital applications is suggested. The intended purpose of the suggested methodology is to provide a complexity-reduced fact base as input for societal and political discussions and for the development of new digital products, services, or business models. While the methodology is outlined in this article, in a follow-up article the application of the methodology will be presented and the use of the approach reflected.
Der Umbau des Bahnhofsbereichs in Wuppertal und die damit verbundene dreijährige Vollsperrung der Hauptverkehrsstraße Bundesstraße 7 wird in dieser Dissertation als ein urbanes Mobilitätslabor genutzt. Darin wird untersucht, wie sich eine Verkehrssystemstörung auf die Resilienz des Systems Stadtverkehr auswirkt. Insgesamt analysiert diese Arbeit die Auswirkung dieser Sperrung auf ein Konglomerat von zusammenhängenden Systemelementen. Die Herangehensweise zur Ermittlung des Gesamtbildes geschieht mit einem Multi-Methoden-Mix. Zu den wichtigsten Ergebnissen zählt, dass die B7-Sperrung trotz anfangs gegenteiliger Befürchtungen zu keinem Verkehrszusammenbruch führte und die Resilienz des Systems Stadtverkehr dafür verantwortlich zu machen ist. Das Nicht-Eintreffen eines Verkehrszusammenbruchs ist bedingt durch die Anpassungs- und Lernfähigkeit, die Robustheit und die Gewöhnung des Systems Stadtverkehr. Die B7-Sperrung war ein Auslöser für die Re-Evaluation des eigenen Mobilitätsverhaltens. Die Auswirkung auf die Luftqualität wird an Hand von Stickstoffdioxid beurteilt. Die Zu- und Abnahmen der NO2-Werte kongruieren mit den Zu- und Abnahmen der Verkehrsstärken. Dies kann darauf hindeuten, dass sowohl die Sperrung als auch die Wiedereröffnung einen Effekt auf die Luftqualität haben könnten. Das Interesse der lokalen Medien ließ parallel zur Eingewöhnung nach. Die Forschungsarbeit zeigt einen in den Verkehrswissenschaften neuartigen Ansatz, Verhaltensbeobachtungen während eines widrigen Ereignisses durchzuführen und messbar zu machen. Mit dieser Arbeit lässt sich belegen, dass nachhaltige Transformationsprozesse im Verkehr im Hinblick auf die Autonutzung gestaltbar sind - eine wichtige Erkenntnis mit hoher Bedeutung für die Raum- und Verkehrsplanung.
Because prevention is closely linked to complex consumption patterns, even cultural changes, such as increasing environmental awareness, changes in the average size of households or changes in the industrial structure of an economy, are relevant factors for the interpretation of changes in the generation of waste - it is more or less impossible to isolate the effect of specific waste prevention measures in this complex system. This must be considered, in particular, in international comparisons of policies and their potential transferability. The guidelines of the European Commission on waste prevention also point to the particular problem of data availability in the area of prevention: as waste statistics focus mainly on the treatment and fate of wastes, they are often of limited value for prevention of waste because they don't give sufficient information about their origins or reasons for their generation.
Against this background, this report has the following objectives:
Chapter 2 discusses strengths and weaknesses of typical waste-based prevention indicators; Chapter 3 analyses possible indicators that consider an upstream perspective and take into account the ecological rucksacks of products and components that have become waste; Chapter 4 focuses on specific product groups that could be targeted by waste prevention indicators.
In general, the report describes the complexity of measuring waste prevention and outlines pros and cons of possible approaches. The final chapter aims to draw rather pragmatic conclusions on possibly most preferable options for future policy-making.
The key objective of this deliverable is to gain insights on and assess how CE is being implemented and R&I is being funded at regional level, e.g., via the RIS3 strategy and Structural Funds. As such it sets the scope for the project and provides the background against which programmes and measures can be understood, assessed, developed and recommended in succinct tasks and work packages. The objective of this report is to provide a concise overview of the current R&I priorities, as expressed in running and newly introduced funding and legislative measures with respect to Circular Economy in European countries and regions.
Reflecting trends in the academic landscape of sustainable energy using probabilistic topic modeling
(2019)
Background: Facing planetary boundaries, we need a sustainable energy system providing its life support function for society in the long-term within environmental limits. Since science plays an important role in decision-making, this study examines the thematic landscape of research on sustainable energy, which may contribute to a sustainability transformation. Understanding the structure of the research field allows for critical reflections and the identification of blind spots for advancing this field.
