@W_Lucht@mstdn.social
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

W_Lucht

@W_Lucht@mstdn.social

⭕ Earth system scientist; in Germany, EU - here not in official function. 💫
Verification link: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3398-8575

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W_Lucht, to random
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Thread on the hunger strike for climate action in Berlin and my reaction to being mentioned in today's press release by the group.

For the past 61 days, a climate activist, Wolfgang Metzeler-Kick, has been on ("wet") hunger strike in central Berlin. He was subsequently joined by now three others. One activist's medical condition is reported to be critical now. The public has not taken very much notice.

Reports are that he is determined to die, if need be.

1/n

https://hungern-bis-ihr-ehrlich-seid.de/

W_Lucht,
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

The group's demand is for the German chancellor to publicly declare climate heating to be an existential challenge that needs action.

Today, a large group of "Scientists for Future" published a statement. It states that the factual analysis regarding the urgency of the situation with respect to climate heating is, overall, in accordance with the findings of science.

We share the activist's concerns.
I signed, as did many others.

2/n

https://de.scientists4future.org/stellungnahme-s4f-klimaforderungen-hungerstreikende/

W_Lucht,
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

Today, the group released a press statement mentioning me by name as "supporting their action".

I'd like to say clearly and unequivocally that I share their concern and analysis in its essence, but I do NOT support their action, namely a continuation of their hunger strike.

Not only can a democratic government not allow itself to be extorted in this manner - this is not how democracy works.

What is more, I am engaged in the protection of Earth to safeguard life. All life.

3/n

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

A week has passed already since our online event on as a "Strategy of the Enough".

We were about 340 participants all told, with many prominent actors and engaged citizens participating. Feedback was very positive. Thank you to all who joined!

is a deeply meaningful challenge. It is urgently necessary for making social democracy ecological and achieving more justice. It is not an affront to our values but an expression of our values.

An illustrative graphic of injustice on a global scale: 10% of humans cause half of all household-related CO2 emissions, the least-emitting half of humanity less than 8%. Also, material consumption rises with wealth not just a bit, but multifold. The environmental crisis is due to the consuming to rich.

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

‼️ Today is 🇩🇪's widely reported "overshoot day" - and it's true: we overuse natural resources, substantially. Six of nine planetary boundaries are transgressed, some by a lot. This endangers planetary stability, as numerous indicators with strongly negative trends show.

But what most don't know (but @christianschwaegerl investigated and highlighted last year) are some important shortcomings of this popular metric ...

(1/2)

W_Lucht,
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

Namely: the overshoot mostly reflects how much forest we'd need to compensate our CO2 emissions (see figure; minus ocean uptake). Fair enough - though nobody suggests this is how to combat climate heating. But what is more: according to this accounting, with all demands not CO2 we'd still be well within the limits. That reveals methodological weaknesses: the computation does not include damages to ecological networks, habitat degradation, pollution, excess nitrogen, water withdrawals ...

(2/2)

W_Lucht,
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

PS: This illustrates we still urgently need a systematic, more comprehensive assessment of the human destabilisation of Earth beyond climate, with a focus on biosphere integrity. Much of Earth system science and Earth system policy is still geocentric - but we need to be biocentric (including anthropocentric approaches).

Starting later this year, we plan to publish annual "Planetary Health Checks" building on the planetary boundaries framework. We're currently ramping up the team.

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

It's absurd: The G7 declare their intent to end coal by 2035 (too late, but ...)

And the head of my coal-producing state of Brandenburg, a social democrat, declares - and is cited with this nonsense in the news media - that there is no factual basis for this date, he's opposed.

Never heard of the CO2 budget? That every ton of CO2 matters? Of not being on track?

He says he cares for the people - in the coal regions. All the young and future people of Earth obviously aren't his concern.

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

This is not the Europe I want to belong to.
This is not the Europe of the Enlightenment and the Common Good.

