Bottom Line

Bike-friendly cities

“It should be normal for James Bond to ride a bike”

The Hanseatic city of Bremen is high on the list of bike-friendly cities around the world, ranking above even Bogotá and Tokyo. But how do you go about turning a car city into a bike city? Michael Glotz-Richter from Bremen’s municipal authority reveals all.

Commuting

A Blessing or a Curse?

More and more people live outside the major urban centres. But how easy is it to reach the inner cities of Europe from the surrounding regions – without a car? A self-test.

Climate Crisis and Pandemic

Saving the Economy with Climate Protection

The year 2020 was characterised by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent economic crisis. As a result we have lost sight of what is probably the greatest crisis of our time: the climate crisis.

An Alternative Development Model

Mexico and the Circular Economy: Challenges and Opportunities

For cities to develop sustainably, it’s essential to have a strategy that enables a future with more equality and responsibility for the environment. What the circular economy is and why it represents a feasible and necessary model for megacities like Mexico City.  

Fighting Against Climate Change

“The Question Remains: Are We too Slow?"

We are in the midst of climate change and must use AI to tackle this challenge, says deputy director of the Stockholm Resilience Centre Victor Galaz. At the same time, AI technologies are used to harm the climate further. How can we find a balance between these poles?

Tunisia

Water Scarcity: The Way Forward in the 21st Century

Water is life – and the motor of development. Since gaining independence in 1956, Tunisia has gone to great lengths to mobilise its water resources in order to meet the country's demand for drinking water and to protect the environment by improving sanitation. But has it done enough?
 

Sustainable Investment

Clean, Green Investment: An Engine of Economic Growth

Green finance is catching on among German institutional and private investors alike, who increasingly want their wealth to be put to socially and environmentally good use. And the range of sustainable investments is growing apace.

City and Country

Home Is Where Your WiFi Is

You read and hear in the media at regular intervals that people are either moving to the country or moving away from it. What is really going on? Is it an urban or a rural exodus? Where are Germans going?

European Green Capital

Green … Greener … Lisbon?

As Europe’s Green Capital 2020, Lisbon has recently been expanding and improving public transport, reducing water and energy consumption, and greening the urban environment. But is that all that is needed to be Europe’s Green Capital?

Climate Change

Carbon Compensation – a Feel-Good Solution?

Carbon offset schemes promise to compensate for the emissions caused by private individuals – as air travellers, for instance – with donations to climate projects. But are they not just a way of salving guilty consciences?  

Sustainability Studies in Germany

From Toxicology to Tourism Development

Would it not be great if we could study how to make the world a better place? Sadly, it is not quite as easy as that. But there are now a number of study programmes in Germany covering sustainability subjects that come fairly close. Here is a selection.
 

Urban Water Management

“Water to go” and a Floating Farm

Cities are growing around the world, and the need for more drinking water is growing right along with them. Here are a few ideas for making water management more sustainable. 

The Sharing Economy

Sharing via App Instead of Owning

Sharing is on the rise. One in five people in Germany already uses a sharing app, and Germany is also a hotspot for app development.