"Here in Heidelberg it has become very clear: We can do this. We have gained new insights and partners and forged new alliances. We have the knowledge and the will to work together and support each other in implementing the Paris Agreement." With these words, Federal Environment Minister Svenja Schulze summed up the two-day conference "ICCA2019 - International Conference on Climate Action" on Thursday afternoon. Around 900 international experts from all levels of government - from mayor to minister - and from business and science came together to exchange solutions on how the different levels of a country can collaborate to implement effective climate protection measures. International cooperation examples were also on the agenda.

Climate protection impacts everything

Mauro Petriccione, Director General Climate Action of the European Union, had already stressed at the beginning of the conference: "Climate protection is not an extra cost to pay – it is about doing everything differently and changing the way we spend our resources". Sheela Patel, President of Slim Dwellers International, told the participants that climate protection measures cannot be considered in isolation, but must be reconciled with other goals such as social justice: "The champions of the UN sustainability goals and the champions of the UN climate protection goals are sometimes at odds".

At the heart of the agenda were the cities, which already account for 60% of global CO2 emissions and will grow by 1.5 billion people in the next three decades. Dirk Messner, Director of the Institute for Environment and Human Security at the United Nations University, warned that the time of decarbonization coincided with the time of the fastest urbanization in human history. Just building the necessary infrastructure for urban growth as a result of urbanization and population growth would consume almost the entire CO2 budget by 2050 that humankind's 1.5-degree target still leaves behind. "We must build cities differently," was his urgent demand to produce or replace CO2-neutral building materials such as cement, steel and aluminium.

Recycling economy and bioeconomy

Accordingly, recurring topics included the circular economy and bioeconomy. Representatives from many countries emphasized that they are working to better manage waste and improve recycling - which not least creates jobs. Lisa Helps, the mayor of the Canadian city of Victoria, even expressed the hope that there would be no more landfills by 2050. Joke Dufourmont of the Dutch company Circle Economy stressed that this does not only includes recycling, but also systemic change: "Consumerism is still held in high esteem." Products must be designed to be recyclable right from the start, Dufourmont said. For example, cotton clothing is perfectly recyclable - as long as it does not contain polyester. The fibres are no longer separable, the entire garment is discarded. The perceived obsolescence is also problematic: for fashion reasons, clothing is now worn for an 80% shorter time period than before. Dufourmont concluded by quoting a study according to which the circular economy in the European Union could create 700,000 net jobs.

Positive effect on the job market

Helps had two examples from Victoria of how these jobs can create a perspective even for the long-term unemployed: There is the Binners' Project, in which unemployed deposit collectors have joined forces and cooperate with conference centres and other institutions to sort recyclables from waste. "The unemployed are now managers," their mayor was pleased to say. The same applies to the "Food Rescue Program": People who initially lived on bakery leftovers and almost expired food products, similar to Tafel customers in Germany, made a business out of processing food that would otherwise be thrown away into food and selling it. The programme now has its own building and works according to industrial standards.