Methods: The study applies a text mining approach on 26533 Scopus-indexed abstracts published from 1990 to 2016 based on a latent Dirichlet allocation topic model. Models with up 1100 topics were created. Based on coherence scores and manual inspection, the model with 300 topics was selected. These statistical methods served for highlighting timely topic trends, differing thematic fields, and emerging communities in the topic network. The study critically reflects the quantitative results from a sustainability perspective.
Results: The study identifies a focus on establishing and optimizing the energy infrastructure towards 100% renewable energies through key modern technology areas: materials science, (biological) process engineering, and (digital) monitoring and control systems. Energy storage, photonic materials, nanomaterials, or biofuels belong to the topics with the strongest trends. The study identifies decreasing trends for general aspects regarding sustainable development and related economic, environmental, and political issues.
Conclusions: The discourse is latently adopting a technology-oriented paradigm focusing on renewable energy generation and is moving away from the multi-faceted concept of sustainability. The field has the potential to contribute to climate change mitigation by optimizing renewable energy systems. However, given the complexity of these systems, horizontal integration of the various valuable vertical research strands is required. Furthermore, the holistic ecological perspective considering the global scale that has originally motivated research on sustainable energy might be re-strengthened, e.g., by an integrated energy and materials perspective. Beyond considering the physical dimensions of energy systems, existing links from the currently technology-oriented discourse to the social sciences might be strengthened. For establishing sustainable energy systems, future research will not only have to target the technical energy infrastructure but put a stronger focus on issues perceivable from a holistic second-order perspective.
Das Wuppertal Institut hat das Forschungsformat der Reallabore
konzeptionell und praktisch entscheidend mitgeprägt. Insbesondere in den
letzten fünf Jahren erlebt dieses Format einen ungeahnten Aufschwung.
Vor diesem Hintergrund blickt der vorliegende In Brief auf die Perspektiven für die künftige Forschung in Reallaboren. Drei Forderungen sind dabei von zentraler Bedeutung:
(1) die Besinnung auf die ursprünglichen Kern-Charakteristika der Reallabor-Idee,
(2) der systematische Capacity-Aufbau für Reallabore im Wissenschaftssystem und
(3) die Etablierung von langfristiger angelegten Reallaborstrukturen.
Mit fortschreitender Energiewende steigt der Anteil erneuerbarer Energien im Strommix. Deren Angebot variiert im Tagesverlauf, nach Wetterlage und saisonal. Um Angebot und Nachfrage zur Deckung zu bringen, benötigt es daher Speicher mit großen Kapazitäten. Von allen technologischen Optionen mit großer Speicherkapazität sind Wasser-Pumpspeicherwerke die einzige, die langjährig erprobt und wirtschaftlich ist. Diese könnten in Braunkohletagebauen, welche im Zuge der Energiewende aufgegeben werden, errichtet werden. Unsere Überschlagsrechnung am Beispiel eines Pumpspeicherwerks in den heutigen Tagebauen Hambach, Garzweiler und Inden zeigt, dass diese mit bis zu 400 GWh ein signifikantes technisches Speicherpotenzial haben. Dies entspricht etwa der kontinuierlichen Maximalleistung eines Kernkraftwerks über zwei Wochen. Im Kontext der Diskussion um den Braunkohleausstieg skizziert das Papier ein netzdienliches Nachnutzungskonzept für Braunkohletagebaue, das zumindest für einen Teil der heute in der Kohleförderung und -Verstromung Beschäftigten mögliche Zukunftsperspektiven bietet.
Mit fortschreitender Energiewende steigt der Anteil erneuerbarer Energien im Strommix. Deren Angebot variiert im Tagesverlauf, nach Wetterlage und saisonal. Um Angebot und Nachfrage zur Deckung zu bringen, benötigt es daher Speicher mit großen Kapazitäten. Von allen technologischen Optionen mit großer Speicherkapazität sind Wasser-Pumpspeicherwerke die einzige, die langjährig erprobt und wirtschaftlich ist. Diese könnten in Braunkohletagebauen, welche im Zuge der Energiewende aufgegeben werden, errichtet werden. Unsere Überschlagsrechnung am Beispiel eines Pumpspeicherwerks in den heutigen Tagebauen Hambach, Garzweiler und Inden zeigt, dass diese mit bis zu 400 GWh ein signifikantes technisches Speicherpotenzial haben. Dies entspricht etwa der kontinuierlichen Maximalleistung eines Kernkraftwerks über zwei Wochen. Im Kontext der Diskussion um den Braunkohleausstieg skizziert das Papier ein netzdienliches Nachnutzungskonzept für Braunkohletagebaue, das zumindest für einen Teil der heute in der Kohleförderung und -Verstromung Beschäftigten mögliche Zukunftsperspektiven bietet.
