Climate change, climate protection - is there still hope?

3 December 2019, 18:00, EUREF Campus, Berlin

Cooperation partner: Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change

In its painstakingly negotiated climate package, the Grand Coalition has not been parsimonious with money, – yet it offered only a half-hearted endorsement of comprehensive carbon charges, which its advisers believe must be the leading instrument of climate policy. It clearly has serious concerns that this might place too great a burden on low-income households. But would a reasonable carbon charge necessarily increase social divisions in Germany, and ultimately further the rise of populist parties? What are the distribution effects of the agreed climate package? How can climate protection be fairly implemented?

Ottmar Edenhofer, Director of the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC)
Antje Kapek, Chairwoman of the Bündnis 90/Die Grünen faction in the Berlin House of Representatives
Klaus Müller, Chairman of the Federation of German Consumer Organisations
Jörg Steinbach, Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy of Brandenburg
Roman Zitzelsberger, District Manager of IG Metall in Baden-Württemberg

Presenter:  Dietmar Ringel, Inforadio (rbb)

23 January 2020, 19:00, Munich Re, Giselastraße 21, Munich

Cooperation partner: Deutsche Energie-Agentur (dena)

International climate conferences over recent years have frequently been seen in public as toothless paper tigers: the Paris agreement was approved, but so far has only partially been implemented. Countries like the USA, Brazil and Russia are undermining the efforts of the community of states. Other countries – such as Germany – are failing to meet their voluntary climate targets. What is the reason for the lack of enthusiasm among national governments? And how are the agreements from the framework convention being implemented in the different countries? What impact can social initiatives on climate protection have? Is it still possible to meet the 1.5-degree target? 

Christoph Bals, Senior Political Executive, Germanwatch, Bonn
Claudia Kemfert, Head of the Department for Energy, Transportation and Environment at the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), Berli
Rita Schwarzelühr-Sutter, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMU), Berlin
Christian Walter, Professor for Public International Law and Public Law at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich

Presenter: Hanne May, dena, Berlin

18 February 2020, 19:00, Munich Re, Giselastraße 21, Munich

Cooperation partner: Deutsche Energie-Agentur (dena)

In 2010, the Federal Government established the ambitious target of one million electric cars on German roads by 2020. This target has now been pushed back to 2022 and therefore seems a long way off. Electric cars are still to gain broad public acceptance and progress in the public transport sector is also sluggish. Is there a risk that the target cannot be implemented? Could there still be a reverse in the trend? When will the infrastructure be created? What alternative drive systems are available to us for private and public mobility? Is hydrogen the fuel of the future? Do we need to re-think the transport system in general?

Klaus Bonhoff, Director General for Policy Issues, Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure, Berlin
Claus Doll, Mobility expert at the Fraunhofer Institute for Innovation Research, Karlsruhe 
Lex Hartmann, CEO, ubitricity Gesellschaft für verteilte Energiesysteme mbH
Marion Jungbluth, Team leader Mobility and Travel, Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband e.V., Berlin  (tbc)

Presenter: Kristin Haverkamp, dena, Berlin

12 March 2020, 19:00
Heilig-Geist-Kapelle, Humbolt University, Spandauer Straße 1, Berlin

Cooperation partner: Deutsche Energie-Agentur (dena)

The energy revolution and climate protection involve much more than just offshore wind farms in the North Sea and the Baltic, and PV modules on roofs. To save the climate, we need a range of technologies and groundbreaking innovations to reduce carbon emissions. At the same time, carbon is not always harmful. It can also be a valuable resource – for example in Power-to-X processes, or for carbon capture and usage to produce power fuels or artificial fuels. Energiesprong, the new approach to refurbishment, could dramatically improve our buildings’ carbon footprint and for a long time to come. And if all this is not enough, there are still many geo-engineering ideas as well. But what potential do the various alternatives offer? And how fast can they be implemented to deliver effective climate protection?

Claus Beckmann, Head of Energy and Climate Policy, BASF SE
Monika Fontaine-Kretschmer, Member of the Management Board, Nassauische Heimstätte Wohnungs- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH
Kristina Jeromin, Head of Group Sustainability, Deutsche Börse AG
Mario Ragwitz, Director (comm.) of the Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Infrastructure and Geothermal Energy and Scientific Director of the Fraunhofer Cluster of Excellence "Integrated Energy Systems"

Presenter: Christoph Jugel, dena, Berlin

23 April 2020, 19:00, Munich Re, Giselastraße 21, Munich

Cooperation partner: Deutsche Energie-Agentur (dena)

The energy revolution and climate protection are intergenerational projects. There is no one solution. We all can, and indeed must, make a contribution. But what can civil society do? Join Fridays for Future demonstrations? Chain yourself to a tree in the Hambach Forest, plant trees, ban people from eating schnitzel, and travel only by bus or rail? How can I organise my life as a climate protector? What can each of us actually do, and how can politics support sustainable consumption?

Andreas Ernst, Director of  the Center for Environmental Systems Research,  University Kassel (tbc)
Kathrin Henneberger, Climate activist and press spokesperson for "Ende Gelände 2019", Berlin 
Heike Holdinghausen, Journalist and book author, TAZ Berlin

Presenter: Steffen Joest, dena, Berlin

Virtual Dialogue Forum, 12 November 2020, 18:30

Covid-19 continues to dictate to a large extent how we live. New restrictions will arise. Nevertheless, even the nationwide lockdown in the spring of this year had some positive consequences: Car traffic in the cities initially declined. It was quiet on the streets and there was plenty of space for walking and cycling. In some districts, new open-air bar areas were created, which somewhat displaced the passenger cars from the parking areas. Together with M:UniverCity, we want to discuss Munich's traffic situation in a virtual dialogue forum entitled "Car-free districts - soon to be in Munich too?". Will some quarters soon be car-free and what does that actually mean? Will it be possible to divide the street space more fairly? How can the conversion take place? 

Prof. Dr. Andrea Benze, University of Applied Sciences Munich, Professor for Urban Development and Theory of the City
Hannah Henker, Active citizen, participation in the Westend Kiez and Bewegte Quartiere projects
Clemens Baumgärtner, Head of the Department of Labor and Economics of the City of Munich
Department for Urban Improvement*, (*any similarity to existing institutions is purely coincidental)

The event will be moderated by Dr. Michael Droß from the M:UniverCity, Munich University of Applied Sciences.

The event language will be German.