Figures for the future: 20 years of sustainable development in Europe? A guide for citizens

Posted on: 15 June 2012
By: mackene
No Comments »
Filed under: News

Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, has released a publication in connection with the Rio+20 summit2, the United Nations conference on sustainable development which will take place on 20-22 June 2012. This publication of 160 pages presents 70 of the EU Sustainable Development Indicators which are used to measure and monitor the EU Sustainable Development Strategy, in a new and easy-to-understand style. The publication is complemented by four videos about green growth, green economy and poverty.

Read more online

 

EEA Signals 2012: Building the future we want

Posted on: 12 June 2012
By: mackene
No Comments »
Filed under: News

Signals is an annual publication from the European Environment Agency which aims to explain complex environmental issues for a non-expert audience. The 2012 edition explores the environmental impacts of our consumption and production patterns, and ways these can be changed to reduce their effect on the environment.

Read more online

Background Report for the Development of the Reference Document on Best Environmental Management Practice in the Public Administration Sector

Posted on: 29 May 2012
By: mackene
No Comments »
Filed under: News

This document describes best environmental management practice, and includes environmental performance indicators for specific sectors and, where appropriate, benchmarks of excellence and rating systems identifying performance levels. The use of this reference document is voluntary but EMAS organisations are strongly encouraged to use them for setting up their environmental management system and for defining their environmental targets.

Read more online

Concentrating solar power: its potential contribution to a sustainable energy future

Posted on: 21 May 2012
By: mackene
No Comments »
Filed under: News

This study by the European Academies Science Advisory Council has examined the current status and development challenges of concentrating solar power, and consequently has evaluated the potential contribution of CSP in Europe and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region to 2050, and identified actions that will be required to enable that contribution to be realised. This report summarises the findings of the study and is intended to inform policy-makers in the European institutions, in particular the European Commission and Parliament, and policy-makers at a national level in Europe and the MENA region.

Read more online

Air transport (Eurostat Statistics in Focus 21/2012)

Posted on: 17 May 2012
By: mackene
No Comments »
Filed under: News

Following the economic crisis which began in 2008 and the first positive signs at the end of 2009, 2010 confirmed the recovery of the air transport industry. According to the latest statistics published by Eurostat, between 2009 and 2010, the total number of passengers travelling by air in the European Union increased by 3.4 % to 777 million.

Read more online

Effective solutions for green urban transport: Learning from CIVITAS cities. Athens, 24 April 2012

Posted on: 16 May 2012
By: mackene
No Comments »
Filed under: Events presentations

Second of a series of four, this workshop brought together participants to learn about effective solutions for green urban transport based on experiences from CIVITAS cities. It presented achievements and results of cities in two thematic area: transport telematics and demand management strategies. All presentations are available online.

Find out more online

Urban adaptation to climate change in Europe: Challenges and opportunities for cities together with supportive national and European policies

Posted on: 14 May 2012
By: mackene
No Comments »
Filed under: News

This report from the European Environment Agency is described as the first Europe-wide assessment of urban vulnerability to climate change. It argues that the distinct design and composition of urban areas compared to rural areas alters climate change impacts in cities, leading to many diverse challenges for cities within Europe. The report provides generic advice for adapting cities to climate change and examples of best practice.

Read more online

Partners for new URBACT projects

Posted on: 10 May 2012
By: mackene
No Comments »
Filed under: News

The 19 URBACT Thematic Networks approved in April 2012 are now looking for new EU partners, including cities but also regional authorities, universities and other public institutions, to join their work on integrated, sustainable urban development. During the 6 month Development Phase, all new URBACT projects have to extend their partnerships from five up to a maximum of 12 partners. The approved projects include:

CityLogo: City branding and marketing to promote better positioning of cities in the post crisis economic arena;

CSI Europe: Involvement of cities in Jessica Urban Development Fund (UDF) structures – Role of financial instruments in efficient planning;

DID-RFSC: Referential Framework for Sustainable cities – Monitoring local strategic plans to engage stakeholders/ citizens in an integrated and sustainable approach;

E4C: E-skills for innovative cities through joint definition of integrated urban strategies, policies and practices;

ENTER.HUB: Railway hubs/ multimodal interfaces of regional relevance in medium size cities as engines for integrated urban development and economic, social and cultural regeneration;

EUnivercities: Exploring the next generation partnerships between cities and universities for a more strategic and effective co-operation;

RE-Block: Creating sustainable high-rise blocks through social cohesion, green spaces and poverty reduction;

Sustainable food for urban communities: Innovative initiatives for more sustainable food production/ retail & consumption in urban communities;

URBACT Markets: Local markets as drivers for local economic development and regeneration by exploring the links between local sustainability and successful markets;

USE ACT: Fostering opportunities for people & businesses to settle in existing locations and avoid consumption of land, through new planning processes and partnership approaches;

USER: New processes and partnerships for Urban sustainable & efficient regeneration by integrating expertise of uses from inhabitants and field workers;

WOOD FOOTPRINT: Fostering local economic development through the use of brownfield and  buildings/ spaces abandoned due to the transformation of the wood/ furniture sector.

Read more online

Towards efficient use of water resources in Europe

Posted on: 9 May 2012
By: mackene
No Comments »
Filed under: News

This report is the first in a series of thematic assessments that European Environment Agency (EEA) is publishing in 2012 to support discussion and development of the ‘Blueprint to safeguard Europe’s Water Resources’. The report builds on earlier EEA reports describing the state of Europe’s water resources and the pressures they face. It focuses on resource efficiency and describes the opportunities for more efficient water use and avoiding pollution across all sectors, while staying within sustainability boundaries.

Read more online

Green Freight Europe

Posted on: 9 May 2012
By: mackene
No Comments »
Filed under: News

The initiative GreenFreight Europe, officially launched on 27 March 2012, aims to generate strong market incentives to engage companies across the supply chains in green procurement of transportation services in order stimulate long-term improvements. Therefore, a central database to calculate, validate and benchmark the environmental performance of transportation companies was built and designed. The database is hosted by a neutral and independent body. This way, logistics managers are able to measure and reduce the carbon footprint of their products through green procurement of transportation services. Transportation companies will benefit from attracting climate-conscious customers, understanding their environmental score and getting access to best-practices on eco-efficiency.

Find out more online