This Topic Guide aims to provide answers to the question: "How can transport products, services and works be delivered sustainably?". Public procurement accounts for about 19% of the European Union's GDP and thus is a powerful lever to support the transition of urban mobility. The purchasing power of municipalities and regions can create a critical demand for innovative and green goods, services and business models such as low emission vehicles or shared mobility solutions. Public procurement can increase their competitiveness and availability, and thus trigger the market penetration of innovative products and services. The Guide discusses the general concept of sustainable public procurement, the legislative environment in the EU and leads through the different stages of a procurement process for SUMP (Sustainable Urban Mobility Planning) measures in a stepwise approach. It also discusses different inherent principles of sustainable public procurement in the field of urban mobility such as life cycle costing and how these can be applied. In so doing, it points to relevant further guidance discussing specific issues and concepts.
Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement stand as milestone diplomatic achievements. However, immense discrepancies between political commitments and governmental action remain. Combined national climate commitments fall far short of the Paris Agreement's 1.5/2°C targets. Similar political ambition gaps persist across various areas of sustainable development. Many therefore argue that actions by nonstate actors, such as businesses and investors, cities and regions, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), are crucial. These voices have resonated across the United Nations (UN) system, leading to growing recognition, promotion, and mobilization of such actions in ever greater numbers. This article investigates optimistic arguments about nonstate engagement, namely: (a) "the more the better"; (b) "everybody wins"; (c) "everyone does their part"; and (d) "more brings more." However, these optimistic arguments may not be matched in practice due to governance risks. The current emphasis on quantifiable impacts may lead to the under-appreciation of variegated social, economic, and environmental impacts. Claims that everybody stands to benefit may easily be contradicted by outcomes that are not in line with priorities and needs in developing countries. Despite the seeming depoliticization of the role of nonstate actors in implementation, actions may still lead to politically contentious outcomes. Finally, nonstate climate and sustainability actions may not be self-reinforcing but may heavily depend on supporting mechanisms. The article concludes with governance risk-reduction strategies that can be combined to maximize nonstate potential in sustainable and climate-resilient transformations.
Eine sich vorrangig auf technologische Innovationen und Entlastungsgewinne stützende Wirtschafts- und Umweltpolitik wird für die dauerhafte Senkung der Ressourcennutzung nicht ausreichen. Es bedarf auch kultureller Veränderungen im Umgang mit Ressourcen und ambitionierter und wegweisender politischer Maßnahmen.
Phasing out coal in the German energy sector : interdependencies, challenges and potential solutions
(2019)
Relevant aspects of the options and requirements for reducing and phasing out coal-fired power generation have been under debate for several years. This process has produced a range of strategies, analyses and arguments, outlining how coal use in the energy sector could be reduced and phased out in the planned time frame, and determining structural policy measures suitable to support this. This Coal Report studies the existing analyses and provides an overview of the state of debate. It is intended to provide information on facts and contexts, present the advantages and disadvantages of individual courses of action, and reveal the respective scientific backgrounds. It strives to take a scientific and independent approach, and present facts in concise language, making it easy to follow for readers who are not experts in the field, without excessive abridgements or provocative statements.
Last year's conference of the global climate change regime took place from 2 until 15 December 2018 in Katowice, Poland. The conference had two main objectives: operationalising the Paris Agreement by adopting detailed rules for its implementation, and starting the process of strengthening Parties' climate protection contributions. This article covers the negotiations on these two sets of issues and also includes a discussion of other recent climate activities by Parties and non-Party actors. Success of the negotiations in Katowice was far from assured, but in the end COP24 concluded with the adoption of the "Katowice Climate Package" setting out detailed guidelines on how to implement its various elements. However, the conference fell short on the first objective, none of the major emitting countries was ready to step up its climate ambition. The most important aspect of the Katowice outcome is therefore that it has brought the wrangling about implementation procedures to a close, making way for the true task at hand: the strengthening of national and international activities to protect the climate and the implementation of the existing pledges. Arguably, a key factor that has been slowing down climate policy is the power of entrenched interests. The article therefore concludes with a reflection on how such barriers to climate action may be overcome and what role future COPs may play in this regard.
