We kindly inform you that, as long as the subject affiliation of our 300.000+ articles is in progress, you might get unsufficient or no results on your third level or second level search. In this case, please broaden your search criteria.
For many years the European Union has been improving the efficient use of energy resources and yet the demand for energy in the EU continues to increase. When Europe belonged to one of the world’s key energy markets with relatively easy access to energy resources, growing energy needs were not seen as a source of concern. Today, however, as the competition for energy resources is intensifying and the global position of the EU energy market is being challenged by growing economies in the developing countries, above all China and India, the EU needs to adopt bold policies to guarantee the sustainable supply of energy.This report argues the EU needs to develop a fully-fledged external energy policy; i.e. a common, coherent, strategic approach that build bridges between the interests and needs of the EU integrated energy market on the one hand and supplier countries on the other.The EU’s external energy policy has two main objectives. The first one is to ensure a sustainable, stable and cost-effective energy supply. The second is to promote energy market integration and regulatory convergence with neighbouring countries (often but not always this supports the achievement of the first objective). However, in order to improve its effectiveness, the EU’s external energy policy needs to be seen in a broader economic and political context. Any progress in energy cooperation with third countries is contingent upon the EU’s general stance and offer to those countries.
More...
Energy poverty has challenged the already socially fragile Macedonia on its way to EU integration. This paper analyzes the state of energy poverty in Macedonia and the policies tackling it in order to draft policy recommendations for their improvement to the respective stakeholders. Tackling energy poverty is important in order to bring the country on a sustainable path.
More...
The year 2011 has all the chances to become a fruitful one for the energy sector of the Republic of Moldova by the fact that this year a very favorable situation is created for building the theme of a sustainable development of the energy sector in the Republic of Moldova. In the form of a new government, it offers the Republic of Moldova a new status and a new motivation to contribute to the increase of the country's energy security and to participate in an energy market based on principles of equity and mutual benefits. Through a consistent approach to the problems in the energy sector, an efficient cooperation between the responsible and targeted structures in this sector and the capitalization of all the opportunities that are created in 2011, the achievements can be truly solid.
More...
The closer the period of signing a new natural gas procurement contract with the Russian Federation approaches, the more current become the historical problems related to the collaboration between SA Moldovagaz and SAD Gazprom. The stake is the same, obtaining a contract as favorable as possible for both parties since 2012. Obtaining such a result for the Republic of Moldova is conditioned by the historical debts that have accumulated to Gazprom. The problem would be much simpler if there were only debts accumulated on the right side of the Dniester, but since the Transnistrian region is in the middle, the situation is even more complicated. The purpose of this policy brief is not to propose and argue solutions for the possibilities of debt settlement but to clearly identify the problems that formed these debts and risk generating new donations to Gazprom.
More...
Some of the animal attacks most publicized in the Romanian media are those by dogs without an owner. The entire issue is covered extensively by the domes¬tic media, with over 12 thousand articles containing the words “dogs without an owner” and almost 25 thousand articles containing the words “street dog.” The situation of street dogs has generated heated debates between animal lovers and those who will see the streets clear of the quadrupeds at any price. The debates are most often restricted to the law¬fulness and morality of the act of ending the life of unclaimed or unadopted dogs, a method which is preferred by authorities and receives generous bud¬gets but has proven ineffective in the medium and long run. While solutions have been sought all these years, the situation has remained almost unchanged – large numbers of dogs in the streets and ineffective authorities.
More...
Foreign Policy Strategies and Decisions // Russia-Ukraine-EU diplomatic front // Obama is mobilizing the world to isolate Russia // 11th YES Summit — finding new meanings // European integration. Ratification of the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement // Energy Diplomacy // Russia’s energy complex as Russia’s weak point from the viewpoint of Russian imperialistic ambitions // Economic Diplomacy // Ukraine improved its position in the Global Competitiveness rankings
More...
Foreign Policy Strategies and Decisions // Alarming signals from Strasbourg and Geneva // Ukraine — Germany: deeds speak louder than words // European policy: Russia is no longer EU’s partner // There will be no Maidan in Hong Kong // Energy Diplomacy // Russia is working out the scenario for further drop in energy prices // Economic Diplomacy // Steel use in Ukraine is expected to be reduced // Ukraine has successfully passed dairy product quality testing
More...
Ukrainian focus // National dialogue in Ukraine: search for the ways of conflict resolution or freezing of the conflict in Ukraine’s East? // European focus // A year after Vilnius: what happens to the Eastern Partnership // Regional and global focus: implications for Ukraine // IMF expects more active reforms from Ukrainian government // Will current innovations in the national energy legislation allow implementing «gas hub» project in Ukraine?
