Climate and Energy
Today, both Germany and the U.S. understand their shared responsibility for mitigating climate change and reducing global reliance on fossil fuels—thereby lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Both countries need an economically-feasible framework for the accelerated deployment of the “how” of climate change mitigation technologies and solutions. Viewed globally, this will require technology and solutions transfer and an equitable cost-sharing both from the developed to the developing world, as well as among already industrialized countries. Examining technological challenges and policy incentives in Germany and the U.S. allows policymakers to learn from past successes and failures and create internationally comparable policies.
Financing Sustainable Transportation: An Overview of Finance Mechanisms and Cases from the U.S. and Germany
This publication entitled “Financing Sustainable Transportation: An Overview of Finance Mechanisms and Cases from the U.S. and Germany” is part of AICGS’ project on The Transatlantic Climate and Energy Dialogue: Urban and Regional Transportation and Energy Problems and Solutions. Transportation policy is increasingly linked to land-use policy, and to climate change outcomes. In the… Read more >
Transportation and Land-Use Planning in Germany and the U.S.: Lessons from the Stuttgart and Washington, DC Regions
AICGS’ new publication, entitled “Transportation and Land-Use Planning in Germany and the U.S.: Lessons from the Stuttgart and Washington, DC Regions,” is part of our project on The Transatlantic Climate and Energy Dialogue: Urban and Regional Transportation and Energy Problems and Solutions. Urban communities on both sides of the Atlantic face economic and… Read more >
Daily Travel and CO2 Emissions from Passenger Transport: A Comparison of Germany and the United States
Germany and the U.S. present many similarities that make a comparison of CO2 emissions from transport and related policies meaningful. This essay compares trends of CO2 emission from passenger transport, discusses policies to decrease emissions, and offers policy lessons for both the U.S. and Germany.
Nuclear Energy in the U.S. and Germany: Weighing the Risks
Energy and climate policy in the U.S. and in Germany seem to be miles apart. In 2011, Germany decided to phase-out nuclear, whereas in early 2012 the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission granted the first license to build and operate an extension of a nuclear power plant for the first time since 1978…. Read more >
The Decentralization of the Electricity Grid – Mitigating Risk in the Energy Sector
Industrial countries like the U.S., Japan, and Germany depend on a functioning electricity grid as the backbone of their economies and way of life. Impediments to the electricity grid not only harm the economy and hurt the bottom line; they can also cause loss of life and hamper a country’s ability to react to a large-scale catastrophe.
Energy Security Risk Assessment: A Transatlantic Comparison
The U.S. and West Germany once shared similar energy profiles and similar global energy challenges. Through the 1960s and in the beginning of the 1970s, with largely comparable energy mixes, they both saw themselves as vulnerable to oil shocks and in 1974, were both founding members of the International Energy Agency. At… Read more >
Climate 2.0 – Can Geoengineering Make the World a Safer Place?
Wizardry to some, anathema to others, geoengineering—or climate engineering—is slowly encroaching on the territory of traditional climate policy. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) next Assessment Report, due in 2013/14, will cover “the deliberate large-scale manipulation of the planetary environment”[1] as a potential strategy to counteract man-made climate change. Technological solutions… Read more >
European Energy Security: A New Pattern of External Stability and Internal Risks
This essay examines recent developments in European energy policy and analyzes improvements and shortcomings of energy security, primarily in the field of fossil fuels. It argues that Europe has successfully addressed some external energy security risks, the gravest problems of energy security currently originate inside Europe itself due to insufficient funding of necessary infrastructure projects.
Intellectual Property Rights and Green Technology Transfer: German and U.S. Perspectives
While environmental concerns have recently taken a backseat to the economic and financial crisis, scientific projections on climate change continue to call for action. Yet, international cooperation has been hampered and a rift between developed and developing nations is increasingly evident. Companies from developed countries are interested in recouping their investments in clean energy technology through property rights; developing nations contend, however, that such technology must be made available to all nations. This Policy Report, featuring essays from Robert Percival and Miranda Schreurs, examines American and German views on this contentious issue, focusing on what roles technology transfer and intellectual property rights play in the climate policy debate.
Promoting Energy Innovation and Investment Through Transatlantic Transfer of Community Energy Policies
In Policy Report #43, “Promoting Energy Innovation and Investment Through Transatlantic Transfer of Community Energy Policies,” Dale Medearis, Peter Garforth, and Stefan Blüm look to the European Union and Germany to draw lessons about community energy planning at the national and sub-national levels that can be transferred to the U.S. The authors examine issues such as the integration of land-use and transportation planning policies and the development of finance mechanisms and performance measures for energy efficient building construction.
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