As it is elsewhere, climate change is increasing the risk of forest fires in Germany. So should deadwood that intensifies fires be removed from forests? Or should it be left where it is for conservation reasons?
Dirk Messner is a sustainability researcher and has been president of the German Environment Agency (UBA) since 2020. In this interview, he tells us about his hopes and worries on the way to a sustainable future with equitable sharing of the burdens associated with climate change.
No country in the world can stop climate change on its own. But global solutions worked out in international negotiations often take a long time, perhaps too long to effectively help the climate. As Nobel laureate Elinor Ostrom said, we can’t wait for that. What we need instead is efforts at different levels. And not only the climate would benefit.
The damage caused by the climate crisis is growing and growing. Developing countries want to make that the focus of the UN Climate Change Conference, but industrialized countries would rather discuss reducing emissions. This dispute could waste valuable time.
Food losses and food waste cause up to 10 percent of global human-induced greenhouse gas emissions. We could avoid a substantial portion of that by setting binding reduction targets and raising awareness of the problem. The benefits for the climate would be huge.
Many young people are frustrated by current climate policy and worried about their future health and safety. What would climate action that’s fair to future generations actually involve?
Carbon dioxide – or CO2 for short – is known mainly as a driver of climate change. But now there are several ways to use CO2 as a natural resource. For example, this greenhouse gas can be used to produce gasoline.The new Project Briefing of the Helmholz Climate Initiative presents a conversion process - solar thermochemical cycles.
The ozone layer protects all forms of life on Earth from hazardous ultraviolet radiation. In 1985, scientists noticed that this protective shield had become considerably thinner over the Antarctic. The cause of what became known as the “ozone hole” was chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), a group of chemicals that can also be harmful to the climate. The international community acted quickly and succeeded.
In the past 50 years, humanity has converted huge forested areas into farmland – including half of Germany’s surface area. As built-up areas expand and agriculture becomes both more extensive and more intensive, landscapes are transformed, important ecosystem functions are lost, soils are degraded, and biodiversity is diminishing.
