A few days before the start of the world climate conference in Egypt, Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD), climate researchers and medical representatives called for an accelerated move away from fossil fuels and pointed out the health risks posed by climate change. “Climate policy is always health policy,” said Lauterbach on Thursday at a joint press conference in Berlin.
Also on the podium were the President of the German Medical Association, Klaus Reinhardt, the Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Johan Rockström, and the Chairman of the Board of the German Alliance for Climate Change and Health (KLUG), Martin Herrmann. The experts spoke of direct and indirect influences of climate change on health, such as heat and extreme weather events, allergies, crop declines due to drought, hunger and social conflicts, as well as a possible promotion of the emergence of pandemics.
Lauterbach: Climate catastrophe is the mother of all problems
The climate catastrophe is the mother of all problems, said Lauterbach. “The years are running out when we can still influence things.” He promoted a low-meat diet or no meat and the use of bicycles, public transport and vehicles without combustion engines. Cycling and eating little or no meat are healthier and at the same time a contribution to climate protection.
Herrmann named dependence on fossil fuels as the most important cause of the climate crisis. “This means that those who do not stand up for the energy transition and implement it personally and socially bear responsibility for the damage to life and limb.” The energy transition must be massively accelerated.
