demands

Disclaimer: The following English version is a translation from the original German version. It serves only for informational purposes. For all other purposes please refer to the original text in German.

We will camp here until action is taken for climate justice, in Freiburg and globally.

International:

Establishing mandatory CO2e-Budgets at the international level

The Paris Climate Accord, in its current form, is not able to guarantee the necessary global decrease of CO2e emissions. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a concrete fixation of the target, the establishment of compulsory national CO2e budgets and an effective sanctioning mechanism. Climate justice will only succeed if we align our goals to the 1.5° target, with a 67% probability that this target can be achieved. From this results a global CO2e budget in the amount of 400 Gt, the starting point of this budget in 2020 (IPCC 2021, p. 29). This budget is to be distributed among the countries according to the principle of equality – each budget depending on the population size. For Germany, this means there is a residual budget of 2 Gt CO2e, the count starting in 2022 (SRU 2022). In the future, the states must be obliged to comply with these budgets. If these budgets are exceeded, a strict sanctioning mechanism of 680 euros per ton of CO2e will be applied. (Klimaschadenskosten UBA 2020). It is essential that the global North is prevented from shifting the responsibility in carbon reduction to the global South, such as through international trade in emission certificates. The necessary greenhouse gas reductions must also be achieved through eco-sufficiency. Furthermore, reports of CO2e [emissions] should include consumption-based emissions in addition to territorial emissions (Expert*innenrat für Klimafragen 2022, p.81).

EU level (Andreas Schwab)

Reorganization of EU Agricultural Subsidies based on Socio-ecological Criteria

Monocultures, groundwater pollution, biodiversity loss, farm death and labor exploitation: the challenges in agriculture are enorm and diverse.

The existing regulations favor farms with a lot of land and encourage the trend towards the progressive industrialization of agriculture (BUND 2021). As a result of current agricultural policies and practices, the agriculture industry generates external costs of nearly 90 billion euros annually (BCG 2019). A reorganization of EU agricultural subsidies is urgently needed. The payment of subsidies liberally/ “as with a watering can”, i.e. depending on the area,

should be completely replaced (ZKL 2021, p. 6). In the future, subsidies must be based on/orientated around social-ecological criteria and take into account regional aspects and animal welfare. Since about 50% of the farmers’ income depends on EU subsidies, political policy has a great influence on the monetary incentives. This influence should be used to place emphasis on quality rather than quantity in agriculture. (UBA 2017).

Gemeinwohl nachhaltig
The accounting of these public good-promoting services, i.e. sustainable service, plays an important role here. The work of Christian Hiß and Regionalwert AG can be used for this purpose (Regionalwert AG 2019) – they describe the application of these accounting processes . Compared to external costs (costs that arise outside of the system in focus, typically ecological or social costs), these costs are manageable at €7-11 billion per year for transformation. Furthermore, this transformation offers the opportunity to reconcile the conflicting areas of food security, climate and environmental protection, and employment (ZKL 2021, p.120).

Federal Level (Chantal Kopf, Claudia Raffelhüschen)

Immediate Implementation of the Proposals of the Citizens’ Climate Council at the Federal Level

Citizens’ councils/municipal councils are an important instrument when it comes to shaping the socio-ecological transformation. Through their transparent and participatory process, social negotiation processes based on scientific knowledge can succeed. Further, due to their representative composition, the proposals of the Citizens’ Council have a high legitimacy and acceptance among the general population (Forsa 2021).

After extensive scientific consultation and discussion, the Citizens’ Council Climate 2021 developed more than 80 proposals for the fields of action “Mobility,” “Buildings and Heat,” and “Nutrition/Food”. These include demands such as the extensive renunciation/abstinence of animal-based foods and the ban on short-haul flights. These proposals show that the population would go much further in many areas than politicians want them to (Citizens’ Climate Council 2021). Therefore, the proposals of the Citizens’ Council should be taken seriously and implemented promptly.

Tax the rich! – How the socio-ecological transformation should be financed

Income and wealth disparities in Germany are glaring. According to estimates by the German Institute for Economic Research, the richest 1% owns 35% of the wealth of the country (DIW 2020). At the same time, the tasks of the public sector for the climate-friendly transformation of energy and transport infrastructure, agriculture, industry and buildings are enormous. The costs for the socio-ecological transformation must be carried by those who can afford it. We therefore endorse the demands of the Tax Justice Network [Netzwerk Steuergerechtigkeit], which proposes a variety of effective policies (Tax Justice Network 2022). First and foremost,

the taxation of capital and wages must be equal. This can be achieved through synthetic taxation – income from wages and capital gains will be added up and taxed progressively. In addition, higher taxes for the top bracket are needed. In 1995, the rate was 59%; it was reduced to 42%. (Wirtschaftsdienst 2018).
Over generations, inequality is further entrenched by inheritances. Due to numerous exemption rules, large inheritances are taxed particularly low (SZ 2019). In the future, this must be prevented by an inheritance tax reform. Furthermore, the wealth tax, whose legal basis has never been abolished, must be levied again (Bundestag 2021). Finally, much more effective action must be taken against tax crimes and tex evasion – every year, Germany loses 40 billion euros as a result of these actions (Tax Justice Network 2022, p.26).

Full wind ahead!

