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Germanwatch is a development and environment organization that actively engages in international political and economic discussions. The situation of marginalized people forms the starting point for our engagement for sustainable development.

This report provides civil society perspectives on three initiatives of particular importance in relation to renewable energy in Africa – the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI), the Least Developed Countries Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Initiative for Sustainable Development (LDC REEEI), and the African Energy Transition Programme (AFRETRAP).

In order to become carbon-neutral before 2050, Germany urgently needs to tackle greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sector – the only sector with rising emissions. This policy paper provides an overview of public support for rail in comparison to support for road and air transport, and presents possible solutions for modernising the subsidy and tax system to turn rail into the backbone of future mobility.

The 11th meeting of the Executive Committee of the Warsaw Inernational Mechanism took place at the beginning of the corona crisis and therefore faced severe organisational challenges. It was held virtually, which posed challenges like internet connectivity problems and lack of possibilities for inclusive participation. Topics of this meeting were for example to discuss inter alia COP25 outcomes like the establishment of the “Santiago network on loss and damage” and the "Expert Group on action and support".
The report covers the key expectations for the meeting, the outcomes, the special corona context as well as recommendations on the way forward and necessary next steps.

The argumentation map deals with the currently planned extra-high voltage direct current transmission lines (HVDC) in Germany and, in particular, with the debate as to whether/why HVDCs should be built or not. In this respect, it aims to serve as a clear representation of the various and complex topical arguments and theses, without evaluating them.

When EU and Western Balkan leaders met on May 5th for a virtual EU-Western Balkans summit, the main focus was on the response to the Corona crisis and the EU accession prospects for the countries of the region. However, one topic should not be forgotten: the development of the energy sector in the Western Balkans. Both sides could gain a great deal from Energy Transition Partnerships, especially in order to create future prospects for the economy after the corona crisis.

The poorest populations in the Global South are fighting against the yet unforeseeable consequences of the coronavirus and the impacts of climate change simultaneously. They urgently need support in building resilience to the health and climate crises and in dealing with unavoidable climate impacts.

Anyone who violates another person’s fundamental rights by emitting greenhouse gases bears a double legal duty: First, to put a stop to this harm so that the (fundamental) rights of others are not undermined. Second, polluters have to account for the protection of those at risk as well as the damages that still occur. In order to enforce these legal obligations in Germany and internationally, Germanwatch supports three climate lawsuits.

India has a huge potential for solar energy. Accordingly, the Indian solar targets of 100 GW by 2022 are ambitious. The realization of these targets still require foreign investment in the Indian solar sector. The Multi-Actor-Project of Germanwatch and TERI and further partners seeks to gather stakeholders from civil society, financial institutions and government bodies as well as research organisations in order to identify de-risking instruments for foreign solar investments in India.

The Paris Agreement sets out the ambitious task of aligning all financial flows with its goals to avoid the worst impacts of warming. Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) have an important role to play in making this goal a reality.