Even here in Germany it's being discussed as "a model". We're the rich part of the world - what do you expect to happen? That we don't face our obligations to justice and humanity?

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/apr/28/home-office-to-detain-asylum-seekers-across-uk-in-shock-rwanda-operation

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

The German parliament has decided to "update" the German Climate Law, as proposed by the government.

It's a case of ignoring scientific advice in the name of political expediency.

👉 It is not good to diffuse responsibility for effective CO2 reduction policies by making sectoral reduction objectives less binding.

👉 Requiring stringent action only when targets are being missed for two years in projections opens opportunities for green washing.

(1/2)

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

It is really frustrating. Another evening, another talkshow on German TV where rather than analyzing the right-wing, a rightwing demagogue is invited to spew fact-free attacks on decency and democracy - as an attempt to "confront them", to "not be biased", to "counter what they say". The mainstream media helplessly misunderstand the neofascist strategy. It's about enraging others, about generating sound bites and clips for social media, about playing the system - not about convincing anyone.

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

My talk yesterday on as a programme of advancing responsible democracy, followed by an exchange of thoughts with the Environmental Protection Agency's president Dirk Messner and the Protestant Academy's Jörg Göpfert, was at the agency's headquarters in Dessau. It is a fascinating meandering building full of interior spaces that support the human dimension, fostering the agency's important analytical work, and reflect the meandering Elbe river nearby, the surrounding city and parks.

One end of the main building, which has four stories and a meandering form, shows multicoloured panels mounted between the windows and horizontal wooden elements of an earthly colour. Behind some greenery the more modern main entrance complex is visible, made largely of glass and steel.
The inside has large open atriums bridged by a high, structured glass and steel ceiling making the sky fully visible. The floor is off bright, slightly reflective stone and quite large living greenery forms islands. The 4-story offices on both sides have large window fronts separated by warm horizontal wood panelling, and the two sides are connected by lofty foot bridges spanning the interior courtyard space.
The Environmental Protection Agency's name is written in large letters onto the glass facade at the entrance, which reflects the space and trees in front of it. The wording "Umweltbundesamt" is associated with the agency's logo, a stylized human with outstretched arms in a filled circle.

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

Want to join our team in a key position?

We're looking to hire a

👉 scientific project coordinator 👈

for a new major undertaking currently ramping up across the board: the "Planetary Boundaries Science Initiative", which will publish an annual Planetary Health Check starting later this year.

You'd work on support of a team of top scientists in an international network and at the Potsdam Institute to deliver key science for the planet.

Potsdam, Berlin.

More here:
https://potsdam.pi-asp.de/bewerber-web/?xsrf=220FE50E5D4B76FFC90F4304FCA9933A&company=PIK-FIRMA-ID&tenant=&lang=E&jobdesign=#position,id=f4eb1e6d-844d-4831-aa78-6a5c7f876485

W_Lucht, to random
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#EarthDay 🌏: here's the state today of ... no, not Earth, but our societies, stuck in myopic evasion, denial.

  1. CNN: brazenly suggests to celebrate Earth Day by consuming some more 🤯 (use their codes! ☠️)

  2. The Guardian: spending on the military has risen to $2443 billion in 2023, a new record 🤯 (based on SIPRI analysis: https://www.sipri.org/media/press-release/2024/global-military-spending-surges-amid-war-rising-tensions-and-insecurity )

🤔 Just imagine if we were to actually do something useful - such as safeguarding our ecological foundations. At least on Earth Day.

A Guardian news report is entitled "Global defence budget jumps to record high of $2440bn"

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

My institute @PIK_climate joined more than 350 other scientific institutions in publishing across major newspapers their statement - Diversity makes us strong.

"Blind populism? No thanks. So-called 'remigration' of our friends, neighbours, colleagues? Definitely not! And fascism? Never again! Germany does not need an alternative to freedom and diversity."

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

I've posted this before, made it almost exactly a year ago. It was never more suitable than today.

