Green Economy in Germany: Drivers, Barriers and Recommendations

The principle of a Green Economy is seen by many as a chance to breathe new life into this concept of economic development, which sees such development as a vehicle of (rather than as an obstacle to) climate change mitigation, environmental stewardship and social justice. However, if it is to become an agenda for action in government, the economy and society, the sometimes ambiguous idea of a Green Economy must be defined in terms of concrete actions, objectives and strategies for implementation.

During the Rio+20 Summit, the governments participating declared that they would, together with key societal stakeholders, develop national policies for a transformation towards Green Economies. The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) took on this challenge: in the framework of its Green Economy Agenda Process, the Ministry invited stakeholders from business, academia, civil society and politics to develop a research agenda which can support the transition to a Green Economy. The results of the Agenda Process were integrated in the further development of the Research for Sustainable Development supporting programme.

adelphi provided support to the BMBF in developing the Green Economy research agenda by means of a study. The study aimed to identify the most important markets and key innovations needed a Green Economy from the perspective of the German industry, also seeking to define areas and needs for action to accelerate the transition towards a Green Economy in Germany and to develop recommendations on topics and focus areas for the Ministry’s future research and innovation policies.