Draft Work Programme prepared in connection with the FP7 2013 Work Programme in the area of Transport (including aeronautics)

Posted on: 20 June 2012
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This paper is made public at an early stage in the adoption process of the work programme to provide potential applicants with the currently expected main lines of the 2013 work programme. It is a working document not yet endorsed by the Commission and its content does not in any way prejudge the subsequent modifications by the Commission nor the final decision of the Commission. The final adoption and the publication of the work programme by the Commission are expected in mid-July 2012. Only the adopted work programme will have legal value. The Programme outlines the proposals for coordinated calls, contexts and themes of the Transport activities that will arise from EU collaborative programmes, and will be of benefit to organisations seeking to engage on EU-funded research activities over the next year and beyond.

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Renewables 2012 Global Status Report (REN21)

Posted on: 20 June 2012
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The 2012 edition of the Global Status Report covers recent developments and identifies trends, such as the rapidly growing global share of renewable energy supply in the power, heating / cooling and transport sectors. The document provides testimony of the steady growth trend in renewable energy markets, supportive policies and investment, highlighting the increasing role renewables are playing in mainstream energy markets and sustainable economic development. A section on the local community level is included.

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Accessibility, sustainability, excellence: how to expand access to research publications

Posted on: 20 June 2012
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The National Working Group on Expanding Access to Published Research Findings (the ‘Finch Group’) has published a report which sets out an encouraging and challenging road map to improve open access to scholarly literature. It recommends a programme of action to enable more people to read and use the publications arising from research. Better, faster communication of research results will bring benefits for public services and for economic growth. It will also bring improved efficiency for researchers, and opportunities for more public engagement with research.

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Cycling cultures in a mass motorised society: a multi-method case study of four English urban areas

Posted on: 19 June 2012
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This ESRC-funded project focused on cycling, studying four relatively high-cycling areas and trying to find out why cycling thrives in these areas. In these areas, it is likely that many residents who cycle regularly would not do so if they lived elsewhere in the UK. Their experiences are important for understanding processes through which cycling becomes “normal”. The four chosen areas, Cambridge, Hackney, Hull, and Bristol, have different social, spatial, and political characteristics. The project used a mix of qualitative methods to analyse components of different cycling cultures, and how inclusive they are of different social groups. It also investigated how people think about and practise cycling within each locality, and aimed to explain how cycling provides particular ways of experiencing the four places.

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Rio+20 Conference. Rio, 20-22 June 2012

Posted on: 19 June 2012
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The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) was held to mark the 20th anniversary of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), in Rio de Janeiro, and the 10th anniversary of the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg.  The Rio+20 Conference is envisaged as a Conference at the highest possible level, including Heads of State and Government or other representatives. The Conference will result in a focused political document. The preparations for Rio+20 have highlighted seven areas which need priority attention; these include decent jobs, energy, sustainable cities, food security and sustainable agriculture, water, oceans and disaster readiness.

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The multifunctionality of green infrastructure

Posted on: 19 June 2012
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This report describes the different functions that Ggreen infrastructure seeks to execute and explores the scientific evidence behind its ability to perform these functions, using case studies where available. The functions are described in terms of four broad roles that green infrastructure performs: Protecting ecosystems state and biodiversity; Improving ecosystem functioning and promoting ecosystem services; Promoting societal wellbeing and health; Supporting the development of a green economy, and sustainable land and water management.

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Global initiative for resource efficient cities

Posted on: 19 June 2012
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The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and partners have unveiled the Global Initiative for Resource-Efficient Cities, a new initiative that aims to develop resource efficiency measures in order to achieve sustainable urban development around the world, and released two related reports. Sustainable, resource efficient cities: Making it happen  outlines practical steps that cities can take towards resource efficiency including, inter alia: the integration of livability and social equality measures into new urban developments; governance approaches that engage local communities and civil society groups; smart urban design; financial incentives and subsidies for green technologies; technology transfer; and innovation. A second report, Cities and carbon finance: Feasibility study on an urban CDM , examines how cities can better access climate finance through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).

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Global Environment Outlook 5 for local government (GEO-5)

Posted on: 19 June 2012
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This report, launched at the ICLEI World Congress which concluded in Belo Horizonte (Brazil) on 17 June 2012, emphasises the key role local government has played in sustainable development and shaping the transition to a green economy. These policies, state the document, can be replicated and up-scaled to create a more sustainable economic model.

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Going for green: Sustainable building certification statistics Europe

Posted on: 19 June 2012
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This is the second year that the Sustainability working group of RICS in Germany collects and comments on the data displayed by the four leading international certification systems BREEAM, LEED, HQE and DGNB, with the aim of creating greater market transparency by providing an up-to-date pan-European overview with regard to ‘green’ certification of buildings.

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The case for and against onshore wind energy in the UK

Posted on: 18 June 2012
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The new policy brief from the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment and the Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy reviews the current evidence about the extent to which onshore wind power can contribute to future electricity generation, whether there are technological constraints, what the economic costs are, and what the environmental impacts might be. It concludes that the challenges posed by the intermittency of energy supplied by wind farms are often exaggerated, but that the local environmental impacts of wind turbines need to be properly considered in planning decisions.

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