Ever thought (but never said) Californian weather in Germany wouldn’t be such a bad thing? Don’t worry: you are not the only one taking global 'warming' as, in that extent, good thing. German biologist Josef Reichholf now said in an interview for the magazine Der Spiegel, that’s actually the natural way to think: “Biologically speaking, we are children of the tropics”! Wherever we go, we artificially create our own comfortable climate (through cloths etc.) – 27 degrees Celsius. That simply means: a milder climate won’t pose problems for mankind as a whole. We are flexible enough to change accordingly to the conditions around us. The same is also true for most plants and animals. But Reichholf goes one step further: his thesis is that warming temperatures in contrast to common knowledge promote biodiversity. He paints the picture of flourishing new habitats growing in numbers in the future parallel to global warming – if we manage not to destroy them through human intervention right away.
Read the whole article here
Foto: Denis Vallan

For the first time in history the United Nations Security Council has dealt with climate change. According to the board climate change will change the course of history and the destiny of nations. The Council fears that about 200 million people might end up as refugees due to droughts and flood.

The Council however emphazises the possibilities of climate change for mankind: "Climate change can unite us, if we are bright enough not to become divided by this challenge", the British foreign secretary, Margaret Beckett said. Criticism came from the so called developing countries that hold the majority of UN member states. They see the Security Council as represantative of the Western States and their global dominance. Climate change is a subject for the General Assembly of the United Nation, not for the Security Council they say.This is why leaders like the President of Uganda, Yoweri Musevini, finds hard words against the Nations that form the Council: "Global warming is an aggression you cause. Alaska and Sibiria will be fit for agriculture but what will happen to Africa?"

Ever had this disturbing “this is just so easy, why did no one ever have this idea before” feeling? Ok, it’s like that emotion when you first grasp in kindergarten how basic maths works: 1+1 = 2. Things become clear and easy, you wonder why you just didn’t see it before. Same thing in the case of the following solution to global climate change:

The Problem of CO2 emissions released into the atmosphere causing global climate change in combination with the ongoing dependency on fossil fuels (causing these emissions) can be solved by storing produced CO2 underground!

It might sound like a save-the-world-project for dummies, but far from it!
Actually, the CO2 SINK project developed by the GeoScienceCenter (GeoForschungsZentrum) in Potsdam and supported by the EU commission as well as the German government could be a real chance. It starts with the premise that CO2 capture and geological storage is the only way that has the potential to achieve substantial CO2 reductions at acceptable cost levels over the next few decades. The storage technique of injecting CO2 into a saline aquifer is tested just west of Berlin. It is the first onshore demonstration worldwide.

"The fact that CO2 occurs naturally in the earth and has been stored over geological time scales improves the credibility of deep underground storage. Underground injection of CO2 into oil fields has already been used for decades by industry to enhance recovery. The main priority for CO2 storage is to establish its acceptability as safe and reliable in the long-term."

Fact is also that CO2 storage can’t be a solution by itself. We still have to invest into renewable energies. But as long as we are still – and be it only slightly - dependent on fossil fuels, CO2 storage could work!
Foto: Website

Last week I watched “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart. The guy with the dry humour and the sarcastic way of seeing things. He talked with Christopher Horner, the author of the book “The Politically Incorrect Guide to Global Warming and Environmentalism”.

Honestly, book-titles containing the words “politically incorrect" (or "correct" for that matter) are a real turn off for me. I usually ignore them – let alone read them. They just tell you things everyone knows and talks about anyway – just not in such a direct (and therefore politically incorrect equal honest) way.
Having said that I was almost tempted to buy Christopher Horner’s book. The fact that someone against all scientific proof still thinks that climate change isn’t real and writes a 288 page long book about it (trying to sell it as truth), is so extraordinary that it demands some attention. What’s his point?
Horner tries to put the whole climate change debate under the label of a left wing conspiracy – a manipulation of environmental issues for political purposes – masking the fact that “catastrophic man-made global warming is just more Chicken-Little hysteria, not actual science.”So I looked it up on Amazon to order it for shipping to Germany. What I found was stunning and not at all what I expected: 66 reviews were listed about this book – an opinion poll of what people really think about the topic. From nonsense to relief that someone for once is brave enough to speak the truth. Some excerpts from the debate:

“Environmentalism is a religion. Its proponents behave the same way right wings evangelicals do when someone dares challenge their a-priori assumptions. Those who assume global warming is a fact react to scientific evidence to the contrary much the same way christian fundamentalists react to scientific evidence of evolution. I’m not sure which is more enlightening, this book, or the offence taken by those who accept the silly religious notion of man made global warming.”

