Archive press releases

Due to the massive increase in data transmission relating to the use of digital devices and services, energy consumption at data centres has surged in recent years. The volume of transmitted data has increased by a factor of 10 in the last decade.…

The Carbon Credit Quality Initiative (CCQI) launched an expanded version of its interactive scoring tool to assess the quality of several newly added types of carbon credits. The new CCQI scores reveal that the majority of carbon credit types…

Until now, Germany’s two million forest owners have relied on sales of timber to generate an income. However, this may be about to change: the ecological and climate services provided by the forests should be recompensed – through forest…

At the United Nations negotiations on ambitious global climate action, due to commence in the Egyptian city of Sharm El-Sheikh on Sunday, 6 November 2022, one mechanism should not be overlooked, namely emissions trading. How has this evolved in the…

Around 80% of the expected total emissions from the 2024 UEFA European Football Championship (UEFA EURO 2024), which is contested by the men’s national teams, will come from transport – and a substantial proportion is attributable to fans’…

The EU should phase in the solar mandate as swiftly as possible – from the end of 2024 – for as many building types as possible, as well as for car parks. In addition, all member states should be required to create favourable domestic conditions so…

17 million central heating and self-contained heating systems are currently burning up oil and gas to heat Germany’s 19 million residential buildings. These will have to be replaced with more environmentally friendly heat sources, and the building…

An incentive system providing financial rewards for biodiversity and carbon sink services in forests can rest on two pillars: On the one hand, such a system should fund ecological forest management directly. On the other, it should provide…

The export of used lithium-ion batteries for second-life applications from Europe to Africa must follow clear rules and be better controlled. This is what Researchers and environmentalists from Oeko-Institut (Germany), PAN-Ethiopia (Ethiopia), the…

In order to reach climate targets in the building sector, a large-scale expansion of district heating, based on renewable energies, is required. To that end, all the European Union member states should set targets for the expansion of district…

When companies reduce their consumption of energy or raw materials, a frequent outcome is that the money or materials saved in this way are employed to manufacture more products or new ones. In such situations there is no overall reduction of…

The Carbon Credit Quality Initiative (CCQI) today unveiled a new online scoring tool that allows users to evaluate the quality of carbon credits. This will allow them to make more informed decisions when purchasing carbon credits. Ultimately, the…

If wood is removed from the forest and used for the production of wood products, construction materials or paper, a carbon footprint is created because less carbon is stored in the forest than if the trees had not been felled. This means that…

An increase in working from home (WFH) has the potential to save up to 3.7 million tonnes of climate-damaging greenhouse gas emissions per year in Germany – even if private cars are used for most commutes, as in 2021. However, if more people switch…

In order to meet Germany’s climate targets, lignite should ideally be phased out by 2030, as stated by the new Federal Government in its coalition agreement. A new study by the Oeko-Institut on behalf of Agora Energiewende now brings together all…

How can a reform of taxes and surcharges guide the transport sector towards a sustainable future? Higher CO2 prices in combination with the abolition of the surcharge introduced by the German Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG levy), appropriate…

The foundations of the emerging data economy that are currently being laid must be aligned with environmental and climate protection goals. Yet environmental aspects have not featured substantially in proposals for the regulation of artificial…

The network of independent institutes for environmental and sustainability research marks its tenth anniversary. In 2011, eight non-profit scientific institutions – including Ecologic Institute – joined forces to form the Ecological Research…

The taxation of company cars is increasingly causing a social and environmental misalignment in German transport policy, according to a study by think tank Agora Verkehrswende and the Oeko-Institut. The tax benefits provided for the private use of…

From an environmental perspective, milk that is produced on organic farms is better than conventionally produced milk. The extensive avoidance of pesticides and mineral fertilisers in feed production results in a significantly lower burden on the…