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We do research on Biomass
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We do research on Resources
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We do research on Mobility
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We do research on Nutrition
We do research on Industry & Products
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We do research on Energy

Welcome to ifeu

ifeu researches and advises on all important environmental and sustainability issues worldwide. With over 45 years of experience, it is one of the most important ecologically oriented research institutes in Germany. Our work is characterised by experience, independence, practical relevance and a goal-oriented approach. At present, ifeu has over 120 employees from the fields of natural sciences, engineering and social sciences at its sites in Heidelberg, Berlin and Hamburg.

ifeu News

05/27/2026

Focus on circular construction: 13th specialist symposium highlights pathways to a construction transition

On 21 May 2026, the Baden-Württemberg Ministry for the Environment, Climate and Energy hosted the 13th specialist symposium, ‘Circular Construction – Simple. Reusable. With Recycled Building Materials’, in Stuttgart. The event brought together experts from the fields of research, practice and public administration to discuss key issues relating to the construction transition.

05/13/2026

Heating plans under scrutiny: Building Modernisation Act threatens local heating transition

This week, ifeu and BUND jointly presented our study, “BUND’s Assessment of District Heating Plans: Local Gas Phase-out Needs Safeguards”. An analysis of 38 district heating plans from major German cities shows that the local heating transition is taking shape, with cities predominantly planning to use heat pumps and district heating networks. The use of fossil fuels, on the other hand, is set to decline sharply in the target scenarios. At the same time, it is clear that there are still significant gaps between ambitious targets and binding implementation.

05/04/2026

Closure of the IEER in Washington: the end of a fruitful transatlantic partnership for independent environmental research

In the early 1980s, two pioneers in the critical examination of nuclear power – Arjun Makhijani and Bernd Franke – founded the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (IEER) in the USA to campaign for a sustainable energy future with scientific independence. With the recently announced closure of the IEER, an era of transatlantic environmental research – which also shaped the history of the ifeu – comes to an end.

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Projects

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Standards for Municipal Climate Action Monitoring

Developing harmonized nationwide quality and procedural standards for effective municipal climate action monitoring

Building on the BISKO accounting standard, the project develops nationwide quality and procedural stand-ards for comprehensive monitoring of municipal climate action activities.

eREGENERATE

Resistive heating in structured hydrophobic sorbents for a highly Efficient and fully electrified Direct Air Capture technology

eREGENERATE is advancing a technology to remove CO₂ from the air (DAC) – using structured hydropho-bic materials, innovative regeneration, and intelligent process control.

Overview Report on Paper and Polypropylene

Research on behalf of Giesecke+Devrient GmbH

Giesecke+Devrient (G+D) develops and produces banknotes made of cotton paper, focusing on highly secure and sustainable banknote solutions. With regard to banknote production, ifeu was commissioned to…

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ifeu Newsletter

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ifeu- Podcast

Scientists from ifeu talk to editors from the Berlin communications agency Ahnen&Enkel about current research topics. Only available in German.

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Carbon Calculator

Calculate your personal CO₂ footprint and optimise it for the future. ifeu has created the data basis for the UBA CarbonCalculator and is constantly developing it further.

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New: The electricity application check. This gives you more transparency about the most important electricity consumption in your household and compares it with statistical average values for households of your size. (in German)

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