Ambitious Targets Research Articles

A storyline approach: integrating comprehensive, interdisciplinary research results to create narratives – in the context of the net-zero target in Germany

With the amendment to the German Climate Change Act in 2021, the Federal Government of Germany has set the target to become greenhouse gas neutral by 2045. Reaching this ambitious target requires multisectoral efforts, which in turn calls for interdisciplinary collaboration: the Net-Zero-2050 project of the Helmholtz Climate Initiative serves as an example of successful, interdisciplinary collaboration with the aim of producing valuable recommendations for action to achieve net-zero CO2 emissions in Germany. To this end, we applied an interdisciplinary approach to combining comprehensive research results from ten German national research centers in the context of carbon neutrality in Germany. In this paper, we present our approach and the method behind the interdisciplinary storylines development, which enabled us to create a common framework between different carbon dioxide removal and avoidance methods and the bigger carbon neutrality context. Thus, the research findings are aggregated into narratives: the two complementary storylines focus on technologies for net-zero CO2 emissions and on different framing conditions for implementing net-zero CO2 measures. Moreover, we outline the Net-Zero-2050 results emerging from the two storylines by presenting the resulting narratives in the context of carbon neutrality in Germany. Aiming at creating insights into how complementary and related expertise can be combined in teams across disciplines, we conclude with the project’s lessons learned. This paper sheds light on how to facilitate cooperation between different science disciplines with the purpose of preparing joint research results that can be communicated to a specific audience. Additionally, it provides further evidence that interdisciplinary and diverse research teams are an essential factor for defining solution spaces for complex, interdisciplinary problems.

Scaling models for Regreening Africa: enhancing agroecological integration through smallholders’ assets and agency in Kenya

Urgent action is needed to address climate change, land degradation, and biodiversity loss. The Regreening Africa project (2017–2023), recently recognized as a UN World Restoration Flagship, aimed to reverse land degradation over large areas of land for the triple benefit of people, biodiversity, and climate in eight African countries. Based on projections and early lessons learned, the project sought to identify sustainable scaling models to achieve its ambitious targets. The so-called “Asset-Based Community-driven Development (ABCD) in Regreening” project aimed to demonstrate the positive contribution of deliberate community engagement and co-design. The project introduced ABCD sessions to 30 purposively selected community groups in the Regreening intensification sites in western Kenya. ABCD combines a unique set of framings, methods, and processes that focus on people’s assets and agency, and emphasizes the importance of their attitudes toward self and others for sustainable behavior change. To evidence that ABCD intrinsically contributes to sustainable adoption and scaling of Regreening practices, the project developed the F-ACT+ tool to assess the alignment between ABCD and agroecological practices, and collected baseline and endline data from 300 project and 300 non-project participants. Results showed accelerated agroecological integration among ABCD project participants. ABCD participants showed significant improvements in nine agroecological principles and eight system components, particularly in the economic diversification, social values and diets, and knowledge co-creation principles, as well as in the pest and disease, household, and value chain system components. Summary ATT between ABCD and non-ABCD respondents was positive and significant in 10 principles and eight system components. The results support the synergistic contribution of ABCD to projects targeting sustainable behavior change at the individual and collective levels. Due to its focus on outcomes, this study provided limited insight into the specific mechanisms of ABCD, which are the subject of a separate publication on parallel theory-based contribution analysis work.

Corporate social responsibility and energy efficiency: Empirical evidence from the manufacturing sector of India

AbstractThe strategic business firm manages today's profitability and tomorrow's sustainability to achieve a comparative advantage in the emerging market economy. Considering India's ambitious emission reduction target and rapid economic development, this study explores the potential relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the energy efficiency of manufacturing firms in India. Using firm‐level data, the panel fixed effects model shows that CSR negatively explains energy intensity (EI). We observed a consistent negative relationship between CSR and EI for all models, with and without controlled firm‐specific variables. Firms that manufacture chemical and chemical products, pharmaceuticals, medical chemicals and botanical products are energy intensive without CSR; however, CSR activities helped these firms become energy efficient. Our result confirms that voluntary CSR is less efficient than mandatory CSR in contributing to environmental and energy‐related indicators at the firm level. Our empirical results indicate several policy implications: (1) CSR should also focus on sustainable business models related to energy efficiency and reduction in carbon emissions; (2) firms should be encouraged to use CSR related to environmentally friendly innovations. We conclude that CSR spending and environmental expenses will increase energy efficiency at the firm level, which will help achieve net‐zero targets and sustainable industrial development.

