An American’s comparative analysis on Germany and the United States’ climate policies to see the different ways we are coming together to reach climate neutrality and curb climate change. As an American studying abroad in Germany, there are many similarities and differences I have seen in the cultural day-to-day life. One thing that is vastly…
“Only around 3% of all CO₂ emissions are man-made, i.e. they come from the economy, heating and transportation. Around 97% of CO₂ emissions are of natural origin.” This is a claim made by Karsten Hilse, a climate spokesperson for Germany’s far-right party AfD, on his website. It’s a claim regularly used to downplay human responsibility…
In January 2025, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) published an election manifesto on their official website where they had this claim on page 77: “[…] CO₂ has proven to be a driver of increased plant growth, thereby supporting global nutrition”. This claim is mostly false.
“It is still possible for us to reduce emissions in this decade to such an extent that we can meet the 1.5 degree target.” That is how Olaf Scholz began his speech at the COP28 UN Climate Change Conference. He also mentioned the technologies that are available to help us achieve it. A look at the facts…
Dutch ECR Group vice president Robert Roos claims: “Energy and food are becoming more expensive and companies are leaving. It is time to stop the green deal.” This statement turned out to be mostly false. On 12 March 2024, the European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR Group) tweeted a quote from their vice president Robert…
On November 9, 2023, journalist Heleen Ekker, from RTL Nieuws, wrote about the warmest twelve months in history (Last Twelve Months Warmer Than Ever Recorded, 2023). She based her statement on research from Climate Central. She said that the past twelve months were the warmest period ever recorded, with temperatures 1.3 degrees Celsius higher than…
Climate change is one of the biggest problems in the world, but it can no longer be stopped. The political goals are at risk and the resulting consequences are not yet predictable. Homes destroyed and at least 135 deceased people: In July 2021, Europe looked on in horror at the idyllic Ahr Valley in Germany.…
On April 18th of this year, Bart de Wever, the leader of the political opposition party the New-Flemish Alliance claimed on Twitter that ‘banning nuclear energy is the stupidest thing a country can do’. The tweet lacks context but contains accurate numbers. It appears this claim is mostly true. Bart De Wever tweeted a screenshot…
The impact of climate change on animals and nature is a recurring research topic. But according to the news website n-tv also the habitats of migratory birds are threatened by climate change. This claim turns out to be true. Climate change is affecting most coastal areas and their inhabitants, such as migratory birds that stop…
An article in the German Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) by Bjørn Lomborg from 2013 claims that the EU is spending trillions of euros to reduce global warming by just 0.05 degrees Celsius. According to current research, the costs could be significantly higher. The effect of the measures on global warming remains unclear. Scientific forecasts come…