As part of the measures required to achieve sufficient CO2 reductions in line with the 1.5°C target (see Demand 1), it is essential to press ahead with the energy transition. In the spirit of the transformation to a sustainable and greenhouse gas-neutral power supply, the German government has set binding targets for the specific area coverage the individual federal states must meet in the Wind on Land Act. The state of Baden-Württemberg is allocated an area of 1.8% by 2032. This target is not ambitious enough: we demand that 2% of the land area in Baden-Württemberg be used for wind power. The 2% of land area to be used for wind power must not only be designated/assigned, but the wind power must also be implemented immediately. The area should be designated by the state of Baden-Württemberg by 2024 and the wind power should be put into operation by 2027, at the latest. The state must provide sufficient financial resources for this. An astonishing fact is that with the construction of wind power plants on 2% of the land, only 0.007% of the total area is actually built on – the rest is to leave space for movement of the wind turbines (presentation Volker Quaschning June 2022). By comparison, the transportation network in Germany currently covers an area of 5.1% (Statistisches Bundesamt 2020).

Southern Upper Rhine Regional Association [Regionalverband Südlicher Oberrhein]

457 wind turbines for the Regionalverband Südlicher Oberrhein!

Based on the results of the study “100% Renewables for the Breisgau”, 457 wind turbines have to be built in the Regionalverband Südlicher Oberrhein by 2035 in order to achieve the regional energy transition. The study assumes an efficiency gain of 50%, primarily through electrification, and no increase in sufficiency (Seelmann- Eggebert 2022). This corresponds to an annual addition of at least 35 wind turbines. In 2021, 5 wind turbines were built on the association’s territory. We therefore need about a sevenfold increase in expansion. This number can only be reduced by a consistent sufficiency strategy. Refraining from hyperconsumption and a resource-intensive lifestyle are essential in reducing the regional

energy demand. This includes reducing the mandated living space per person in housing and limiting personal motorized transportation.

Municipal/City (Municipal Council)

The city of Freiburg must declare a social-ecological state of emergency!

Human civilization is in acute, high-level danger. Without structural changes, 3.3-3.6 billion people will lose their livelihood and have to leave their homes by 2100 (IPCC 2022). People are already suffering from climate change and the resulting extreme weather events, especially in the global South. If we do not act now, the window of opportunity will close further and further and we will no longer be able to resolve the social and ecological crises that have arisen. At least six of the nine planetary boundaries have left the range that is safe for humans, including, specifically: loss of biosphere integrity, climate change, biogeochemical flows (Rockström 2009), land-system change (Steffen 2015), novel entities(Persson 2022), and freshwater change: green water (Wang- Erlandsson 2022). If we do not act decisively now, the collapse of human civilization is the most likely scenario (UN 2022, Cernev 2022). It is a societal task, a decision to be made by the total of society, to decide against the collapse of civilization and death of several billion people and for a dignified, resource-efficient life for all people.

This clearly shows that a declaration of a social-ecological state of emergency is appropriate on all levels. Precisely this proclamation, of a state of emergency in Freiburg, must be the first direct action. Freiburg failed in 2019 to join the more than 40 German municipalities that have declared a climate emergency, including Constance, Munich and Cologne (UBA 02.2020). If the city of Freiburg declares a social-ecological state of emergency, it shows that it has recognized the acute need for action and the link between the social and ecological crises, sending a strong signal to the population.

Area justice through a consistent reduction of public parking spaces in Freiburg!
There are currently 28,000 public parking spaces for cars in Freiburg. Conversely, this means that much of the public space for trees, playgrounds, cafés and bicycle stands is missing. We hereby support the citizen’s motion within the climate mobility plan, which demands that 10% of public parking spaces are reallocated each year (Freiburg 2022). This corresponds to a decrease of 2800 parking spaces for the year 2022. Traffic change and area justice go hand in hand!

Solar offensive for Freiburg – addition of 28.5 MWp per year

We join the demand of the Klimaentscheid Freiburg:
The city must set a photovoltaic expansion target of rooftop solar power systems averaging 28.5 MWp per year for the next 15 years. In addition, by 2024, it must create a cadastre of all urban transport and other open spaces on which solar power systems can be economically

installed and operated. By 2026, the city will implement 1 MWp on transportation and other open spaces; by 2028, 20 MWp (Klimaentscheid 2022).

No highway through Freiburg!

The Climate Camp Freiburg joins the demands of the initiative “Statt-Tunnel – keine Autobahn durch Freiburg!” A traffic infrastructure turnaround is unachievable if a highway is built through Freiburg. In addition, the proposed tunnel costs several hundred billion euros (BZ 2016) – the tunnel is financially and ecologically a disaster. A highway through Freiburg is also extremely burdensome for the residents (new roads lead to more traffic). The through traffic is already increasing, alone the passage of loaded/hauling trucks has increased by more than 60% in the period from 2009 – 2019 (Stadttunnel 2021). The proposed highway will not decrease this traffic, but will make it more attractive according to the forecast (Stadttunnel 2021). In order to create sustainable traffic infrastructure in Freiburg, no new infrastructure for motorized individual transport should be built.

Explanation:

CO2e= CO2 Equivalence, Unit of measurement used to standardize the climate impact of different greenhouse gases.

External costs: costs incurred outside the system under consideration, often environmental or social costs.

Sufficiency: changing the prevailing consumption pattern to use as few resources as possible.

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