Scenarios and Indicators for Sustainable Development–Towards A Critical Assessment of Achievements and Challenges


Book Description

Globalization and telecoupling are enhancing the complexity of the coupled socio-ecological system constituted by the interaction between the global ecosphere and the anthroposphere. As a result, the demand for tools to identify transformative innovations, assess future risks, and support precautionary decisions for sustainability is growing by the day in business and politics. Scenarios are a means of simplification, reducing the real-world complexity to a limited number of essential factors to analyze their interactions and support policy formulation, with indicators as communication and monitoring tools. In particular, in a time of “fake news” and “alternative truths” a critical reflection amongst producers and users of scenarios and indicators is overdue—the capability for critical self-reflection is what distinguishes science from pseudo-science, and is a condition of trust. The authors of this book test established measurement and modeling approaches against new challenges, assess the weaknesses of prevailing innovation theories and the political-ideological embedment of archetypical scenarios, highlight deficits in taking the physical basics into account, and the need to understand global interaction and the stepwise process of energy transitions, point out technical as well as conceptual weaknesses in data collection, harmonization and indicator generation, always with a view to solving problems.




The European Dimension of Germany’s Energy Transition


Book Description

This book addresses the interactions between Germany’s energy transition and the EU’s energy policy framework. It seeks to analyze the manifold connections between the prospects of the proclaimed “Energy Union” and the future of Germany’s energy transition, and identifies relevant lessons for the transformation at the EU level that can be learned from the case of Germany, as a first-mover of transforming energy systems towards renewables. The various repercussions (political, economic and systemic) from the national transition are explored within the EU context as it responds to the German transition, taking into account both existing frictions and potential synergies between predominantly national sustainability policies and the EU’s push towards harmonized policies within a common market. The book’s overall aim is to identify the most critical issues, in order to avoid pitfalls and capitalize on opportunities.
















Biodiversität und Gesellschaft Biodiversity and Society : Gesellschaftliche Dimensionen von Schutz und Nutzung biologischer Vielfalt


Book Description

Die Tagung „Biodiversität und Gesellschaft“ diskutierte Themen der Biodiversitätsforschung aus gesellschafts- und geisteswissenschaftlicher Perspektive. Die Einbeziehung dieser Perspektiven in die bisher vor allem naturwissenschaftlich geprägte Forschung ist für die Definitionen von Schutzzielen und Bewertungsmaßstäben sowie für die Entwicklung von Instrumenten für den Schutz und die Nutzung der Biodiversität notwendig. Da insbesondere die Instrumente stets innerhalb komplexer sozialer, ökonomischer und rechtlicher Zusammenhänge eingesetzt werden, müssen diese als gesellschaftliche Rahmenbedingungen berücksichtigt werden. Dazu leistet dieser Tagungsband einen Beitrag, indem er Erkenntnisse verschiedener Disziplinen aufzeigt, die eine fundierte und nachhaltige Auseinandersetzung mit dem Verhältnis des Menschen zur und den Auswirkungen menschlichen Verhaltens auf die Biodiversität eröffnen. The conference “Biodiversity and Society” discussed topics of biodiversity research from the perspective of social sciences and humanities. The inclusion of these perspectives in the until now scientifically orientated biodiversity research is necessary for the definition of conservation goals and value standards, as well as for the development of instruments for the preservation and use of biodiversity. Since the instruments in particular are applied in complex social, economic and legal contexts, these societal conditions should be considered. This proceedings volume presents findings of multiple disciplines and thereby contributes to an integral and fruitful analysis of the human relation to and influence on biodiversity.




Fuels From Biomass: An Interdisciplinary Approach


Book Description

The book reports on the results of the BrenaRo Winterschool 2011, held on November 21-22 in Aachen, Germany. The different chapters cover a number of aspects of the topic of energy generation, with a particular focus on energy generation from biomass. They presents new findings concerning engine development, process engineering, and biological and chemical conversion of biomass to fuels, and highlight the importance of an interdisciplinary approach, combining chemistry, biology and engineering research, to the use of renewable energy sources. All in all, this book provides readers with a snapshot of the state-of-the-art in renewable energy conversion, and gives an overview of the ongoing work in this field in Germany.