More...
THE CONCEPT OF THE STATE ENERGY POLICY OF UKRATNE THROUGH 2020 (UCEPS draft) // 1. UKRAINE'S FUEL AND ENERGY COMPLEX // 2. THE SYSTEM OF STATE MANAGEMENT OF UKRAINE'S FUEL AND ENERGY COMPLEX // 3. THE STATE ENERGY POLICY OF UKRAINE THROUGH 2020 // - DIVERSIFICATION OF ENERGY SUPPLY AS A NECESSARY PRECONDITION OF UKRAINE'S ENERGY SECURlTY // -INTEGRATION 0F UKRAINE'S FUEL AND ENERGY COMPLEX WITH THE ENERGY SECTOR OF THE EUROPEAN UNION // - AMBASSADORS OF FOREIGN COUNTRIES ON CO-OPEORATION WITH UKRAINE IN THE ENERGY SECTOR // REALITIES AND PROSPECTS OF UKRAINE’S NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE // HOW TO STABILISE THE GAS SECTOR? // ENERGY SECTOR OF UKRAINE: PROBLEMS AND THE WAYS OF THEIR SOLVING // CONTRIBUTION OF SCIENCE TO SOLVING THE PROBLEMS OF UKRAINE'S ENERGY SECTOR
More...
This survey includes an overview of MDG 7, and of the situation in the respective field, by tangential sectors to national targets of MDG 7. Further, we will attempt to assess the contribution that civil society organizations might bring to achieving MDG 7, giving examples of relevant activities to this end. We will reveal the potential of civil society organizations from the perspective of involving in the achievement of national targets of MDG 7. Afterwards, we will analyze the level of private sector development in the fields relevant for MDG 7, as well as its contribution to ensuring a sustainable environment. In that context, we will describe some case studies which might serve as examples for the whole private sector. Finally, we will summarize the contents of the survey and make some recommendations for the efficient involvement of civil society and business entities in achievement of national targets of MDG 7.
More...
The Law on Promoting the Use of Energy from Renewable Sources, which transposes Directive 2009/28/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources, will enter into force at the end of March 2017. The effective application of the respective law is crucial for the Republic of Moldova, considering the limited conventional energy sources, as well as confined energy independence. Thus, Moldova greatly depends on energy import, which over the past years has become uncertain due to tense relations with the Russian Federation and armed conflict in Ukraine. Therefore, the development of renewable energy sources will allow to balance the payments and to strengthen (at least, to a certain extent) the country’s energy security. // The purpose of this document is to scan the renewable energy sector and policies in this field, and to come up with recommendations for effective application of the Law on Promoting the Use of Energy from Renewable Sources.
More...
Air pollution implies a high risk for premature mortality or incidence of illnesses, as proved by epidemiological studies. In the Czech Republic is one of the most critical conditions the Ostrava region, where air pollution limits are consistently exceeded and have negative impacts on health. The article is focused on finding out part of the social costs of three respiratory diseases in the childhood. Contingent method (based on the revealed preferences) values the loss of benefit including pain and the overall reduction in disease-related quality of life in children. By a questionnaire survey, mothers in Ostrava were addressed to determine how much they are willing to pay by their children to prevent one disease per year. The aim of this article is to find out by statistical analysis whether the willingness to pay for avoiding one disease depends on the air quality given by the region of Ostrava. The results showed that the willingness to pay for avoiding one case of nasopharyngitis and one case of acute bronchitis shows differences between these regions. The relationship has not been proved in asthma attacks. The further analysis does not show that willingness to pay increased directly in proportion to the degree of air pollution.
More...
Climate change is arguably the first truly global security challenge in that, according to UN reports, only 11 out of the current 193 UN member states do not currently experience its impact in one form or another. In this sense, the Alliance includes in its policies the risks generated by the stress of climate change and orients its security strategies to take into account the impact of climate change. Continuous information, the approach based on prevention and resilience as well as the responsible determination of the energy independence that can be provided by renewable resources are some of the impactful measures in limiting these changes.
More...