After a campaign of scare mongering by the liberals devoid of facts that some media went along with, the gvmt has reached agreement to abolish strict adherence to emissions reductions targets in key sectors - only "the government" as a collective whole is responsible, no ministry can be strictly held legally accountable for their (lack of) contributions.

It's called "diffusion of responsibility".

W_Lucht,
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@NatureMC
Oops, totally forgot about the alt text (I usually always have one), I was posting on the side ...

W_Lucht, to random
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New paper from my team: We use our biosphere model to study in detail the potential of biochar applications on agricultural fields to sequester carbon in a way that neither compromises calories production nor requires additional land for biochar feedstock production.

"We calculated a land-neutral global NE potential of 0.20–1.10 GtCO2/year assuming 74% of the biochar carbon remaining in the soil after 100 years."

Open access:
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11027-024-10130-8

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

An outrageous opinion in Switzerland's conservative NZZ claiming that the European Court of Human Rights is in cahoots with the activists, that the concerned citizens who brought their government to court are just a front-end for Greenpeace, that a human right to a secure future never existed and that it's all an affront to democracy, self-determination and Switzerland.

The extent to which the denialist system throws temper-tantrums when faced with reality.

https://www.nzz.ch/meinung/absurdes-urteil-gegen-die-schweiz-strassburg-betreibt-klima-politik-von-der-richterbank-herab-ld.1825599

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

A member of the technical staff of a major arts museum in Munich hung his own painting in a corridor.

He got fired.
But I think he should be celebrated.

There is no information on whether the painting was any good.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/09/german-art-museum-fires-worker-for-hanging-his-own-painting-in-gallery

W_Lucht, to random
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"Swiss women win landmark climate victory at human rights court"

European Court of Human Rights "President Siofra O'Leary said the Swiss government had violated the human right to a private and family life, by failing to put in place sufficient domestic policies to tackle climate change."

However, the court threw out 2 other similar cases, the first brought by six Portuguese youth against 32 European gvmts and another by a former French mayor against the French gvmt.

https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-activists-seek-breakthrough-human-rights-court-ruling-against-european-2024-04-09/

W_Lucht,
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“It feels like a mixed result because two of the cases were inadmissible,” said Corina Heri, a law researcher at the University of Zürich. “But actually it’s a huge success.”

"The court ruled that Swiss authorities had not acted in time to come up with a good enough strategy to cut emissions."

On the Portuguese youth: "The court did not admit the case, deciding that the applicants could not bring cases against countries other than Portugal."

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/apr/09/human-rights-violated-inaction-climate-echr-rules-landmark-case

W_Lucht, to random
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In celebration of today's total solar eclipse in North America: here is a collage of images I made during the total eclipse of August 21, 2017, which I witnessed in Oregon. There's just 3 1/2 minutes between the first and the last image. It was a totally overwhelming experience.

W_Lucht, to random
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The Guardian/The Observer:
"‘Simply mind-boggling’: world record temperature jump in Antarctic raises fears of catastrophe"

But push-back against climate activists, expansion of fossil fuels, a litany of reasons why no, you can't take away anything from anybody.

It's myopic. It'll catch up with everybody sooner than people think.

(That jump was 2 years ago, a paper was now published: "the statistical changes ... are indicators ... of an abrupt critical transition.")

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/apr/06/simply-mind-boggling-world-record-temperature-jump-in-antarctic-raises-fears-of-catastrophe

W_Lucht, to random
@W_Lucht@mstdn.social avatar

To be clear: the 🇩🇪 Climate Law on reducing emissions to close to zero by 2045 is ambitious and challenging. If we were to meet those reduction targets - which despite notable progress is still a very big IF - it'd be a substantial success, probably compatible with <2°C.

But it is not <1.5°C, if one applies principles of intl. justice.

We always said that the window is closing. At some point it's happened. We still have to work very VERY hard to keep the transgression as small as possible.

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