New Chance for Sustainable Energy Projects

Innovative and ambitious ideas for energy projects that can contribute to achieve the goal of sustainability are abundant. This is evident due to the large amount of qualified applications for WISIONS in the first year.

There have been more than 40 applications in the first SEPS round from all around the world - five projects have been selected for financial support and another three for other support. The submitted project ideas ranged from biomass in developing countries to energy efficient lighting in Europe. What also became clear, however, is that especially in developing and emerging countries the realisation and implementation often fails due to missing expert advice, funds, or political support.

To make a contribution to the implementation of innovative project ideas WISIONS starts a new call for application in 2005 within its field of action SEPS. The "Sustainable Energy Project Support" is fostering promising project ideas in the field of sustainable and efficient energy. It seeks to provide support for the implementation via procurement of practical expert advice, potential financial or other support. The application guideline as well as the selection procedure are based on an ambitious set of criteria to ensure not only the economical and technological feasibility, but at the same time it's sustainable and integrated approach as well as its replicability.

Project applications should be submitted until 1st of June by using the application form.

The initiative WISIONS was launched around one year ago by the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy. It is carried out with the support of the Swiss based foundation ProEvolution. Its objective is to identify promising sustainable energy projects and to combine spreading knowledge of existing examples (in PREP) with promoting and furthering new ideas (in SEPS).

PREP, the Promotion of Resource Efficiency Projects, aims to collect and promote good-practice examples. Up to now the best examples in the issues "Resource efficient construction", "Water and Energy" and "Sustainable tourism" are published in appealing brochures. At present successful implemented and replicable projects of the issue "Sustainable Tourism" are searched, the deadline for submission is end of April.

For more information about WISIONS, the current topics, guidelines for application, and initiative's progress, please visit the website at: www.wisions.net.

Press release by Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy

in the Science Centre North Rhine-Westphalia

Responsible: Prof. Dr. Peter Hennicke, President

Contact: Dorle Riechert, Public Relations

Tel. +49 (0)202 2492-180, Fax +49 (0)202 2492-108

E-mail: pr@wupperinst.org