Germany has long claimed a leadership role on climate change. Germany was one of the first countries to fulfill its obligations under the Kyoto Protocol. In 2009, its greenhouse gas emissions were 28% below 1990 levels. Germany has reaffirmed its commitment to achieve a 40% reduction by 2020, regardless of what other countries may or may not do.

The people of the country are convinced that the transformation to a low carbon economy is in their national interest. That is why, after Copenhagen, Germany wants to go ahead with strong climate policies and not wait for others.

To understand the role of Germany's states in setting climate policy, an understanding is needed of what happens o... >>

Looking in the energy future, in the long-term outlook for coming 50 or 100 years, the energy mix will be moving predominantly towards renewable energy sources. The world annually extracts about 2,690 million tons of crude oil, so at current usage we have 50-80 years of oil remaining. As for coal, approximately 8,000 million tons is extracted annually, which leaves us with enough to last for 150 years. We have about 54 years left for natural gas. This is one of the reasons why we need to shift to renewable-based energy future. The switch over to renewables has to be combined with high energy efficiency.
The benefits of renewable energy extend to stimulating the economy and creating job opp... >>