Climate change is no longer an ecological spectre; by now it has become reality. Its impact is noticeable everywhere in the world, but it particularly affects the poor population of the countries in the southern hemisphere. It can no longer be denied that resources are limited and have become a geopolitical security risk.
It is widely acknowledged that our country needs a policy of sustainable development, yet this consensus lacks a social climate advocating more sustainability. Therefore what we need is a social debate on the significance for Germany of sustainability on the global scale; how politics, economy and society can become viable for the future, and how citizens can play an active role in social processes and adapt their own conduct to encourage and support sustainability.
Friends of the Earth Germany (Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland, BUND) and the development organizations of the Protestant Churches in Germany “Bread for the World” (Brot für die Welt) and Church Development Service (Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst, EED) have joined forces to stimulate such a debate.
This debate is based on the study »Sustainable Germany« by the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy (Wuppertal Institut für Klima, Umwelt und Energie).
This study
- substantiates the meaning of sustainability in an industrialized society with international responsibility;
- discusses how Germany can use its resources to manage the globalisation challenges of making politics and society fit for the future;
- specifies the ways and means required to turn the tide for sustainable development;
- outlines the vision of a global justice spanning the generations, and
- encourages action toward this end.