Downscaling EU bioeconomy policy for national implementation

This paper examines how EU bioeconomy strategies are adapted and implemented at the national level, using Ireland as a case study. Through the application of a Narrative Policy Framework, this study analyses how national bioeconomy policy aligns with EU objectives and how such policy addresses institutional capacity, policy coherence, and sustainable development. The findings reveal a significant misalignment between the EU's ambitious bioeconomy targets and the realities of implementation at the national level. It highlights how primary industries are often underrepresented in policy-making processes, yet are expected to meet high innovation standards without evidence of adequate support. The paper highlights gaps in governance mechanisms, partnership models, and sustainability approaches, particularly in addressing the socio-economic dimensions of sustainability. These gaps risk perpetuating existing inequalities and failing to meet sustainability targets. The research provides a critical analysis of the disconnect between EU bioeconomy policy aspirations and national-level implementation, offering insights into the structural barriers that hinder effective policy transposition. The study calls for more tailored policy support, clearer governance frameworks, and deeper engagement with local stakeholders to ensure the bioeconomy transition is both inclusive and sustainable. Future research is recommended to explore cross-national comparisons to improve the adaptability and implementation of bioeconomy policies across the EU.

Mechanisms of international economic cooperation to support the global energy transition: ways to improve

The global energy transition is a complex process and requires deep international economic cooperation and joint efforts to achieve sustainable development. Effective interaction between countries, financial institutions and the private sector is essential to ensure sufficient investment in renewable energy and technological innovation. International financial mechanisms, such as green bonds, can significantly contribute to accelerating this process, but they must ensure access to resources for all participants, especially developing countries. Reforming the international financial system and developing new instruments for attracting private capital is an important step towards reducing risks and increasing the investment attractiveness of renewable energy projects. Removing barriers to investment in countries with unstable economies through the development of technical assistance programs and financial guarantees is also an important condition for success. The energy transition can only be successfully realized through a concerted international effort involving both developed and developing countries. A sustainable energy future and ambitious climate change targets can only be achieved through global cooperation, innovative financial solutions and technology sharing.

Value-driven Contention in China: Forms, Tactics and State Responses

Abstract This research challenges the conventional wisdom that value-driven protests in China are exceedingly rare and face harsh state repression. Drawing on a hand-coded, multi-source dataset of over 3,100 protests in three Chinese megacities from 2014 to 2016, we identify 67 protests that reveal a hitherto unknown underbelly of everyday, value-driven contention. Qualitatively, we identify three main forms of contentious performances. Quantitatively, we show how value-driven protesters combine non-disruptive tactics with ambitious targets and virtually never extract concessions. Surprisingly, we find that such protests are less often policed and repressed than other protests. They are also never met with violence from non-state actors. We provide three interpretations for the counter-intuitive finding on repression. This study shows that the Chinese state coexists with a non-negligible amount of explicitly regime-critical contention. It adopts a containment strategy, tolerating a certain extent of value-driven performances when the risk of spill-over into wider society is limited.

Perspectives Toward an Integrative Structural Biology Pipeline With Atomic Force Microscopy TopographicImages.

