Environmental Policy Research Centre. Researching and Teaching in an International Environment

Transcription

1 Environmental Policy Research Centre Researching and Teaching in an International Environment

2 About Us The Environmental Policy Research Centre (FFU) is one of the world s leading research institutes in the fields of comparative and international environmental and sustainable energy politics and policy. The FFU conducts both academic and policy-oriented research. In addition, FFU faculty and associates have developed specialized educational programs on energy and the environment for undergraduate, master s students as well as PhD candidates. Approximately 30 researchers, staff, and student assistants plus 100 master s and PhD students work and study in an international and multilingual environment. The FFU has strong expertise in the political and social dimensions of global environmental issues, climate change and energy, strategies of sustainable development, and biodiversity. As a social sciences institute, the FFU investigates the roles of actors, structures, processes, and strategies as well as environmental policy outcomes at the international, national, and community levels. The FFU advises the German and international governments and organizations. It cooperates with numerous research institutes, universities and nongovernmental organizations in Europe, Asia, North America and South America. Martin Jänicke and Lutz Mez founded the FFU in 1986 at the Otto-Suhr-Institut of the Freie Universität Berlin. In October 2007 Miranda Schreurs became director.

3 Research Fields Ecological Modernization and Innovation In an increasingly resource constrained world, there is growing interest in how resources can be used more efficiently. The FFU has advised governments on the kinds of policies and programs that can be introduced to promote ecological modernization and has published widely on the contributions ecological modernization can bring societies. Climate Change Policy and Politics Through research projects, publications, special events, and seminars, the FFU team seeks to broaden understanding of the political and social dimensions of climate governance. FFU members examine the factors that have blocked effective climate action in some countries while considering why in others it has been possible to introduce measures to stimulate a shift to a lowcarbon economy. Cities and Enivronmental Policy There is still relatively little systematic comparative research that has been conducted on the role of urban environmental and climate governance. The FFU team is working to improve understanding of the relationships that exist among local, national, and international governments, corporations, and civil society actors in climate policy formulation and implementation.

4 Research Fields Environmental Leadership and Policy Diffusion Environmental pioneer states are those that pursue stringent environmental policies and programs. Policy diffusion refers to the international proliferation processes that stem from international learning about and emulation of policies and programs introduced by pioneers. FFU researchers work to gain insights into the factors that allow some states to take pioneering roles in environmental governance. These insights can be used to develop steps that can be taken to improve the capacities of the state to protect the environment. Impact Assessment The FFU is developing methods for the practical use of impact assessment at the national and European levels. In its comparative studies of the German Länder (states), the FFU has examined the procedures used in impact assessments and made proposals for incorporating sustainability checks into German laws. The FFU also examines to what extent parliamentary bills are actually changed to take sustainability into account. Environmental Governance Good environmental governance is dependent not only on governmental actors, but also industries, non-governmental organizations, expert communities, and other elements of civil society. Researchers and graduate students at the FFU study environmental governance in different cultural, political, and economic contexts and in relation to different environmental and energy problems.

5 Research Fields Sustainable Economic Growth On national and international level there is growing interest in reconsidering what is meant by progress and how it is measured. The FFU is involved in various research studies that look at indicators of national sustainability and social welfare. This FFU research has contributed to debates on meaning of social prosperity. Research on governance for sustainable development at the FFU looks comparatively at how institutions and other mechanisms can be used in a stakeholder-inclusive process to integrate environmental, social, and economic perspectives and balance shortand long-term perspectives in the policy formulation process. Energy Policy Production, use and trade of energy is a central issue not only for economic growth but also for the environment, the climate, and human health. FFU researchers and doctoral students consider measures that have and can be taken to develop an energy supply that minimizes environmental impacts while supporting economic development, technological innovations, and employment.