On the basis of a literature research, this subtask develops a conceptional framework for a common understanding of CE within the project team and for the following work packages and tasks. After a brief introduction into the objectives and the context of a circular economy, a more elaborated look into the necessity of an explicit understanding of CE, the objectives, the spatial perspective of CE and the specific challenges within the CICERONE context will be done, in order to develop a basis for a common understanding within the project context. Circular economy can and has to be understood as an (eco-)innovation agenda. Therefore, the paper investigates the role policy has to play to support innovation for a CE transition, for creating the framework conditions and why CE has also to be build from the ground up. Finally, the paper looks from two perspectives at emerging trends and business models in a CE to sketch next steps towards the transition in a selection of central sectors. Conclusions are drawn on the basis of the insights gained by the preceding chapters.
Article 6 of the Paris Agreement establishes mechanisms for Parties to "pursue voluntary cooperation in the implementation of their nationally determined contributions to allow for higher ambition in their mitigation and adaptation actions [...]" (Article 6.1). I. e. the mechanisms are explicitly designed to foster higher ambition. However, without additional guidance and rules, the economic incentives of carbon markets may work against increasing host country ambition. For example, setting ambitious NDC targets may directly reduce the amount of mitigation outcomes that go beyond the NDC target and that a host country can transfer abroad. The report presents four options on how the risks can be ad-dressed and ambition can be increased: (1) Strengthening reporting, transparency and comparability; (2) Reconciling the design of the Article 6.4 mechanism with ambition raising of host countries; (3) Supporting the host country to raise ambition through the Article 6.4 mechanism; (4) Fostering the acquiring country to raise ambition through the Article 6.4 mechanism. These options are assessed and recommendations are provided on how they could be implemented.
The new mechanism defined under Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement is supposed to allow for international cooperation with regard to climate change mitigation and thereby enable an increase in overall mitigation. Nevertheless, the design of the mechanism under Article 6.4 should also make sure that it is not be in conflict with the long-term goal of net-zero GHG emissions but even better foster national pathways leading to this objective. Building this into the mechanism requires to shift the focus from short- and mid-term considerations to the long-term perspective in one way or another.
This discussion paper explores three different approaches that may help to foster the long-term objective of net-zero GHG emissions in the operationalization of Article 6.4, namely positive and negative lists, additionality with regard to a baseline consistent with both, NDCs and long-term targets, as well as adaptation of existing instruments and criteria from climate finance. The detailed discussion of the ap-proaches shows that the approaches should not be seen as mutually exclusive but rather as comple-mentary to each other. From the analyses, two storylines emerge how to combine aspects of the differ-ent approaches in a reasonable way to foster the long-term objective of net-zero GHG emissions under Article 6.4.
One world
(2019)
Nun, es könnte wahrscheinlich auch anders sein : Eingriffspunkte einer Möglichkeitswissenschaft
(2019)
Zwischen 2005 und 2016 gab es in Deutschland über 150 Stadtwerke-Neugründungen im Energiebereich. Die insgesamt rund 900 Stadtwerke, die heute im Energiesektor tätig sind, spielen für die Energiewende eine zentrale Rolle. Denn sie stellen weit über die Hälfte der Versorgung an Strom, Gas und Wärme sicher. Zudem haben Stadtwerke aufgrund ihrer kommunalen Verankerung eine besondere Position im Spannungsgefüge von Politik, Wirtschaft und Zivilgesellschaft. Dieser Beitrag zeigt auf, welche Gründe und Motive zu dieser Gründungswelle führten und welche Erfolgsfaktoren für Stadtwerke-Neugründungen ausschlaggebend waren.
Der Anteil fluktuierender erneuerbarer Energien im deutschen Strommix steigt. Um die Netzstabilität zu erhalten, Fluktuationen im Dargebot nach Wetterlage und saisonal auszugleichen sind absehbar ab ca. 2030 große Stromspeicherkapazitäten erforderlich. Wasser-Pumpspeicherwerke sind derzeit die einzige langjährig erprobte Technologie, die künftig in Braunkohletagebauen, welche im Zuge der Energiewende aufgegeben werden, errichtet werden könnten. Eine Überschlagsrechnung am Beispiel eines Pumpspeicherwerks in verschiedenen Tagebauen zeigt, dass diese mit bis zu 400 GWh ein signifikantes technisches Speicherpotenzial haben.