After the recent double revolutions in structural biology, which include the use of direct detectors for cryo-electron microscopy resulting in a significant improvement in the expected resolution of large macromolecule structures, and the advent of AlphaFold which allows for near-accurate prediction of any protein structures, the field of structural biology is now pursuing more ambitious targets, including several MDa assemblies. But complex target systems cannot be tackled using a single biophysical technique. The field of integrative structural biology has emerged as a global solution. The aim is to integrate data from multiple complementary techniques to produce a final three-dimensional model that cannot be obtained from any single technique. The absence of atomic force microscopy data from integrative structural biology platforms is not necessarily due to its nm resolution, as opposed to Å resolution for x-ray crystallography, nuclear magnetic resonance, or electron microscopy. Rather a significant issue was that the AFM topographic data lacked interpretability. Fortunately, with the introduction of the AFM-Assembly pipeline and other similar tools, it is now possible to integrate AFM topographic data into integrative modeling platforms. The advantages of single molecule techniques, such as AFM, include the ability to confirm experimentally any assembled molecular models or to produce alternative conformations that mimic the inherent flexibility of large proteins or complexes. The review begins with a brief overview of the historical developments of AFM data in structural biology, followed by an examination of the strengths and limitations of AFM imaging, which have hindered its integration into modern modeling platforms. This review discusses the correction and improvement of AFM topographic images, as well as the principles behind the AFM-Assembly pipeline. It also presents and discusses a series of challenges that need to be addressed in order to improve the incorporation of AFM data into integrative modeling platform.

Cap-and-trade under a dual-channel setting in the presence of information asymmetry

Cap-and-trade, a widely used carbon regulation policy, encourages firms to adopt carbon abatement technologies to reduce emissions. Traditional supply-chain literature on this policy assumes symmetrical information, overlooking the fact that carbon abatement efforts and costs are often private and vary significantly across geographies, industries, and pollutants. In this paper we explore a dual-channel setting involving a manufacturer and a retailer, where the manufacturer, subject to cap-and-trade regulations, has undisclosed information about its carbon abatement costs. Our findings reveal that high abatement costs can paradoxically benefit the manufacturer, the environment, consumers, and overall social welfare. Our result also cautions that a higher carbon trading price (e.g., due to more ambitious emission reduction targets) can disincentivize the manufacturer from investing in carbon abatement. Moreover, a higher production cost, while resulting in lower market output, can increase pollution generation. We contribute the following to the practitioner debate about the impact of carbon policies: for an industry with a large market size, our findings lend support to governments to implement a cap-and-trade policy, because the manufacturer, customers and social welfare can be better off under a cap-and-trade policy than under a tax policy or no carbon policy. Additionally, we suggest that in such industries, governments need not enforce information transparency within the supply chain.

Evaluating constraints on offshore wind farm installation across the Taiwan Strait by exploring the influence of El Niño-Southern Oscillation on weather window assessment

The transition to renewable energy sources, such as offshore wind farms, is essential in mitigating climate change. Taiwan has set ambitious targets to harness wind energy from the Taiwan Strait, but offshore wind farm installations are highly dependent on weather conditions, particularly wind speeds. This study examines the relationship between the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and offshore wind farm installation by assessing weather windows—periods with wind speeds below 12 meters per second at a height of 100 meters for at least 12 hours. Our analysis shows that during La Niña years, the number of feasible weather windows decreases by up to 40%, particularly between October and June, compared to neutral and El Niño years. This decrease can be as high as fourfold in December, significantly impacting installation schedules. Seasonal variations are also notable, with wind speeds exceeding 12 m/s in winter 66.4% of the time, compared to 29.4% in spring, making spring and summer the most favorable periods for installation. However, even during these favorable seasons, La Niña years can bring higher wind speeds, necessitating careful planning. These results underscore the importance of integrating ENSO forecasts into project planning to avoid installation delays and optimize installation timelines. By leveraging seasonal and interannual climate variability predictions, decision-makers can improve the resilience of offshore wind farm projects and ensure efficient energy transition strategies.

Enhancing solar energy systems: The role of computational and automation techniques in achieving net zero by 2050

This review aims to show how computational and automation can be applied to optimize the solar power system toward net-zero emissions in 2050. It emphasizes the power of data analytics, machine learning and automated systems for optimizing business models and measuring the performance of solar technology. The role of solar power in decarbonizing our energy needs and lowering carbon emissions is discussed along the global climate agenda. It also discusses novel uses such as self-teaching robots for solar panel inspection and automated manufacturing to increase the efficiency and sustainability of solar power generation. Additionally, it addresses the need for sophisticated research tools such as computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and finite element analysis (FEA) to create new technologies in the solar market and ultimately meet the ambitious renewable energy targets of 2050.

