“Between the worlds”

Environment minister Barbara Hendricks receives respect abroad for Germany’s reputation as a defender of climate protection – but encounters problems at home when she tries to live up to that role, writes Michael Bauchmüller in an opinion piece for Süddeutsche Zeitung. This makes her a “minister between the worlds”, he adds. Economy minister Sigmar Gabriel – Hendricks’ fellow social-democrat – is giving her a particularly hard time as she tries to distinguish herself as an assertive environment minister, Bauchmüller writes. Gabriel almost embarrassed Hendricks by obstructing her efforts to come up with an ambitious Climate Action Plan but “she avoids open controversy” with her party leader, according to the author. It is the first time in Germany that the same party has led both the environment and economy ministries, leading to a situation in which “loyalty comes before comprehension” of the other’s political aims, he adds.

Read the article in German here.

Read more in the CLEW factsheet Germany’s Climate Action Plan 2050.