An energy revolution based on renewable sources and energy efficiency is needed not only to accelerate progress and economic development, but also to reduce the emissions that are rapidly warming and transforming our planet. The energy transition is not a one-size-fits-all process. It involves a combination of objectives, tools, policies, technologies, financing and resources. While the destination is common the path to the final goal depends on economic, social, ecological or security circumstances. However, the process must be fair, comprehensive and systemic so that no one is left behind, and international and regional policies and cooperation are essential to facilitate the exchange of experiences and best practices. The energy transition can no longer be limited to small transformative steps. It is time for it to become a transformational, system-overhaul effort based on the rapid expansion and deployment of all available technologies. This is the right time to reassess long-held assumptions and adopt the most appropriate policies and strategies at European Union level. European policies cover a wide range of areas, from trade and competition, to the environment and climate change, transport, energy, education and more. European energy policy aims to ensure the EU's energy security, promote a transition to a low-carbon economy and encourage the use of sustainable energy resources. This involves making decisions about the energy market, energy efficiency, the diversification of energy sources and the promotion of renewable energies.
More...
Over 99% of energy production and consumption in the Arctic comes from fossil fuels. This dependence on fossil fuels triggers a wide range of security and health concerns. Firstly, the dependence of fossil fuels within households has been shown to cause detrimental health effects from respiratory illnesses to cancers – especially targeting women and children. These health concerns bleed into other structural issues from the lack of secure and sound housing to the difficult access to healthcare for remote and urban Arctic communities, especially so in Arctic Canada. Secondly, concerns surrounding the dependence on fossil fuels pose complex and compound risks from environmental security risks to national security risks linking politics with economics with human security. The concept of human security has gained momentum in recent decades – becoming central to global development agendas propelled by international organizations such as the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) – and has framed and complexified the notion of security to become more holistic. In this perspective of holism, complexity itself deserves a center stage in this chapter on energy-based issues in the Arctic. Complexity, in between order and chaos, defines the difficult task ahead of drafting a resilient and sustainable future for the region. Similarly, thinking in systems – to quote the title of Donella H. Meadows’work (2008) – entails the understanding of the ‘what’: defining these issues goes beyond listing elements but flows into an understanding of the “interconnected set of elements that is coherently organized in a way that achieves something. [...] A system is more than the sum of its parts”. These two preliminary definitions of ‘complexity’and ‘system’open a whole world of questions for the topic at hand and relate the Arctic back to the global sphere.
More...
The Arctic region covers approximately 6% of the Earth’s surface. Geographically, about 33% of the region consists of landmass, with the remaining half divided between the Arctic Ocean, including continental shelves shallower than 500 meters (1,640 feet), and the other half comprising oceanic waters deeper than 500 meters. The Arctic region is experiencing one of the most significant impacts of global climate change. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), this polar region, located above the Earth’s northernmost latitude 66°33’N, is considered an area where climate change is primarily looming.
More...
The Arctic region stands out as a region of increasing geopolitical and geostrategic importance in the international power struggle. This region attracts the attention of many countries in terms of the energy resources it harbours and the struggle for sovereignty over the new sea routes that have emerged/continue to emerge due to global warming. Denmark is one of these countries. As one of the influential actors of the Arctic because of its policies, Denmark has geopolitical importance for the region.
More...
El cambio climático se ha convertido en uno de los principales retos que afectan al presente y el futuro de la humanidad. Cada vez existe un mayor consenso en torno a las consecuencias que las alteraciones del clima pueden tener en el ecosistema planetario y sus efectos a nivel económico, social y político. El Programa de Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo (PNUD) advertía en 2019 que “a lo largo del siglo XXI asistiremos a dos cambios radicales: el cambio climático y la transformación tecnológica” (PNUD, 2019, p. 6). Los organismos internacionales y muchos gobiernos nacionales han tomado cuenta los riesgos que comporta el cambio climático y se han implicado crecientemente en la búsqueda de compromisos y estrategias para mitigar y revertir sus efectos (el último ejemplo es la conferencia internacional celebrada en noviembre de 2021 en Glasgow). La Convención Marco de las Naciones Unidas sobre Cambio Climático de 1992, que dio pie a la firma del Protocolo de Kyoto en 1997, y el Acuerdo de París en vigor desde en 2016, son buena muestra de los intentos por situar el cambio climático en el centro de la agenda política internacional (en el año 2007 el PNUD ya dedicó su Informe sobre Desarrollo Humano a las implicaciones del cambio climático, con el título de La lucha contra el cambio climático: Solidaridad frente a un mundo dividido). Al mismo tiempo, se tiene una creciente conciencia y evidencia de que una parte importante de los flujos migratorios actuales están relacionados con los impactos del cambio climático, al actuar éstos como un factor expulsión de población en un número cada vez más amplio de zonas del mundo (Brown, 2008; Carvajal y Pereira, 2009).
More...