This event took place in Berlin on 13-14 December 2005 with attendance of 70 experts from around Europe. Aiming to move the Marrakech Process forward by concretising actions in European countries, the participants focused on SCP in the field of energy use, and shared information on ongoing activities and identify priority areas as well as potential gaps in policies and tools.

The background paper provides an outline of the technical and economic potential for making energy consumption sustainable and highlights the policy priorities and challenges to harness the potential. The paper also reviews the current policies and discussions and identifies forthcoming challenges in four areas where working groups were convened in the conference: household energy saving, eco-design and life cycle assessment (LCA), renewable energy, and public procurement.

The paper was prepared by CSCP in collaboration with the Wuppertal Institute.