Future photovoltaic potential in India: navigating the interplay between air pollution control and climate change mitigation

Abstract India has set ambitious solar energy targets to meet its climate commitments. However, climate change, already evident in the country, poses significant challenges to solar power generation. Therefore, assessing the impact of climate change on future photovoltaic potential in India is essential. This study evaluates the mid-century (2041-2050) solar photovoltaic potential across Indian power grids using CMIP6 models under two scenarios: SSP2-4.5 (moderate climate action with intermediate air pollution) and SSP5-8.5 (weak climate action with strong air pollution control). The results indicate that the nationally averaged photovoltaic potential is projected to decrease by -2.3±0.6% (SSP5-8.5) to -3.3±0.9% (SSP2-4.5) compared to the 1985-2014 baseline, primarily due to reduced radiation and increased temperatures. Additionally, cell temperatures are expected to rise by 1.5±0.13°C (SSP2-4.5) to 2±0.11°C (SSP5-8.5), leading to efficiency losses and additional 18±5 days under SSP2-4.5 (26±3 days under SSP5-8.5) of efficiency de-rating, particularly in solar-rich regions. This translates to a loss of 600±160 GWh under SSP2-4.5 and 840±100 GWh under SSP5-8.5, based on the solar generation status of 2023-24. Overall, SSP5-8.5 projects a smaller reduction in photovoltaic potential, it also predicts greater temperature-induced efficiency losses compared to SSP2-4.5, due to aerosol direct effect and weak climate action. Finally, this assessment highlights the need for combined climate and pollution mitigation efforts to boost India’s photovoltaic potential and secure a sustainable, resilient energy future.

Energy Consumption, Emission, Transportation Sector in Malaysia: Review on Malaysia’s Road Transport

Transportation is a major challenge for energy conservation, with road transport in Malaysia being a significant contributor to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In Malaysia, traditional fossil fuels such as gasoline and diesel dominate the transportation sector, which has become the second-largest source of GHG emissions, accounting for 20% in 2014. This increase in CO2 emissions, driven by rising vehicle ownership and economic growth, underscores the urgent need for effective emission reduction strategies. The rapid growth in road transportation in Malaysia is linked to socioeconomic factors, including rising incomes and urbanization, leading to higher energy consumption and pollution. Data indicates a significant increase in vehicle registrations from 1990 to 2018, with motorcars and motorcycles being the most common. This growth, fueled by subsidies and decentralization, has exacerbated the sector’s environmental impact. The Green Technology Master Plan Malaysia 2017–2040 aims to address these issues by setting ambitious targets to enhance renewable energy, improve energy efficiency, and promote eco-friendly fuels. Key strategies include expanding public transportation, increasing the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), and introducing alternative fuels like hydrogen. Malaysia has substantial potential to reduce CO2 emissions through initiatives such as expanding EV infrastructure, promoting natural gas vehicles, and improving public transit. Effective implementation of these strategies can significantly lower the transportation sector’s carbon footprint, contributing to a more sustainable future.

Illicit Resilience: Revisiting Political Ecologies of Conservation Noncompliance in the Context of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework

Over the past several decades, the spatial extent of national parks, forest reserves, and other protected areas has expanded rapidly, encompassing more than 16 percent of the Earth’s terrestrial and inland water area in 2024. This expansion of protected areas has often led to population displacements and heightened restrictions on access to land and natural resources for indigenous peoples and other local communities, at times precipitating various conflicts, contestations, and broader forms of noncompliance with conservation regulations. Despite ongoing challenges in resolving trade-offs between conservation and livelihood objectives, the recently established Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) seeks to achieve even more ambitious conservation targets. These include GBF Target 3—sometimes referred to as the “30 × 30” target—of encompassing 30 percent of all terrestrial and marine ecosystems in protected areas or other effective area-based conservation measures by 2030. The GBF’s vision for achieving Target 3 implicitly assumes, however, that widespread challenges related to noncompliance in conservation governance can largely be resolved in their present manifestation(s), and prevented from reemerging as the scale of the global conservation estate increases. Seeking to deepen our understanding of the emergence and recurrence of illicit or otherwise non-rule-complying behaviors in everyday practices of conservation governance, we draw on a case study of the Manas Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO Man and Biosphere Reserve in the India-Bhutan borderlands region, northeastern India. Highlighting key findings from this case study, we foreground the concept of illicit resilience to encompass a suite of informal factors and dynamics that lead to the persistence of de facto land uses and management regimes in ways that often strikingly diverge from de jure prescriptions for resource conservation within protected areas. These dynamics include (1) long-term insurgency and political unrest; (2) collusive corruption, patronage, and local politics; and (3) elite-driven processes of informal resettlement and subsequent occupation of forestland. In short, we argue that a deeper understanding of such forms of illicit resilience and their underlying drivers will be crucial for more accurately conceptualizing both feasibility constraints on, and socioenvironmental justice implications of, efforts to rapidly upscale the spatial remit of conservation areas by 2030 and beyond.

