Policy Briefs

Participants will be asked to use the knowledge and skills gained during the POLLEN Programme to draft an original and coherent Policy Brief.

Policy Briefs will consist of a concise summary of a particular issue containing up to 4 pages or 1500 words.

It will give balanced information for policymakers and will have an attractive design and may have one or more figures.  

Policy Briefs 2025

• Valentina Vannini – From livestock to algae: Developing the European spirulina sector for sustainable protein
• Vincent Latjes – A toxic barter: EU banned pesticides and non-food crop trade
• Simona Sagone – Balancing Borders and Fairness: A Just CBAM for African LDCs

Policy Briefs 2024

• 1st – Paul Birkner
  How to better protect trees in European cities?
• 2nd – Jana Steffens
  Mow Less, Grow More – From urban Lawns to urban meadows: Enhancing Biodiversity in German Public Parks
• 3rd – Zahra Yousefi
  Sustainable Urban Development: A Regulatory Framework for Environmental Protection in the EU

Policy Briefs 2023

• Jury’s 1st prize – Katarzyna Aleksandra JANCEWICZ
  Raccoon (Procyon lotor): the invasive alien species and a threat to the life and health of EU citizens
• Bella TSACHIDOU
  Anaerobic digestion in the battle for organic waste recycling in Greece: Stop wasting Organic Waste!
• Valerija CIELAVA
  From green Flanders to green Europe

Policy Briefs 2022

• Jury’s 1st prize – Raphael DAHL
  Relocating the textile and fashion industry in the EU: How to drive consumption changes towards local and sustainable goods?
• 2nd ex aequo – Gauthier MARTENS
  Marine Protected Areas in jeopardy: How can the European Commission ensure their effective protection
• 2nd ex aequo – Sarah PETERSMANN
  How to address the nitrate contamination of groundwater in Lower Saxony

Policy Briefs 2021

• Jury’s 1st prize – Marco THALHOFER
  How to make Carbon Pricing in Germany more effective and just
• Alice DECHAMPS
  EU New Climate Targets: Risks associated with the Revision of the LULUCF Regulation
• Bianca SOFIAN
  Illegal logging in Romania – EUTR implementation and urgent actions to be taken

Policy Briefs 2020

• Jury’s 1st prize – Sandra ZIMMERMANN
  Here and no further – Launching a Consensus-based Post-coal Era in the Lusatian Coal Region in Germany
• Theresa LANDWEHR
  Rethinking (German) Bilateral Climate Finance
• Charlotte MULLER
  Sustainable Rural Transport in Germany – Tackling motorized individual transport on the national level

Policy Briefs 2019

• Jury’s 1st prize – Billy-Ray MURAILLE
  Indoor Air is Short of Breath: How Can EU Set a Framework for a Healthy Indoor Air – A Consumer Approach
• Mathilde DE BECKER
  Environmental Impact of the Clothing Industry: Strengthen the Role of the European Union
• Nina KOIVULA
  “The Uneasy Role of Waste Incineration in a Circular EU Economy”

Policy Briefs 2018

• Jury’s 1st prize – Shruti MEHROTA
  “Seaweed: Can it Help Accelerate Global Carbon Capturing Efforts?”
• Evelyn PAREDES
  “The Dead End of our Trash: Plastics in Marine Life”

Policy Briefs 2017

• Jury’s 1st prize – Abdelfeteh BITAT
  “Time for Environmental Regulation to Pave the Way for Eco-Innovation”
• Charlotte JANSSENS
  “Learning from CDM for Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement: Delivering on Sustainable Development”
• Steve BRAEM
  “Tackling Illegal Logging: a Response at the Consumer Level”