Comment: Crashing Against the Wall

Last week, more than four million people worldwide took to the streets to demonstrate for climate protection. In Germany alone there were more than 1.4 million protesters, amonst them 270,000 in Berlin and 100,000 in Hamburg. Almost at the same time the German government adopted a climate package from which the word 'climate' can be confidently removed, because so few concrete measures are contained in it.

There's still time to muddle through - in case of need let the next government deal with the issue. At least that's the impression left when reading the 'climate package' paper written in dry words on less than 30 pages. As expected, the federal cabinet approved the package meanwhile, too.

As a fact, the UN Climate Summit held in New York at the beginning of the week almost degenerated into a side note - there were no major decisions done there anyway. Most politicians came to the U.S. with small climate programmes doing no harm to no one. Donald Trump also stopped by for a moment and the biggest excitement of the event was Greta Thunberg's emotional speech.

For those who still haven't understood what the climate crisis is about, go read another document published yesterday: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) presented their new report on the state of the oceans and cryosphere (cryopshere = the frozen components of the Earth system). There's no climate scientist needed to understand the warnings in this report. Even the short summary - just six pages long - is peppered with warnings and predictions about what lies ahead for mankind if there is no urgent and immediate change in policy! Not tomorrow, not the day after tomorrow, IMMEDIATELY!

Heat waves, El Nino, floods, hurricanes, spreading deserts, scarce drinking water resources, lack of food - all this threatens as early as 2050! In less than 30 years it will be really cosy on earth if mankind continues as before.

In view of these dimensions the question is: Who are these politicians making policy for? For the few confused people who still deny climate change? When even industrial groups are now standing side by side with environmentalists announcing ambitious climate protection targets on their own initiative? When citizens are willing to do without amenities and regulate themselves? For whom?