How can social change be shaped when crises are on the rise and trust in political processes is dwindling? This question was the focus of the conference “Change at the Limit. What Now?”, hosted by the Institute for Ecological Economy Research and the Association for Ecological Economy Research in Berlin on October 9, 2025. Around 120 participants from research, politics, civil society, and the media explored ways to advance social and ecological change in a fair, democratic, and collaborative manner. more

Green investments are considered a key lever for sustainable transformation, but greenwashing is widespread in the financial sector. The latest issue of “Ökologisches Wirtschaften” highlights the challenges facing green finance and shows which problems remain despite new EU guidelines. How can public and private financial flows be mobilized to promote greater sustainability—for example, for climate-resilient infrastructure, new technologies, and economic sectors? Despite rising investment in renewable energies, there are “huge financing gaps” in many areas that require targeted steering, according to Florian Kern and Bernd Hirschl in the introduction to the focus section. more

Accelerating the energy transition: Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI and the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW) came together at a two-day kick-off meeting in Karlsruhe in July to launch the new BEWEGT project. The accompanying research and coordination project on the “Energy Transition and Society” funding priority is part of the Energy Research Program for applied Energy Research of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE). more

Stefanie Freier was appointed administrative director of the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW) on 1 July 2025. She takes over the position from Marion Wiegand, who was part of the Institute's Board of Directors for almost 30 years and is now retiring. Thanks to her many years of experience as a finance and personnel expert at the IÖW, Stefanie Freier is excellently prepared to manage the externally funded institute. more

A large proportion of global capital still flows into climate-damaging activities. Financing the green transition is a decisive factor in whether the climate targets are achieved. A research project conducted by Witten/Herdecke University and the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW) with funding from the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) has investigated how the financing gap can be closed and what policymakers and the financial sector can do to achieve this. Today, the project team presented its findings and addressed three key recommendations for a more sustainable financial policy in the policy brief “Financing the green transition”. more

After a brief euphoria of sustainable change, the socio-ecological transformation project currently appears to be stagnating. Approval ratings are falling and reactionary forces are gaining ground. Has socio-ecological change reached its limit? In the current issue of the journal “Ökologisches Wirtschaften”, our authors discuss political, sociological and economic explanations for the phenomenon of stagnation, look at the underlying structural challenges and discuss proposed solutions and strategies. It also becomes clear that some of our own convictions must be critically questioned if the project of sustainable change is to have any chance of success. more

More and more citizens are joining forces to generate their own energy locally. The coalition agreement between the parties CDU/CSU and SPD reinforces this commitment: they want consumers to play an active role in shaping the energy transition – for example through community energy, tenant electricity or energy sharing. Researchers from the IÖW and the Leuphana University of Lüneburg show in a policy paper what obstacles community energy still faces and how these can be removed. more

Berlin must make its heat supply climate-neutral – as stipulated in the Heat Planning Act. Heat storage systems play a central role in this. This is shown by a joint study conducted by the Reiner Lemoine Institute (RLI), the IÖW and the Institute for Climate Protection, Energy and Mobility (IKEM) on behalf of the Berlin Senate Department for Mobility, Transport, Climate Protection and the Environment (SenMVKU). Conclusion: Heat storage systems make it possible to use surplus heat, become less dependent on fossil fuels and reduce the load on the electricity grid. more

“We let the change in!” - is the motto of the Lab on the first floor of the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW). Associations and initiatives can use the rooms for work meetings, workshops and exchanges with researchers. This allows us to try out new forms of transdisciplinary collaboration and support employees, students, alumni and groups from the institute's network in their voluntary work. Free spaces are now available again. more

On foot, by bike, with a walking frame or pram, in a wheelchair, by car or public transport: a city's mobility is as diverse as its inhabitants. How can the city of Berlin better meet these different needs? A citizen science study will be launched in April 2025. Freie Universität Berlin and the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW) are inviting people to take part in the study under the motto “Be Mobile in Your Own Way”. The aim is to find out what barriers exist for people who want to move around the city in a healthy way. Registration for the study is open until the 1st of April 2025. more