Two men in the jungle planting a tree
Dossier

Dossier

Climate and environment

Protecting the climate and the environment is the dominant issue of our time. How can we counteract global warming and achieve the international climate goals? In our dossier, we shine a spotlight on people whose ideas are helping to stop climate change and the extinction of species.

Image-Reference

On our website, pictures taken, among others, by the following photographers/photo agencies are used:

Agentur photothek.net, Deutsche Messe Hannover, Andreas Arnold, Jörg Böthling, Dominik Butzmann, Carsten Costard, Susanne Esche, Charlie Fawell, Rendel Freude, Torsten George, Gaby Gerster, David Greedy, Peter Himsel, Barbara Högner, Frank Homann, Fred Hoogervorst, Steffen Jagenburg (BRANSCH EUROPE), Thomas Klewar, Studio Kohlmeier , Florian Kopp, Georg Lopata, Jürgen Lösel, Kirsten Milhahn, Rüdiger Nehmzow, Rolf Obertreis, Rubén Arnaldo Farina Ortiz, Holger Peters, Joachim Röttgers, Mika Schmidt, Bernhard Schurian, Jens Steingässer, Pietro Sutera, Uwe Tölle, Jan Zappner.

Fotolia.com: amandare, Yuri Arcurs, Kitch Bain, Ingo Bartussek, Sergio Donà, drizzd, Dmitry Ersler, eyewave, Zoltán Futó, Eric Gevaert, Fotolia XXV, Friedberg, goodluz, Dirk Hoffmann, imageteam, Christian Jung, Abdelhamid Kalai, Sergej Khakimullin, Vladimir Kolobov, krizz7, Kzenon, lumen-digital, marog-pixcells, Mindwalker, Miredi, mirpic, Nebuto, Tino Neitz, Christian Pedant, Franz Pfluegl, prognone, Gina Sanders, Henry Schmitt, spree berlin, SVLuma, Kheng Guan Toh, tom, Torbz, typomaniac, VRD, Joachim Wendler, Sreedhar Yedlapati.

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Forests as Saviour

21 March "International Day of Forests": The world's forests store billions of tons of CO2 per year and are the cradle of biodiversity: protecting forests therefore plays a key role in climate protection.

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To the article about orangutans on Sumatra
Win Gayo, an adult orangutan in the rainforests of Sumatra

Back to the forest

The Bukit Tigapuluh protection programme has been running on the Indonesian island of Sumatra for more than 20 years. The focus is on resettling orangutans and conserving the living environment for the area's unique flora and fauna. KfW supports this work.

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To the picture gallery
Plastic waste

Endangered diversity

Plastic waste gets stuck in coral reefs and mangrove forests and destroys sensitive ecosystems. Our picture gallery takes you to Indonesia: an area with the highest marine biodiversity worldwide, but also extreme waste concentration.

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Rocket in space, flying above globe.

Reaching for the stars

Munich-based rocket building company Isar Aerospace is expected to launch satellites into Earth orbit from 2023.

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Actor Bjarne Mädel sits on the African E-Bike in front of the Alster

Powered by the sun

Jürgen Perschon from Hamburg and actor Bjarne Mädel are helping the transition to sustainable and environmentally friendly mobility in Africa. They talk to KfW Stories about their motivation, the assistance they are receiving from KfW subsidiary DEG and about the AfricroozE, the bicycle that can save lives.

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A group of e-cyclists in a street

Solar-powered mobility

The first 100 AfricroozE e-bikes are now on the roads in Uganda. The project, financed by KfW subsidiary DEG, contributes to the expansion of green mobility in Africa.

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mayor Weber in front of wind turbine

The village of the future

Free e-buses? Wind turbines and solar power? District heating and organic vegetables from permaculture soils? In the Lower Saxon municipality of Flecken Steyerberg, this is already part of everyday life.

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Two businessmen talking outside brick building at solar panels

"Our climate protection offensive is unique in Europe"

Alexander Klein, Vice President Climate and Environmental Corporate Finance, speaks to us about promotional opportunities for the SME sector, newly established programmes and less impervious car parks.

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Energy Bunker by night

From bunker to power plant

In the Hamburg district of Wilhelmsburg, a World War II bunker is being used as a renewable energy power plant to generate decentralised heat for the surrounding area, as well as electricity.

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Read the interview with Heliatek-CEO Guido van Tartwijk
Two man attaching solarfilms onto a wall

"On virtually any surface"

Heliatek CEO Guido van Tartwijk on his organic solar films, the solar market of the future and the most important decision in the company's history.

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Tolumnia henekenii

Biodiversity at solar park

The largest solar park in the Caribbean has been built in the Dominican Republic. For this project, KfW subsidiary DEG not only provided a German photovoltaic manufacturer with the necessary capital, it also ensured the survival of rare plants growing on the site.

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Thomas Koch in his garden

Leading by example

Global warming requires immediate action. Thomas Koch, who works for German development finance institution DEG, has assumed responsibility and reduced his carbon footprint to a minimum. How did he get to that point? It all started with a visitor to his home.

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A man looks out of his rooftop window onto his photovoltaic modules.

Solar energy on demand

Sonnen GmbH has developed a storage system so that solar power can be used even after sunset. Homeowners can use an app to control when and to where the electricity should flow from their photovoltaic systems.

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seed bank Norway

A vault for seeds

Crop Trust is helping to save valuable seeds from all over the world in Svalbard, Norway. The seeds are stored in an underground chamber at a temperature of minus 18 degrees.This is a vital project for feeding humanity in times of advancing climate change.

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To the interview
Katrin Böhning-Gaese

“People need nature – not the other way around”

Biologist, author and winner of the German Environmental Award 2021, Prof Dr Katrin Böhning-Gaese spoke to KfW Stories about the dangers of diminishing biodiversity and why the coronavirus crisis has offered a unique opportunity to make our economies greener.

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Blue Action Fund Pacific coral reef

Advocates of the oceans

With the Blue Action Fund, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and KfW created an important institution for marine and coastal protection in developing countries. The difficult beginning was followed by an extraordinary success story.

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