Germany eager to tackle climate change

In the first of this two-part series, Stefan Schlüter Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, reminds us that Global CO2 emissions went up again in 2010, that global temperatures are already 0.8°C higher than before industrialisation and gives us an idea as to what Germany is doing to combat climate change.

Climate change is the definitive challenge of the 21st century. Changes in the climate destroy the basis on which human life subsists: drought, for instance, leads to shortages in food and water. Rising sea levels are already threatening the territories of small island states and vast stretches of coastland. However, the international community has to admit that it has not, as things stand, stepped up to the challenge posed by climate change. Global CO2 emissions went up again in 2010, global temperatures are already 0.8 °c higher than before industrialisation, and sea levels rose twice as fast between 1993 and 2003 as they did in the preceding decade; icebergs and glaciers are melting at record speeds. We all need the climate change negotiations recently discussed in Durban to come up with tangible results. 

Germany is aware of how pressing this problem is. We are therefore doing what we can to mitigate it effectively. Thanks to our national reduction measures, we are within the targets which the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recommends for industrialised countries: we intend to reduce our emissions by 40 per cent by 2020 and by 80-95 per cent by 2050. We are also doing our bit to push for ambitious reduction targets within the EU. At the highest level internationally, too, we want to create awareness that we have to act now to tackle climate change. It was under Germany’s presidency that the United Nations Security Council, on 20 July, unanimously acknowledged for the first time ever that climate change poses a threat to international security. 

Germany is working both globally and domestically to combat climate change because we take the problem seriously and are aware of our responsibility. At the same time, in-depth analysis shows that the structural transformation we have set in motion is one which will in future also serve us well economically. By switching to a low-carbon economy, we want to prove that tackling climate change is compatible with economic development. We want to support others as they pursue this path to success; going green can be an opportunity for everyone! 

Nonetheless, even if these efforts bear fruit and the global economy starts producing significantly lower quantities of greenhouse gas, we know that many countries are already suffering the consequences of climate change. That is why the German Government has been assisting countries particularly affected by climate change for years. Our partners in developing countries and emerging economies receive support for projects to mitigate and adapt to climate change through German development cooperation under the auspices of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development as well as through the International Climate Initiative being run by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety. Between 2010 and 2012, our Government is providing these countries with a total of 1.26 billion euro in additional funds for mitigation and adaptation, within the scope of the industrialized countries’ fast start finance initiative agreed in Copenhagen in 2009. Germany stands ready to play its part in financing such measures in developing countries in the long term as well. 

To be continued

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