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ConferenceSustainable Consumption for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Worldwide

Datum: 30. September 2019

Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Stresemannstraße 128-130, 10117 Berlin, Germany

Host:
Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN)
Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU)

Organizers:
Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW)
Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (ifeu)

High levels of consumption of goods and services have become a defining characteristic of modern industrial societies. To cover these levels of consumption, consumers in countries such as Germany rely on resources that are cultivated, extracted and sometimes processed in other countries and regions of the world. The production and extraction of these materials has severe impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services. While consciousness of the need for environmentally and nature-compatible consumption is quite high in Germany, this does not necessarily result in sustainable consumption patterns. To conserve biodiversity and ecosystem services worldwide targeted policy intervention to facilitate shifts in consumption are thus needed.

The project ‘KomsumWende’ aims to develop tools and policy recommendations that can promote consumption patterns that lead to the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the global south. For this purpose, the effects of German consumption behavior on biodiversity and ecosystem services in the global south will be identified through the use of case studies in the fields of food, mobility and clothing. Subsequently, promising policy instruments are identified and their effectiveness evaluated.

The conference will discuss recent research findings that indicate ecological impacts elsewhere from goods imported to Germany. More specifically, we will highlight environmental impacts and suggest policy responses for Lithium (E-Mobility), Soy (Meat) and Cotton (Clothing). The focus lies on policy options that can contribute to mitigating the pressure our consumption places on biodiversity and ecosystem services worldwide.

Together with decision and policy makers and international experts, we will address questions such as: 

What are the global impacts of consumption on biodiversity and ecosystem services?

Which shifts in consumption patterns are needed to reduce these impacts?

And which policy approaches and measures can promote such transitions, specifically in the fields of mobility, food and clothing?

09:00

Registration

10:00

Welcome | Dr. Ulf Jaeckel (Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety)

10:15Presentation of Key Results of the Study | Lea Kliem (IÖW), Horst Fehrenbach (ifeu)

11:00

Publication Launch: Sustainable Consumption for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services - The cases of cotton, soy and lithium

11:15

Coffee break

11:45

Key Note: Engaging Consumers, Governments and Business for more Sustainable Supply Chains| Charles Arden-Clarke (One Planet Network, United Nations Environment Programme)

Key Note: Strengthening Sustainable Consumption in Germany – What can Policymakers do?| Prof. Dr. Lucia Reisch (Copenhagen Business School)

12:30

Lunch

13:30

Parallel Working Groups on the Cases of Soy, Cotton and Lithium

14:45

Coffee break

15:00

Panel Discussion: Ways Forward Overcoming Implementation Challenges | Martina Fleckenstein (WWF International), Meike Gebhard (Utopia), Marcelo Visconti (Round Table for Responsible Soy), Charles Arden-Clarke (One Planet Network, United Nations Environment Programme)

15:45

Closing Words | Bettina Hedden-Dunkhorst (Federal Agency for Nature Conservation), Dr. Ulf Jaeckel (Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety)

16:00

End of the Conference

Moderator: Jonas Pentzien

The invitation to this conference extends to

  • Government officials
  • Representatives from NGOs and international organizations
  • Industry representatives, especially those working with cotton, soy or lithium
  • Applied researchers
  • Press representatives

 

Presentations:

Presentation of Key Results of the Study
Lea Kliem | Institute for Ecological Economy Research
Horst Fehrenbach | Institute for Energy and Environmental Research
Download (PDF, 3,0 MB)

Key Note: Engaging Consumers, Governments and Business for more Sustainable Supply Chains
Charles Arden-Clarke | One Planet Network, United Nations Environment Programme
Download (PDF, 1,3 MB)

Key Note: Strengthening Sustainable Consumption in Germany – What can Policymakers do?
Prof. Dr. Lucia Reisch | Copenhagen Business School
Download (PDF, 4,1 MB)

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