By 2030 the sales of electric vehicles (EV) are set to increase 6 to 30 folds compared to the levels of 2019 thereby leading to an increase of discarded EV batteries. This creates a challenge to sustainably handle the waste by repurpose and recycling the EV batteries. In this paper, a method to analyze the usage of EV batteries throughout their life cycle in light of their contributions to a circular economy is proposed. The study is divided into two stages which are modelled with mixed-integer linear optimization. Stage 1 considers the optimal charging strategy for an EV and stage 2 represents the second-life of the EV battery as stationary energy storage in a residential building. Six scenarios were created for both stages; stage 1 includes smart charging and/or Vehicle to Grid (V2G) and stage 2 adds demand side management and/or PV self-consumption maximization to stage 1. A sensitivity analysis is performed to assess the impact of electricity prices. The results are analysed to assess the operational lifetime and economic savings for an EV owner. The results show that using second-life batteries in a residentail building can extend the lifetime of an EV battery by 3-5 years while allowing savings above 23%.

The 2030 Agenda is an aspiring set of goals and targets that aims to prompt humanity towards a sustainable development by 2030. In order to achieve this, actions that mitigate trade-offs and enhance synergies within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) need to be identified. However, for the energy sector these actions are dispersed across the scientific literature, which is a clear barrier to encourage practitioners to have a proactive and pragmatic approach towards the SDGs. For this reason, a set of actions for energy projects was compiled. This compilation addresses the synergies and trade-offs identified in the Sustainable Development Goals Impact Assessment Framework for Energy Projects (SDG-IAE). One case of application was used to test the actions, the lighthouse Project VARGA. Subsequently, an analysis was conducted to understand how possible actions can impact different technologies, project stages, actors and SDG targets. In this way, enabling policymakers and project developers to define areas of action when evaluating policies or considering specific interventions. This article aims to be the starting point of stakeholder discussions that consistently frame energy projects within the achievement of the SDGs.

Cities across the world are becoming more engaged in tackling climate change and contributing to the achievement of international agreements. The city of Curitiba in Brazil is no exception. In December 2020, the city published PlanClima (Plano Municipal de Mitigacao e Adaptacao as Mudancas Climaticas), a climate plan developed with local and international organizations. PlanClima aims to guide policies and actions to mitigate and adapt to climate change. This study focuses on selecting and qualitatively evaluating transport policies that contribute to the city's 2030 climate and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). With PlanClima's analysis for the transport sector in mind, nine targets for 2030 are identified and connected to different transport policies. To evaluate the possible interactions between the policies and the different dimensions of the SDGs, four types of linkages were designed: essential, uncertain, limited, and opposite. These categories were developed to evaluate the several dimensions in which a policy can have a positive or negative impact. The results show that the implementation of zero emission zones/low emission zones, green public procurement, subsidy schemes for the uptake of clean vehicle technology, and the digitalization of the transport system through smarter public transport and digital platforms that couple bike sharing, taxis, and public transport are some of the measures that can contribute to the achievement of Curitiba's targets and ensure a positive impact on the sustainable development of the city. The study highlights how different policy instruments can contribute to achieve the city's targets, thus providing guidance to policymakers.