Coordinating the energy transition: Electrifying transportation in California and Germany

California and Germany share ambitious emission reduction targets. Yet California is ahead of Germany in electrifying transportation by several metrics, including the number of public charging stations. We show that variation in the politics of coordination in California and Germany explains the different outcomes. Transforming energy systems requires coordination across various complementary technologies and infrastructures—here between the supply of electric vehicles and the buildout of charging stations. In California, a strong electrification coalition emerged across automakers selling electric vehicles as well as utilities and third-party firms providing charging infrastructure. Power market rules made capital investments for charging infrastructure instantly profitable for California monopoly utilities. By contrast, in Germany's liberalized power market, investing in capital-intensive charging infrastructure was not profitable for electric utilities. As a result, utilities did not emerge as a political force in the electrification coalition. Instead, utilities and automakers were in gridlock, failing to coordinate electric vehicle rollout and public charging station buildout. Our findings highlight the limits of business-led coordination, raising the question which institutions help address coordination failures in clean energy transitions.

Buddy4Study: Technology-Driven CSR Initiative

Buddy4Study, under the leadership of Burnwal, aimed to extend its reach to thirty million students across India, mainly targeting those in remote and underserved regions. Recognizing the challenges of reaching such a vast and diverse population, Burnwal enlisted the expertise of Mr Gitesh Sharma to develop a strategic plan. Sharma’s approach involved leveraging traditional and digital media to maximize visibility, including newspapers, television, radio and internet marketing. He also proposed innovative grassroots initiatives, such as engaging MBA students in internship programmes to lead village educational awareness campaigns. Additionally, Sharma recommended forming partnerships with NGOs to further amplify these efforts in rural areas, where access to educational resources is often limited. Digital marketing was identified as a key tool, focusing on platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn and on mobile-based ads to reach a broader student audience. Sharma also emphasized the importance of meticulously planned digital platforms—such as mobile apps and websites—that offer clear, detailed guidance for scholarship applicants. Burnwal considered whether these strategies would effectively help Buddy4Study reach its ambitious target and impact the educational landscape in India.

Enhancing freight train delay prediction with simulation‐assisted machine learning

AbstractBoosting the rail freight modal share is an ambitious target in Europe and North America. Yards, where freight trains are arranged, can be crucial in realizing this target by reliable dispatching to the network. This paper predicts freight train departures by developing a simulation‐assisted machine learning model with two concepts: general (adding all predictors at once) and step‐wise (adding predictors as they become available in sub‐yard operations) for hump yards with the conventional layout to provide a generalized model for European and North American contexts. The developed model is a decision tree algorithm, validated via 10‐fold cross‐validation. The model's performance on three data sets—a real‐world European yard, a baseline simulation, and an ultimate randomness simulation for a comparable North American yard—shows a respective of 0.90, 0.87, and 0.70. Step‐wise inclusion of the predictors results differently for the real‐world and simulation data. The global feature importance highlights maximum planned length, departure weekday, the number of arriving trains, and minimum arrival deviation as key predictors for the real‐world data. For the simulation data, the most significant predictors are departure yard predictors, the number of arriving trains, and the maximum hump duration. Additionally, utilization rates—except for the receiving yard—enhance the predictions.

