Climate Protection and Adaptation

Results of the klimazwei Research Programme

Introduction
Climate change means great challenges for our society. The respective
changes in our environment contain both risks and opportunities. Additional
knowledge is required in order to minimise the risks and profit from the
opportunities. With the funding programme “klimazwei – research for climate
protection and protection from climate impacts”, the German Federal
Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) is financing research on
dealing with climate change. Concrete solutions both for climate protection
measures and for adaptation to climate change have been developed
in transdisciplinary research co-operations involving users from business
and society. klimazwei is therefore the BMBF’s first funding programme to
explicitly discuss the management of climate change from both perspectives,
mitigation and adaptation. Thus, it provides an important contribution
to the High-Tech Strategy on Climate Protection, which was presented to the
public in October 2007 by the German Federal Minister of Education and
Research Annette Schavan.
The issues funded under klimazwei can only provide examples. Consequently,
the BMBF develops further research areas in order to effectively
respond to climate change. As such, in mid 2008 the BMBF initiated the
funding programme “Managing climate change in the regions of the future
(KLIMZUG)”. Through an establishment of networks from science, business
and politics, regions shall be enabled to adapt to climate change. Further
funding activities related to the High-Tech Strategy on Climate Protection
under preparation. Research takes responsibility for joint efforts with all players
in society to find adequate responses to the challenges of global climate
change.
Dr Henk van Liempt, German Federal Ministry for Education and Research