Zukunft ist keine Tatsache, die sich einstellt, sie wird imaginiert, ermöglicht, durchgesetzt. Doch während das Ringen um eine lebenswerte Zukunft die visionäre Verständigung der Vielfalt der Verschiedenen, mitunter Fremden braucht, drückt eine ökonomisch beförderte Fantasielosigkeit der Gegenwart zunehmend die Luft ab.
Bestimmte Wissenschaften hingegen, die der Fantasie Futter geben, was warum wie wo noch möglich ist, können einen visionären und reflektierten Boden für ein lebenswertes Zusammenleben schaffen. Solche Wissenschaften sind "Möglichkeitswissenschaften" (Reinhard Pfriem).
Dieses Buch versammelt zur Feier des 70. Geburtstages von Reinhard Pfriem fachübergreifende Erkundungen dazu, was es heißen kann, Ökonomie mit Möglichkeitssinn zu betreiben.
Climate researchers agree that anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions significantly contribute to climate change, and that radical measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt to the impacts of no longer avoidable climate change are needed. The German Federal Government with its Climate Protection Plan 2050 reinforced its target to reduce Germany's greenhouse gas emissions by 80 to 95 percent compared with 1990. The achievement of these targets requires nothing less than a fundamental transformation of spatial planning.
In the paper a methodology to scientifically assess the likely impacts of possible combinations of policies or strategies to achieve the energy transition, i.e. to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of urban mobility and transport is proposed and demonstrated, using the Ruhr Area, the largest conurbation in Germany, as an example.
The results of the policies examined so far can be summarised as follows: Push measures as high energy prices, speed limits or reduction of the number of lanes of main roads are more effective in reducing greenhouse gas emissions than pull measures as the promotion of cycling, walking, electric cars or public transport. Between policies or policy packages there can be positive or negative synergies, i.e. the impacts of measures can reinforce or weaken each other. The results show that even with ambitious policies the greenhouse gas emission targets of the national and state governments will not be achieved and that more radical policies are needed.
This report provides an overview of the main findings from the different research tasks in the CIRCTER project and delivers selected policy messages with European coverage. The report provides: (Sec. 2) a territorial definition of the circular economy; (Sec. 3) insights into the available statistics on material and waste patterns and flows and their interpretation, alongside new territorial evidence on both aspects; (Sec. 4) a sectoral characterisation of the circular economy at regional level (NUTS-2), including data on turnover and jobs; (Sec. 5) key findings from the CIRCTER case studies; (Sec. 6) a systemic interpretation of the circular economy that works as a knowledge-integration mechanism for the entire report; (Sec. 7 and 8) an analysis of the most relevant circular economy policies and strategies at various territorial levels; (Sec. 8) a subset of policy recommendations focusing in particular on territorial and cohesion policies, and; (Sec. 9) suggestions for further research.
Sulphate aerosols are dominated by SO2 emissions from coal-burning for the Indian electricity sector and they are thought to have a short term but significant, negative impact on South Asian Summer Monsoon rainfall. This reduction in precipitation in turn can lead to reduced economic outputs, primarily through smaller agricultural yields. By bringing together estimates of (a) the impact of sulphate aerosols on precipitation and (b) the observed relationship between monsoon rainfall and GDP, we present a methodology to estimate the possible financial cost of this effect on the Indian economy and on its agricultural sector. Our preliminary estimate is that the derived benefits could be large enough that around 50% of India's SO2 emissions could be economically mitigated at no cost or net benefit, although it should be noted that the large uncertainties in the underlying relationships mean that the overall uncertainty is also large. Comparison of the 1952-1981 and 1982-2011 periods indicates that the Indian economy may now be more resilient to variability of the monsoon rainfall. As such, a case could be made for action to reduce SO2 emissions, particularly in the crucial monsoon period. This would have a significant, positive effect on a crucial and large sector in India's economy and the effects would be visible almost instantly. The recent growth in renewable energy sources in India and the consequent, reduced increase in coal burning means that further financial costs have already been avoided. This impact should be further investigated so that it can be included in cost-benefit analyses of different fuel types in the region. The significant uncertainties associated with these calculations are discussed.
