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How can tax systems create the right incentives for a sustainable economy and society while ensuring that government spending is sufficiently covered? These are some of the questions addressed at this year’s Annual Conference of the Leibniz ScienceCampus MannheimTaxation. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the conference, which attracted over 260 participants from all over the world, was held exclusively online for the first time.

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ZEW Mannheim is pleased to announce this year’s PhD workshop in co-operation with Copenhagen Business School, the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Ghent University, KU Leuven, the University of Luxembourg, and the Technical University Munich on 10 and 11 December 2020. The workshop offers young researchers the opportunity to discuss their work with experienced scholars and fellow students. It is particularly aimed at PhD students working in the fields of innovation, entrepreneurship and competition economics.

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On 25 September 2020, ZEW Mannheim bid farewell to its long-standing head of press relations, Gunter Grittmann, as he leaves for retirement. Since 1997 Gunter Grittmann has significantly shaped the institute’s communication and introduced countless new formats.

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According to information provided by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the coronavirus contact-tracing app has been downloaded more than 18 million times. In light of the rise in infection rates, there is hope that the app will facilitate the tracking of chains of infection in the cold winter months ahead and that it will help to control outbreaks of the virus.

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ZEW Mannheim is pleased to announce a two-day conference on ageing and financial markets on 11 and 12 February 2021. The conference provides a stimulating environment for in-depth debates on the effects of demographic change on financial markets and their various players, on the policy implications of recent research, and on new research questions arising from policy responses. Keynotes will be given by Professor Monika Buetler, University of St. Gallen in Switzerland and Professor Michael Haliassos, Goethe University Frankfurt am Main.

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The Mannheim Centre for Competition and Innovation (MaCCI), a joint initiative of ZEW Mannheim and the University of Mannheim, is pleased to announce its 2021 annual conference on 11 and 12 March 2021. The conference provides a platform for exchange and discussion on topics in competition- and innovation-related research. Researchers are invited to submit papers from all fields of competition law and economics. Theoretical and empirical papers as well as case studies are welcome. We especially encourage legal experts to submit contributions with a focus on EU competition law and/or comparative competition law. Please submit full papers in PDF format to MacciAnnual2021@zew.de no later than 30 November 2020.

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Accompanied by the weekly protests from the Fridays for Future movement, the German government debated various climate policy instruments and measures within the scope of its so-called “Climate Cabinet” in 2019. The final result was the climate package, a compromise that evoked both praise as well as strong criticism in the public discussion. Students at the University of Mannheim got to know which precise balance of interests, conflicting goals, strategies, and political effects should be taken into account when developing an effective climate policy on a national scale during the “Climate Cabinet” simulation game at ZEW Mannheim on 10 October 2020.

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Within the space of a few days in September, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and German economic minister Peter Altmaier both publicly called for the creation of a climate-neutral economy by 2050. Each of their proposed initiatives focuses on augmenting CO2 reductions. But the success of European and German climate policies will depend on more than meeting climate targets alone.

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This year, the grand final of the YES! high school student competition was held digitally from 21 to 23 September 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. This did, however, not break the spirit of the YES! competition; quite the contrary, the students were highly motivated to present their innovative ideas and discuss them with economic experts, turning this year’s grand finale into a special event despite not being physically present. With their proposal for a procedure to effectively allocate childcare places, the student team mentored by ZEW Mannheim took the second place.

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The European Green Deal is an ambitious climate action plan by the European Union. Its implementation leaves a number of questions unanswered. During the European Evening at ZEW Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg’s Minister of Science, Theresia Bauer, former EU Commissioner, Günther H. Oettinger, as well as the director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Ottmar Edenhofer, and president of ZEW, Achim Wambach, discussed what exactly is needed in order for Europe to become carbon neutral by 2050. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, an exclusive group of participants comprising 30 guests was permitted to attend the event in person. Individuals who were interested in the event, but were not able to physically attend, were still able to follow the opening ceremony of the closure of the SEEK research programme via a live stream from their screens at home. Journalist Johannes Pennekamp moderated the panel discussion at the event.

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