A quiet climate champion

Diversity at risk

Not always pretty, but vital

It is not considered particularly pretty. And let’s not mention its reputation. But when it comes to one particular characteristic, the termite is unrivalled: it can significantly improve the quality of depleted soils. This makes it just one of countless species that are important for the well-being of nature – and in turn also for…

Environmentally sound, collective and fair

A transformation with many dimensions

The sustainability transformation is one of the biggest tasks that humankind has ever faced. And it’s a challenge in which there is more than one dimension to consider. There is of course the environmental dimension, but the technical, economic and – importantly – the social aspects must not be forgotten. Those who formulate…

Another 30 years to go

A new yet familiar role

Where nuclear energy is concerned, we have come a long way since the Oeko-Institut was founded more than 40 years ago. The nuclear phase-out was finally agreed; Germany’s remaining reactors are due to be shut down next year. A science-based, transparent, participatory and stepwise procedure is now in place to identify a site for a…

50 million by 2030

Room wanted, for a while

I wish our apartment had a spare room. Just one. Now that the children are a bit older, it would be nice for them to have a space of their own. We would only need it for a few years, just until they leave home. After that, I would happily hand it back – my wife and I wouldn’t use it.

That’s not how it works, I hear you say. But…

Better stay on the ground?

Linking people, but sustainably

For now, the times in which the aviation industry experienced nothing but growth are over. As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, countless planes remain grounded. Moreover, many people are asking whether they really need to fly. It has quickly become apparent that many business trips are unnecessary. Video conferencing works. And…

Power-to-X

Not a universal solution

Remember Desertec? At the start of the new millennium, someone in Germany came up with the bright idea of harnessing the abundant sunshine in North Africa to generate electricity in vast solar energy systems and transferring it to Europe via long-distance power lines. The idea met with an enthusiastic response. There was one problem,…

Living without plastics – but how?

For a new culture of sorting

I pulled almost 30,000 tetrapacks out of the stream of waste – in a single shift. That was in the mid-1990s, when I spent a couple of days in a sorting plant where I sorted waste by hand. They were probably some of the most instructive days I have ever spent at work, providing insights into our throwaway culture, our sorting habits…

Our food – a risk?

Giving up is not hard to do

No meat? On a trek in 1996 in the company of vegans and vegetarians I noticed: it’s actually OK. And I didn’t even find it particularly difficult. Perhaps because pasta, pancakes and a pizza from the camping stove were particularly delicious. But perhaps also because I didn’t immediately become a strict vegetarian but have continued…