A woman is sitting and reading on a tablet that she is holding in her hand.

Freepik | gpointstudio

Germanwatch Blog

From policy to impact, get the expert take on the issues shaping our world.

Solar panels in the African desert

Climate International climate co-operation Blog post | 24.01.2025

Access for whom? World Bank’s Mission 300 risks prioritising profits over people at Africa Energy Summit

The Africa Energy Summit on 27 and 28 January 2025 in Tanzania is a cornerstone of Mission 300. It aims to bring electricity to 300 million people in sub-Saharan Africa by 2030. Though commendable at face value, we believe Mission 300 risks fuelling the debt, climate, and democracy crises, and might have little impact for sustainable development if five core issues are not resolved in its making.

A member of security walks outside the venue for the COP29

Sustainable Finance Blog post | 16.12.2024

Climate policy in times of crisis

On 23 November, the 29th UN Climate Conference came to a close in Baku. In this blog article, our Germanwatch experts report on the difficult negotiations, detail the most important decisions, and draw conclusions on the climate conference in times of crisis.

UN climate conferences Blog post | 07.11.2024

Resilient and sustainable food systems

From heavy rainfall to rising sea levels, there is no doubt that the climate crisis is having a significant impact on global food security. At the same time, agriculture is contributing to climate change. Food systems will therefore also be discussed at COP29 in Azerbaijan. Germanwatch is calling for this issue to be prioritized and is following the negotiations on site. What should the international community achieve in Baku?

Banks to the left, trees to the right

Climate finance Sustainable Finance Blog post | 07.11.2024

Assessing projects’ Paris alignment

In 2023, six multilateral development banks have reached their self-imposed deadlines for the alignment of their projects with the Paris Agreement. We have analysed 60 of their projects and present the somewhat sobering findings in our blog post – with recommendations for greater transparency.

Die Zwischenverhandlungen fanden vom 3. bis zum 13. Juni in Bonn statt

UN climate conferences Blog post | 15.08.2024

SB Debrief

The 60th session of the Subsidiary Bodies (SBs) took place in Bonn in June 2024. This debrief provides a summary of the key discussions and outcomes from the session across the (negotiation) topics discussed, including the Mitigation Work Programme, Just Transition, Adaptation, Loss and Damage, Climate Finance, Global Stocktake, and Agriculture and Food Security. Additionally, it contextualises these developments within the big picture and offers a perspective on the upcoming expectations for COP29.

Habeck auf dem Weg nach Südkorea ud China

International climate co-operation Blog post | 21.06.2024

Habeck must prioritise China's climate policy

The global energy transition is unattainable without China. Therefore, Robert Habeck should emphasise climate policy relations during his visit to Beijing. Here are six proposals for pragmatic co-operation between Germany and China to benefit climate action.

Vorschaubild Blog

EU climate policy and carbon pricing Blog post | 20.06.2024

Voters demand climate remains high on political agenda

It has been frequently noted in the aftermath of the European elections that climate policy issues were less on the election agenda than in 2019. That may be true. But it is also true that a broad electoral majority is in favour of appropriate political responses to the climate crisis: support for more effective measures is polling high in many EU countries and among supporters of almost all (relevant) German parties. This is shown in several EU-wide and national surveys, as well as our own Germanwatch survey, commissioned together with DNR and WWF.

Sinnbild: Digitales Netz breitet sich über Landschaft aus

Future-proof Digitalisation Blog post | 04.06.2024

Bridging digitalisation and sustainability

The climate crisis and democracies under pressure – just two of the EU’s many challenges that the two-edged sword of digitalisation both alleviates and aggravates.

Workers installing solar panels

International climate co-operation Blog post | 14.05.2024

Just Energy Transition Partnerships

The Just Energy Transition Partnerships model aims to combine the finance, high level political momentum, and institutional framework needed to accelerate the energy transition in emerging economies relevant for global climate action. However, existing JETPs are facing roadblocks. Read our recommendations for the International Partners Group of donor countries.

Flaggen von Polen, Deutschland und Frankreich

EU climate policy and carbon pricing Blog post | 24.04.2024

Germany, Poland, and France: Recasting a Green Weimar Triangle

The current geopolitical context is pushing the Weimar Triangle of France, Germany, and Poland to prioritise defence and security. NGOs, think tanks, and businesses argue that a ‘Green Weimar Triangle’ could not only safeguard achieving the EU climate goals but also address critical issues of economic competitiveness and cohesion.

Bloggers

Christoph Bals

Chief Policy Officer

Jan Burck

Senior Advisor – Low-Carbon Strategies & Energy, Project Lead Climate Indices (currently absent)

Oldag Caspar

Head of Division – German and European Climate Policy

David Eckstein

Senior Advisor – Climate Finance and Investments

Dr. Anja Carolin Gebel

Policy Advisor – Development Banks and Climate

Julia Grimm

Senior Advisor – Climate Finance and Adaptation

Cornelia Heydenreich

Head of Division – Corporate Accountability

Klaus Milke

Honorary Chairman Germanwatch and Chair of the Foundation for Sustainability

Stefan Rostock

Head of Division – Education for Sustainable Development, Promoter for Climate & Development in North Rhine-Westphalia

Laura Schäfer

Head of Division – International Climate Policy

Rixa Schwarz

Senior Advisor – Climate and Development – India

Dr. Manfred Treber

Special Advisor - Climate Science and Transport

Lutz Weischer

Head of Policy Berlin (currently absent)