Farmers’ adoption of organic agriculture—a systematic global literature review

Abstract Policymakers worldwide set ambitious targets to increase the share of organic farming. We conduct a global, systematic literature review to synthesise evidence on the adoption of organic farming and support policymakers and food-value chain actors in reaching policy goals. First, we map the existing research and identify substantial gaps regarding the research focus, methodology and geographical coverage. Second, using a conceptual framework of the farmers’ adoption process, we provide an overview of evidence-based recommendations to scale organic adoption. Finally, using regression analysis, we show that especially the organic market maturity and the level of agricultural productivity matter for the type of recommended measures.

Take a hike: Spatializing allemannsretten and transportation accessibility for outdoor recreation in the Greater Stavanger Region, Norway

ABSTRACT A special connection between people and their environment is legally recognized in Norway as Allemannsretten, the right to enjoy a large part of Norwegian nature. Scholarship on leisure mobility, spatial planning, and transport geography recognizes the intrinsic value of this spatial connection. As people travel for outdoor recreation, equitable access to recreation is a goal for just transport systems and must be achieved as these systems are digitalized and electrified for low-carbon transitions. The aim of the article is to identify the impact of transportation accessibility on outdoor recreation habits in the Greater Stavanger Region, Norway’s third-largest metropolitan region. With car-centric development since the 1970s and ambitious automobility-reduction targets, transportation accessibility for outdoor recreation is a key indicator of challenges to overcome in mobility transitions, yet features marginally in public debate. In focusing on popular outdoor day trips and based on multisited interviews with both car owners and non-owners, the authors identify oversights in accessibility, spatializing the issue of local destinations in relation to urban transport transition. They conclude that policymakers must address specific gaps to make transport systems desirable and inclusive, and that a spatial lens can be used to problematize and advance just low-carbon transitions.

Official development finance in solid waste management reveals insufficient resources for tackling plastic pollution: A global analysis of two decades of data

Providing effective solid waste and resources management (SWM) is essential to tackle plastics pollution, reduce carbon emissions and local air pollution from open burning, avoid disease spreading and enable circularity. Official development finance (ODF) is vital in providing relevant infrastructure and capacity development. We developed a novel standardised methodology to analyse OECD ODF data and applied it to 2003–2021, offering insights on the scale, flows and changes in SWM ODF. Despite an 8-fold increase, SWM-focused ODF is still very low, representing just 0.41 % of all ODF; and an order of magnitude less than water and sanitation ODF. Low-income countries received only 8 % of SWM ODF. Total commitments in 2021 were ca. 1.8 Billion USD - significantly short of the >30 Billion USD investment estimated as necessary for substantially reducing plastics pollution. The multi-lateral environmental agreement under negotiation (‘Plastics Treaty) needs to set ambitious targets for ODF and wider international co-operation.

Simultaneous Energy Optimization of Heating Systems by Multi-Zone Predictive Control—Application to a Residential Building

Climate change has made energy management a global priority. In France, the Grenelle Environment has set very ambitious progress targets for positive-energy buildings, particularly in terms of reducing and managing energy consumption. However, effective energy management in multi-zone buildings presents significant challenges, particularly when considering the inter-zone dynamics and heat transfer. This study examines multi-zone heating control, using a data-driven model for predictive indoor temperature modeling in intelligent buildings taking into account the influence of interconnected adjacent zones. The research methodology uses dynamic thermal simulation, parallel predictive models based on multiple linear regressions, and a multi-objective non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II (NSGA-II) for the optimization process, which evaluates various generated heating strategies. This research introduces an approach to improve building energy efficiency by considering inter-zone dynamics and reducing heating-related energy consumption compared to a conventional heating strategy. By applying this model predictive control on a simulated case, a reduction in energy consumption due to heating is observed while respecting thermal comfort. This work contributes by implementing a method that independently controls temperatures in different building zones simultaneously while applying distinct constraints to each zone. This approach empowers occupants to manage heating consumption based on their preferences, ensuring personalized comfort. In addition, a comparison was made using a model that did not account for inter-zone interactions. This comparison demonstrates that incorporating these interactions into the predictive model enhances the effectiveness of the model predictive control approach. The multi-zone approach was also validated experimentally by using real experimental data, demonstrating significant reductions in energy consumption.