Theoretical advances suggest that international governance in general and the Paris Agreement in particular provide a strong signal guiding sociotechnical systems toward decarbonization. We assess this signal and its effects empirically, by examining the struggle of competing narratives as present in the communications of leading US fossil fuel industry associations and companies. The results are then discussed in the context of the national and international climate and energy policy debates in a study period from late 2014 until the announcement of withdrawal from the Paris Agreement in June 2017. We find that the Paris Agreement has institutionalized a narrative paradigm that is surprisingly resilient. While the election of Donald Trump and his climate and energy policy led to a narrative shift in the coal industry, the oil and gas industry remained conspicuously silent in its immediate response and maintained its narrative strategies despite its alignment with the Paris Agreement.
In recent years, most countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), including Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia, have rolled out national policies with the goal of decarbonising their economies. Energy policy goals in these countries have been characterised by expanding the deployment of renewable energy technologies in the electricity mix in the medium term (i.e., until 2030). This tacitly signals a transformation of socio-technical systems by 2030 and beyond. Nevertheless, how these policy objectives actually translate into future scenarios that can also take into account a long-term perspective up to 2050 and correspond to local preferences remains largely understudied. This paper aims to fill this gap by identifying the most widely preferred long-term electricity scenarios for Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia. During a series of two-day workshops (one in each country), the research team, along with local stakeholders, adopted a participatory approach to develop multiple 2050 electricity scenarios, which enabled electricity pathways to be modelled using Renewable Energy Pathway Simulation System GIS (renpassG!S). We subsequently used the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) within a Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) to capture local preferences. The empirical findings show that local stakeholders in all three countries preferred electricity scenarios mainly or even exclusively based on renewables. The findings demonstrate a clear preference for renewable energies and show that useful insights can be generated using participatory approaches to energy planning.
Biofuels and electrification are potential ways to reduce CO2 emissions from the transport sector, although not without limitations or associated problems. This paper describes a life-cycle analysis (LCA) of the Brazilian urban passenger transport system. The LCA considers various scenarios of a wholesale conversion of car and urban bus fleets to 100% electric or biofuel (bioethanol and biodiesel) use by 2050 compared to a business as usual (BAU) scenario. The LCA includes the following phases of vehicles and their life: fuel use and manufacturing (including electricity generation and land-use emissions), vehicle and battery manufacturing and end of life. The results are presented in terms of CO2, nitrous oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) emissions, electricity consumption and the land required to grow the requisite biofuel feedstocks. Biofuels result in similar or higher CO2 and air pollutant emissions than BAU, while electrification resulted in significantly lower emissions of all types. Possible limitations found include the amount of electricity consumed by electric vehicles in the electrification scenarios.
Im Rahmen des Forschungsprojekts "Wirtschaftsförderung 4.0" leistet die vorliegende Arbeit einen Beitrag zum besseren Verständnis der systematischen Stärkung zivilgesellschaftlicher Nachhaltigkeitsinitiativen. Das Ziel der Analyse besteht darin, Ansatzpunkte möglicher Unterstützungsmaßnahmen aufzuzeigen, die im Zuge kommunaler Wirtschaftsförderung aufgegriffen werden können.
Zur Erarbeitung wurden zunächst mithilfe theoretischer Grundlagen aus der Transition- und Diffusionsforschung zentrale Einflussfaktoren zusammengetragen, die förderlich oder hemmend auf transformative Nachhaltigkeitsinitiativen wirken können. Mit dem Ziel, kontextangepasste Maßnahmen zu entwickeln, wurden die literaturbasierten Faktoren anschließend in einer qualitativen Befragung mit einer Praxisperspektive verglichen und ergänzt: Mittels leitfadengestützter Experteninterviews mit nachhaltigkeitsorientierten Initiativen in der Region Osnabrück wurden kommunale Gegebenheiten sowie die jeweiligen Erfolgsfaktoren, Herausforderungen und Bedarfe der Graswurzelinitiativen erfasst.
Im Ergebnis zeigen sich sieben übergreifende Bedarfsfelder, die vor allem aus der empirischen Erhebung abgeleitet wurden. Aus ihnen wurden Handlungsempfehlungen und Ansatzpunkte kommunaler Unterstützung erarbeitet und diskutiert.