6 Study Programs The FFU is known across Europe and globally for its environmental policy and politics courses. The FFU team, visiting guest professors, and professional experts from business, politics, and the government, offer one of Europe s most comprehensive set of courses focused on environmental politics, policy, political economy, and society. Students can choose from a wide variety of general and more specialized environmental, energy, sustainability, and climate courses in the social sciences. Master s and PhD students come from around the world to obtain their degrees at the FFU. The FFU provides a mix of theoretical and more applied courses and training programs and provides opportunities for students to deepen their research skills through participation in FFU projects and programs as well as through cooperation with the many environmental think tanks and organizations in Berlin. Courses are offered in both German and English. Graduates of the FFU go on to obtain jobs in academia, government, nongovernmental organizations, and industry.

7 Environmental Master s Program Globally, the demand for environmental experts with a knowledge and understanding of the factors that promote good environmental governance are growing. The FFU team prepares students for leadership positions in government agencies, nonprofit organizations, environmental think tanks, and private corporations. The future professionals will be able to address the many serious governance challenges facing the global community today (biodiversity loss, climate change, toxic pollution). Master s students learn in close contact with their classmates and instructors. Experts from business, law, and politics offer special sessions on recent environmental legal, political, and business developments to the students. Team projects are encouraged. In addition, students are expected to participate in an environmental internship during the program. Obtaining a PhD at the FFU Students from across the globe with an interest in environmental policy and politics or environment and energy policy choose to pursue their PhD at the FFU. The FFU has one of the largest and most diverse PhD offerings in the field of the environmental social sciences of any university in the world. PhD candidates are attracted to the FFU both by its many specialized course offerings and special events and the high quality of international research conducted here.

8 International Educational Exchange The FFU encourages its students to study abroad and works hard to provide international research and study opportunities for its students at all levels. Many of them take advantage of special exchange programs the FFU group has developed. In recent years, with support from the DAAD s A New Passage to India master s and PhD students have participated in exchanges to the Teri Research University in New Delhi. Undergraduate and graduate students have taken advantage of a formal cooperation with the Nagoya University s Graduate School of Environmental Studies to spend a semester in Japan. Yet others have participated in a Civil Society Educational Network exchange program the FFU runs in cooperation with other European and Canadian partner universities, with funding from the European Commission. In addition to the many international students that enroll in our master s and PhD programs, large numbers of Erasmus and other exchange students take advantage of the course offerings provided by the FFU. Graduate students also travel from across the globe to participate in special intensive programs organized by the FFU team, such as the Marie Curie Summer School, Earth System Governance The Distributional Implications of Environmental Change and Governance or the Transatlantic PhD Workshop: Forging Closer Ties: Transatlantic Relations, Climate and Energy.

9 Visiting Researchers and International Research Coope- ration The FFU has research, teaching, and study exchanges with universities and think tanks across Europe, North America, Asia, and Latin America. Events International senior scholars, postdoctoral students, and graduate students are teaching Conventions and conference series, organized by the FFU, have become firmly established within the international research community. The annual meetings of the REFORM Group (Restructuring Energy Systems For Optimal Ressource Management) at Schloss Leopoldskron, Salzburg/Austria, attracts experts from around the world. Since 2001, the FFU together with partners has organized the Berlin Conference on the Human Dimension of Global Enviromental Change. Further conferences, workshops plus the Berlin Sustainability Talk are among the activities. and conducting research at the FFU. The FFU has been host to Fulbright, DAAD, and Alexander von Humboldt fellowship recipients. Public Outreach The FFU believes in the importance of bringing academic knowledge out of the ivory tower and into society. The FFU-coordinated international project, Schools at Universities for Climate and Energy, awarded as an Official German Project for the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, has brought thousands of primary school students to the university. Policy Consultancy Members of the FFU team are regularly engaged in policy consultancy and provide policy critique and advice to the German government, the European Commission, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, among others. The FFU s current director is appointed to the German Environment Advisory Council.

10 Freie Universität Berlin Contact Environmental Policy Research Centre Forschungszentrum für Umweltpolitik Otto-Suhr-Institut für Politikwissenschaft Fachbereich Politik- und Sozialwissenschaften der Freien Universität Berlin Ihnestr. 22 D Berlin Tel. (+) Fax (+)