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Osnabrück receives award as most sustainable major city

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Photo: Janin Arntzen

Osnabrück is the winner of the competition for the German Sustainability Award 2020 for large cities. The award has been presented by the Stiftung Deutscher Nachhaltigkeitspreis e.V. since 2012. The funding amount is 30,000 euros for sustainable urban development projects.

The Peace City of Osnabrück in Lower Saxony pursues an impact-based, strategic control approach in its sustainable development and uses the specially developed "KOSMOS" catalogue of indicators for this purpose, which enables both the administration and the citizens to review the implementation of strategic goals in detail. The municipality's participatory approach is also evident in the urban development master plan for the inner city, in which the citizens of Osnabrück were able to contribute their ideas for sustainable urban development. The master plan focuses, among other things, on redensification of the settlement structure, less space for motorised private transport and more green spaces with a high quality of stay. Extensive measures such as ecological standards in urban land-use planning, Germany's first solar roof register and sustainable "Economic Development 4.0" ensure more climate and resource protection.

Germany's most sustainable major cities 2020

Source: PM from

 


Keywords: News Blog Lower Saxony

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Bloomberg New Energy Finance expects photovoltaic investments to reach USD 3.4 trillion by 2040
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Bloomberg New Energy Finance expects photovoltaic investments to reach USD 3.4 trillion by 2040

The New Energy Outlook 2016 (NEO) from Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) assumes significantly lower prices for coal and gas than the forecast from the previous year. However, BNEF now also expects greater cost reductions for solar and wind energy. According to NEO 2016, the levelised cost of energy (LCOE) of photovoltaic systems will fall by 60 % by 2040.

This would make photovoltaics and wind energy the most cost-effective way of generating electricity in many countries in the 2020s and in almost all parts of the world in the 2030s.

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Renewable, New books and studies, News Blog Europe (without DE)

German Habitat Forum: Impulses for sustainable urban development worldwide
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German Habitat Forum: Impulses for sustainable urban development worldwide

The German Habitat Forum came to an end today with the "Berlin Recommendations". Thomas Silberhorn, Parliamentary State Secretary of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and Gunther Adler, State Secretary of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, handed over the "Berlin Recommendations". the recommendations to the Secretary General of the Habitat III Conference, Joan Clos. The "Berlin Recommendations" are intended as a contribution to the new urban development agenda that the United Nations intends to adopt at the third World Human Settlements Summit in Quito, Ecuador, in October.
Thomas Silberhorn: "Decisions made by today's urban planners will shape the way we live together in cities for decades to come. That is why we have to set the right course now. Our meeting in Berlin has shown: Sustainable urban development is not possible without innovative ideas, partnership, networked thinking and action. The key role is played by local actors - a powerful municipal administration, non-governmental organisations, business and science, and citizens.

More than 1,000 urban development experts, municipal representatives and personalities from politics, business, science and civil society from all over the world had spent two days at the German Habitat Forum developing recommendations on how to shape a liveable future in cities. Sustainable urban development combines many aspects: urban climate and environmental protection, social balance, safety and quality of life for all citizens. For this, according to the recommendations, cities and municipalities must be even more strongly recognised, empowered and financially equipped as central development actors at national and international level.

A final preparatory conference for the Habitat Summit will take place in Surabaya, Indonesia, at the end of July. Based on the principles "Liveable cities - cities capable of action - integrated urban solutions", Germany will there support the negotiations of the New Urban Agenda push forward.

You can download the "Berlin Recommendations" from the following link: www.bmz.de/berlinerempfehlungen (PDF 135 KB, English)

Source: Press release from 02.06.2016

 



Keywords:
SDG 2030, UN (United Nations), Environmental policy, Housing policy

Five-storey wooden building in Bonn grows
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Five-storey wooden building in Bonn grows

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Photo from 21.09.2016

It was to be the first 6-storey wooden building in NRW, now 5 storeys are being realised as student accommodation with 32 units in passive house standard. The building is located not far from Bonn's main railway station and is implemented with a car sharing concept.

More information on the website of architect Kay Künzel from Wachtberg: http://raum-fuer-architektur.de

IMG_20160704_103516
It's starting: construction of the 5-storey student dormitory in wood has begun (Photo: 4.7.2016; H. Wolpensinger)

There are details in a lecture pdf from 2012:
www.forum-holzbau.com/pdf/ebh12_kuenzle.pdf



Keywords:
Bonn, Wood construction

Cities play a key role in climate protection
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Cities play a key role in climate protection

Resilient Cities Congress of the Cities Network ICLEI in Bonn

The Paris Climate Agreement involves all levels of government in addressing climate change. At the local level, these are cities and municipalities. The ICLEI network of cities, which includes 22 German cities, is meeting in Bonn from 26 to 28 April for the "Resilient Cities Congress". Around 400 participants will exchange their experiences on climate protection measures and climate cooperation. The congress is an official part of the Talanoa Dialogue. Talanoa is a Fijian principle of decision-making and refers to an open dialogue that involves all stakeholders.

BMU State Secretary Jochen Flasbarth: "Cities and regions have a key role in climate protection. Worldwide, 1,500 cities are linked in the ICLEI network. In Bonn, city representatives from all over the world discuss what can be done for climate protection at the municipal level and how climate change can be countered. Ideally, the climate activities of all levels of government are coordinated. The Talanoa Dialogue is one way to organise this. It is also an opportunity to bring together voices from different actors around the world - including the visions and commitments of cities and regions - to sustain the positive momentum of Paris and stimulate the improvement of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) by 2020."

Two examples of a German ICLEI member and an Asian city network illustrate climate protection efforts at the municipal level. Münster is one of the 22 German cities that is a member of the ICLEI network. The city relies on cooperation for climate protection. The local "Alliance for Climate Protection" aims to bring together relevant actors to jointly develop concrete local climate protection projects. At the same time, the actors involved in the alliance commit to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. In doing so, they contribute to the implementation of the ambitious climate goals of the city of Münster. By 2050, greenhouse gas emissions are to be reduced by 95% and final energy consumption by 50% compared to 1990. 21% CO2 reduction could already be achieved by 2015. The "100% Climate Protection Master Plan" translates the vision of the city of Münster into a concrete strategy until 2050. The Master Plan and the Alliance are funded within the framework of the National Climate Protection Initiative (NKI) of the Federal Ministry for the Environment.

www.stadt-muenster.de/umwelt/klimaschutzkonzept-2020.html

The project "Ambitious City Promises - Climate-friendly urban development in South-East Asian cities" is also about bundling the activities of local civil society actors in the sense of ambitious municipal commitments. The international city network ICLEI is involved in the project of the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment and supports the development of holistic climate strategies in Hanoi (Vietnam), Jakarta (Indonesia) and Pasig City (Philippines). An important project partner is the government of the Seoul metropolitan region (Korea), which already published an ambitious mitigation plan in 2015. The "Seoul Pledge" envisages greenhouse gas reductions of 25% by 2020 and 40% by 2030 compared to 2005 and defines concrete measures for the sectors of energy, transport, resource management, water, health, urban agriculture and urban planning.

www.international-climate-initiative.com/de/nc/details/?projectid=543&cHash=9a405fa6e545b0dbd9b433a3def344b2

 



Keywords:
100% EEs, Stakeholders, Bonn, Climate protection, Communities, News Blog Europe (without DE), News Blog NRW, SDG 2030, Environmental policy

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