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China's photovoltaics sector provides an interesting case to examine, if and how the country is aiming at innovation leadership after having established itself as the global manufacturing leader. Due to the dominance of Chinese companies in the global PV market, their innovation and production decisions have become crucially important for the global transition towards renewable energy. Another aspect of PV technology is that technological progress has driven the develop-ment of various types of PV cells, which can be categorised in three different technology generations. The functional analysis of the technological innovation system for PV in China conducted in this paper shows, that the government has indeed strengthened indigenous innovation efforts, which has resulted in a rapid rise of academic publications and to a lesser extent of patents for PV technology. A disaggregated analysis of transnational PV patents demonstrates that techno-logical catching-up of China picked up speed in the period between 2008 and 2010 and takes place in all three technology generations. However. technological catch-up has been most successful in the third generation of PV cells, which is still at an experimental stage and predominantly conducted at public research entities. Overall, China's PV sector seems to be still quite far from attaining global innovation leadership, which is mainly due to the relatively low engagement of the corporate sector. However, as the first generation of PV currently dominates the world market and is technologically mature, this will probably not threaten industrial leadership in the short to medium term.

China's photovoltaics sector provides an interesting case to examine, if and how the country is aiming at innovation leadership after having established itself as the global manufacturing leader. Due to the dominance of Chinese companies in the global PV market, their innovation and production decisions have become crucially important for the global transition towards renewable energy. Another aspect of PV technology is that technological progress has driven the development of various types of PV cells, which can be categorised in three different technology generations. The functional analysis of the technological innovation system for PV in China conducted in this paper shows, that the government has indeed strengthened indigenous innovation efforts, which has resulted in a rapid rise of academic publications and to a lesser extent of patents for PV technology. A disaggregated analysis of transnational PV patents demonstrates that techno-logical catching-up of China picked up speed in the period between 2008 and 2010 and takes place in all three technology generations. However. technological catch-up has been most successful in the third generation of PV cells, which is still at an experimental stage and predominantly conducted at public research entities. Overall, China's PV sector seems to be still quite far from attaining global innovation leadership, which is mainly due to the relatively low engagement of the corporate sector. However, as the first generation of PV currently dominates the world market and is technologically mature, this will probably not threaten industrial leadership in the short to medium term.

Bei der Gestaltung der Rohstoffpolitik kommt es darauf an, harmonische Zielbeziehungen zu identifizieren und Zielkonflikte zu berücksichtigen. Die interna tionale technische Zusammenarbeit im Bereich der Abfall- und Recyclingtechnologie bietet die Chance, sowohl ökologische als auch wirtschafts- und entwicklungspolitische Ziele zu verfolgen.

The paper asks how the modal shift from road to rail in the freight sector is supported by institutional change. Following North (1990), institutions are understood as the 'rules of the game' in the rail freight sector. Based on the literature on institutional change, four different perspectives and mechanisms can be discerned: institutional design, collective action, institutional adaptation, and institutional diffusion. Each of these perspectives examines the situation in the German rail freight sector from a different angle. Based on this analysis, processes of institutional change and their potential impact on modal shift are discussed. Following the railway reform, new domestic and foreign competitors of DB Cargo have entered the rail freight market with business models tailored to promising segments. At the same time, this competition has triggered a transformative organisational change initiative at DB Cargo, which is currently in the process of implementation. Even though the success of this initiatives is highly uncertain, in total, the described changes are likely to result in a higher competitiveness of the sector and a stronger orientation to customer needs. Furthermore, the road freight sector has increasingly come under political pressure due to its rising GHG emissions and rail transport is increasingly seen as a viable alternative. In this respect, the recently published Master Plan for Rail Transport acts on many requirements of the railway sector and foresees a reduction of financial burdens, capacity extensions, and technological innovation. Overall, however, the analysis suggests that the current rate of institutional change may not be sufficient to cause the far-reaching changes necessary for a large scale transformation of the modal split of freight transport.

Existing research on the international transfer of climate technologies has so far largely concentrated on the transfer of mitigation technologies. However, the UNFCCC's decision to adopt the Cancún Adaptation Framework reflects the increasing political priority that is given to climate adaptation in general, as well as to the development and transfer of adaptation technologies. Given this situation, the objective of this case study is to explore the specific drivers and barriers pertaining to the international transfer and diffusion of membrane bio-reactors (MBR), a water treatment technology that enables the reclamation and reuse of water and helps to reduce the negative impacts of climate change. While this technology has largely been developed in industrialized countries, many of those countries that are most vulnerable to draughts and water scarcity belong to the developing world. Therefore, this case study analyzes the international transfer of MBR technology to two emerging economies, Brazil and China. Methodologically, the case study combines quantitative evidence, e.g. trade and patent data, with qualitative evidence gained from the analysis of the relevant legal and political framework in Brazil and China, as well as from insights gained from eight personal interviews with experts representing MBR companies and policy makers.

Existing research on the international transfer of climate technologies has so far largely concentrated on the transfer of mitigation technologies. However, the UNFCCC's decision to adopt the Cancún Adaptation Framework reflects the increasing political priority that is given to climate adaptation in general, as well as to the development and transfer of adaptation technologies. Given this situation, the objective of this case study is to explore the specific drivers and barriers pertaining to the international transfer and diffusion of membrane bio-reactors (MBR), a water treatment technology that enables the reclamation and reuse of water and helps to reduce the negative impacts of climate change. While this technology has largely been developed in industrialized countries, many of those countries that are most vulnerable to draughts and water scarcity belong to the developing world. Therefore, this case study analyzes the international transfer of MBR technology to two emerging economies, Brazil and China. Methodologically, the case study combines quantitative evidence, e.g. trade and patent data, with qualitative evidence gained from the analysis of the relevant legal and political framework in Brazil and China, as well as from insights gained from eight personal interviews with experts representing MBR companies and policy makers.

The paper asks how the modal shift from road to rail in the freight sector is sup-ported by institutional change. Following North (1990), institutions are understood as the "rules of the game" in the rail freight sector. Based on the literature on institutional change, four different perspectives and mechanisms can be dis-cerned: institutional design, collective action, institutional adaptation, and institu-tional diffusion. Each of these perspectives examines the situation in the German rail freight sector from a different angle. Based on this analysis, processes of institutional change and their potential impact on modal shift are discussed. Fol-lowing the railway reform, new domestic and foreign competitors of DB Cargo have entered the rail freight market with business models tailored to promising segments. At the same time, this competition has triggered a transformative or-ganisational change initiative at DB Cargo, which is currently in the process of implementation. Even though the success of this initiatives is highly uncertain, in total, the described changes are likely to result in a higher competitiveness of the sector and a stronger orientation to customer needs. Furthermore, the road freight sector has increasingly come under political pressure due to its rising GHG emissions and rail transport is increasingly seen as a viable alternative. In this respect, the recently published Master Plan for Rail Transport acts on many re-quirements of the railway sector and foresees a reduction of financial burdens, capacity extensions, and technological innovation. Overall, however, the analysis suggests that the current rate of institutional change may not be sufficient to cause the far-reaching changes necessary for a large scale transformation of the modal split of freight transport. ; Working Paper 3 of the study LowCarb-RFC - European Rail Freight Corridors going Carbon Neutral.