The other side:

“As recently as just a few years ago, I was strongly against any sort of Kyoto-style restrictions on greenhouse gases, because I thought that the drag on the world's economies created by a Kyoto-style treaty would be greater than the economic damage caused by global warming itself.
I no longer believe that. While it is clear that reductions in greenhouse gases will create a drag on the economy, the long-term consequences of doing nothing are much more severe. This book does nothing but pooh-pooh those potential consequences.
There is at least a small possibility that global warming is not the threat that Al Gore, for instance, makes it out to be. I'll give this book five stars for being colourful. But what if Christopher Horner, the author of this book, is wrong? Does he have a Ph.D. in climate science? No, he does not. Is he infallible? Of course he isn't.
If he's right, then everything is fine.
But if--just if--he's wrong, your grandchildren will know about it. And they will pay the price of our inaction. “

Since we are a democracy, everyone is allowed to believe in whatever he likes – whether reasonable or not. I like the attitude of the last fellow. That’s why, in the end, I didn’t buy the book: just the shipping would have done more damage to the environment than I could possibly pay off with the price for the book. I know, Mr. Horner, this is totally against your point that climate change is not manmade – but maybe this is all just a strategy to sell your book?

Sir Bob Geldof
It has been quite an expierience to meet and talk to Bob Geldof. He insisted several times during his visit to Berlin on his opinion that the German chancellor Angela Merkel has the duty to speak about people's rights in Africa. Especially for Germany is taking the Presidency of the EU-Council the first six months of 2007.Amongst all of the political leaders today Mrs. Merkel is the most credible the artist said. In June when the G8 meeting will take place in Heiligendamm in the northeast of Germany Geldof will be there to go on raising his worldwide known voice for the poor.Sir Bob has also a very clear thought about global warming. During our interview he that you can see in the Video blog (click here ) he said that global warming is due to the kind of living in the industrialized world. The poor, however, will suffer the consequences of our behaviour first. Another injustice.Foto: www.bobgeldof.info

You can remove your carbon emission easily! Carbon Planet aims to reduce Climate Change by empowering individuals and businesses to erase their CO2 footprint by purchasing carbon credits. www.carbonplanet.com/The idea behind the concept is: Whatever greenhouse gases you blow in the atmosphere, you buy the trees that remove this amount again. Carbon credits certify the removal of carbon dioxide from the air. Each carbon credit is associated with the removal of a single tonne of carbon dioxide from the Earth's atmosphere. Purchasing carbon credits shall jelp lowering the impacts of climate change.To me it is not clear if this is just a way of calming a polluter's conscience or really a way to take actively responsibility for what one is doing to nature in your every day life. Like very often, I suppose, it depends on your personal attitude and your engagement.
Fotos: Website

Christoph Metzelder and Alex Goerlach
After an injury in the past year you have returned to the playing field. How are things now?Thanks, I’m doing well again and happy that I can play again. I’m grateful in every respect to my doctors and other assistants.
In the period of recuperating from your injury you became involved in the Club of Pioneers. That sounds like being ill is a good condition for thinking about climate protection and sustainability. I don’t really think that there is a connection between the two. Climate protection is a subject for me whether I am healthy or sick. To be sure, when you are forced to slow down because of an injury, then there is more time to think about yourself and your life. It doesn’t really belong to the main task of a competitive athlete to discuss issues of environmental protection…This topic should concern all of us! Since I began blogging for the Club of Pioneers in December, amazing things have happened. The topic of climate change and how to combat it is resounding everywhere. The climate conference of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in Paris at the beginning of February has shown that we have no more time to postpone solutions till some later date.What can athletes and other prominent people like you do?

In general we have many fans and even a whole string of fan clubs. Those are the forums in which I can arouse attention to the subjects that are important to me. In my Web site www.metzelder.de there is, for example, a link to the Club of Pioneers. And so, many of my fans come in contact with my blog at Club of Pioneers and are confronted with my way of thinking and position on these matters.Are you able to come to terms with the idea of “sustainable lifestyle”?I think that most people – including myself – do not want to abandon their standard of living. But at the same time they don’t want to enjoy their lifestyle at the expense of God's creation or the coming generation. Technical progress is in principle positive, but it must be used responsibly. I view this in the exact same way. This has nothing to do with a particular political opinion, but with rationality. Can you give us an example?For instance, driving a car. I like to be mobile and really enjoy the technology of a car, also a certain amount of comfort and good design. But a car must be eco-friendly. Therefore I am interested in alternative forms of combustion and would be delighted to test drive the BMW Hydrogen 7 model. Is climate protection the only area in which you are involved?I am also involved in the area of work with underprivileged children and youth. For me it is important to be able to offer a perspective to the upcoming generation. We need to make it possible for boys and girls to develop their abilities in school and training and to play a part in society. But for that to happen, we need to turn a world over to them in which they can live naturally and without detriment. To me both of these areas belong together.Interview: Alex Goerlach