In 2004 he first left his mark in the media and in discussions about climate change and its causes: the individual CO2 footprint. Using many parameters, anyone interested can determine for themselves how much greenhouse gases they cause. The calculations take into account, among other things, personal mobility (Do I use my bike or car to get to work? How often do I fly on vacation?), diet (Do I eat meat or am I vegetarian?) and living situation (Live I am in a single-family home, in a terraced house or in an apartment?).
The top ten climate killers in 2022 accounted for an average of 9.49 tons of greenhouse gases per year per German citizen. This puts the Germans among the top ten polluters worldwide. Per capita emissions are only higher in some oil and gas exporting countries such as Saudi Arabia, the USA, China and Australia. The values for individual countries can be called up using the input mask.
Today, people no longer like to talk about their personal CO2 footprint, says Lara Hein from the Klimadashboard association: “On the one hand, comparing each other only leads to nonsensical debates and mutual accusations: I eat meat, but you went on vacation twice last year In addition, most emissions are caused by companies anyway – here the problems and steering effects are much greater.”
That was obviously also the calculation of the oil and gas company BP, which developed the idea of individual footprints and brought it to the people.
They are legal scholars, web designers, biologist and psychologists, they are young – and they are all united by one desire: to make climate change, its causes and its consequences better understood. In mid-September, 16 women and men from the Klimadashboard association started the German website Klimadashboard.de. One of them is Lara Hein, who studied environmental law, climate policy and climate diplomacy.
Apparently with great success: While many German citizens are still thinking about how they can contribute to climate protection – for example by buying an electric car or giving up meat – and thus making their personal contribution, in other areas only comes little going on. The result: In 2022, Germany caused around 746 million tons of greenhouse gases, just 1.9 percent less than the year before. In order to achieve the federal government’s climate goals by 2030, emissions would have to fall by at least six percent per year, according to Federal Environment Agency President Dirk Messner.
In 2022, each German citizen released around 9.49 tons of CO2 and other gases that have an impact on the climate. This is almost one and a half times the global average of 6.76 tonnes. This puts Germans among the top ten in the world when it comes to emissions. Only in some oil and gas exporting countries such as the United Arab Emirates or Bahrain, the USA, Australia and China is the annual per capita quantity higher. Other European industrialized countries such as Great Britain, Italy and France are below the value for Germany.
There are not only big differences in CO2 emissions between individual countries, they are also very large within Germany, says Lara Hein: “The ten percent of the population with the highest incomes cause more greenhouse gases than the entire lower half of income combined.” Any super-rich person who would make their lifestyle more climate-friendly could therefore make a particularly large contribution.
Historical responsibilitySince the beginning of the industrial revolution in 1850, Germany has been one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases. It ranks sixth worldwide. This also creates global responsibility for the climate crisis.
Even though Germany currently only causes around two percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, it has a great historical responsibility for the climate change that has already occurred. Since 1850, more than 92 billion tons of greenhouse gases have been emitted in this country. This puts Germany in sixth place on the list of the largest polluters. Only the USA, China, Russia, Great Britain and Brazil have released more CO2 and other greenhouse gases in the past. This also creates a responsibility for finding a way out of the climate crisis. “The industrialized countries should support the efforts of emerging and developing countries to act in a climate-friendly manner.” To do this, these investments in fossil energies must stop – global technology transfer and financial support towards renewable energies are needed. Only then can it be possible to ensure that these countries do not increase their greenhouse gas emissions as they become more prosperous.
Instead of continuing to deal with the CO2 footprint, Lara Hein advocates a different symbol: “The CO2 handprint is better. It stands for active steps to combat the climate crisis. This can happen in various areas of life, including personal behavior and politics Commitment and professional decisions.” Whatever is not going perfectly, it is important to also mention the positive things.