Nach jahrzehntelangen, erfolgreichen Reduktionen der CO2-Emissionen in der Industrie, ist der Trend in den letzten Jahren wieder rückläufig geworden: seit 2014 sind die Emissionen wieder angestiegen (UBA 2019). Um die deutschen Klimaziele zu erreichen ist es daher notwendig, die Anstrengungen zu verstärken und intensiver als in der Vergangenheit Innovationen für den Klimaschutz voranzutreiben: Neue Produkte und Geschäftsmodelle sowie neue Herstellungsverfahren zu entwickeln, mit denen sich Treibhausgasemissionen reduzieren lassen.
Um die deutschen Klimaziele für 2030 einzuhalten, werden hierfür gerade auch (inkrementelle) Effizienzsteigerungen nötig sein - diese werden jedoch nicht ausreichend sein. Innovationen müssen auch einen disruptiven Wandel von Strukturen und Geschäftsmodellen erwirken. Disruptive Innovationen und industrielle Konversionsprozesse bergen jedoch hohe Risiken für die etablierte Industrie. Hier stellt sich also die Frage, wie eine auf Klimaschutz ausgerichtete Innovationspolitik gestaltet werden muss, um einerseits die notwendigen CO2-Einsparungen zu ermöglichen und andererseits die Leistungfähigkeit der deutschen Industrie zu befördern?
Vor diesem Hintergrund widmet sich diese Studie zwei zentralen Fragestellungen: Wie laufen Klimaschutz-Innovationsprozesse ab? Wie können Klimaschutz-Innovationen befördert werden?
Basierend auf einer konzeptionellen Klassifizierung von Klimaschutz-Innovationen, wurden eine Reihe von existierenden Klimaschutz-Innovationen, gerade aus der energieintensiven Industrie analysiert. Vier Fallbeispiele aus verschiedenen Sektoren (Aluminiumherstellung und -verarbeitung, Herstellung neuer Kraftstoffe sowie der Verzinkung) und verschiedenen Innovationstypen werden in der Studie ausführlich beschrieben. Dabei zeigt sich, dass sich Unternehmen nicht nur an aktuellen Rahmenbedingungen orientieren, sondern Innovationen - sowohl inkrementeller wie auch radikaler Natur- im Bereich Klimaschutz auch unter der Annahme dynamischer Entwicklungen von sich verstärkenden Klimaschutzrahmenbedingungen vorantreiben. Darüber hinaus waren an allen untersuchten Fällen auch externe Promotoren unterstützend tätig. Daher wurden die möglichen Rollen von Klimaschutz-Promotoren mit unterschiedlichen regionalen und inhaltlichen Schwerpunkten gezielt analysiert.
Weltweit trägt die Industrie direkt und indirekt etwa über ihren Bezug von Strom und Wärme rund 30 bis 40 Prozent zu den Treibhausgasemissionen bei. Auch in Deutschland liegt ihr Beitrag in einer ähnlichen Größenordnung1. Dabei sind insbesondere die Grundstoffindustrien (Stahl, Zement, Grundstoffchemie, Glas, Aluminium, Papier und andere) besonders energie- und emissionsintensiv. Gleichzeitig basiert der Energieeinsatz dieser Industrien bisher noch überwiegend auf fossilen Energien (und Müll). Zu den energiebedingten Emissionen kommen prozessbedingte Emissionen hinzu, die sich bei den heute üblichen Verfahren selbst bei Einsatz vollständig "grüner" Energien nicht vermeiden lassen. Grundstoffindustrien stellen Materialien für die Herstellung und Verarbeitung von Produkten zur Verfügung. Sie sind daher kein Selbstzweck, sondern tragen letztlich damit dazu bei, vielfältige Bedürfnisse abzudecken.
Ahead of the Conference of Parties (COP) 24 where countries will first take stock of climate action post Paris, this paper assesses India's progress on its nationally determined contribution (NDC) targets and future energy plans. We find that, although India is well on track to meet its NDC pledges, these targets were extremely modest given previous context. Furthermore, there is considerable uncertainty around India's energy policy post 2030 and if current plans for energy futures materialise, the Paris Agreement's 2 degrees goal will be almost certainly unachievable. India's role in international climate politics has shifted from obstructionism to leadership particularly following the announcement of withdrawal by the United States from the Paris Agreement, but analysis reveals that India's "hard" actions on the domestic front are inconsistent with its "soft" actions in the international climate policy arena. Going forward, India is likely to face increasing calls for stronger mitigation action and we suggest that this gap can be bridged by strengthening the links between India's foreign policy ambitions, international climate commitments, and domestic energy realities.