All posts filed under: interview

Harald Ginzky: The carbon footprint increases with the size of one’s wallet.

Published by jonas

Dr. Harald Ginzky works as an environmental lawyer and transformation scientist for the German Environment Agency, now for more than 20 years, and is in charge of inter alia negotiating international environmental treaties as member of German delegations. In 2019, he co-founded the working group (“Arbeitskreis”) of the SPD Bremen City – Climate Change, Environmental Protection and Sustainable Economy, which he has since led together with Bianca Wenke. In an interview with denkhausbremen – which he expressly did not conduct for the German Environment Agency, but as spokesman for the aforementioned AK – he discusses the challenges for the SPD with regard to global climate justice. (Photo: Ev. Academy Loccum) denkhausbremen: What does climate justice mean to you? What comes to your mind spontaneously? Harald Ginzky: We can only achieve justice if we understand what the real challenge of climate policy is. It is often pretended that the core objective of climate policy is just to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In my opinion, this is fundamentally wrong and in itself leads to an elitist and unjust approach. At …

The tides are flooding our roads, our houses – everything.

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Teresa Lifuka-Drecala in conversation with denkhausbremen about the rising sea level threatening her island state, the difficult decision of people from Tuvalu to leave their home country and the need to support vulnerable communities in the face of climate change. Teresa Lifuka-Drecala is a lawyer and an experienced Director and Board Member for various organizations, including the Tuvalu Association of NGOs and the Tuvalu National Youth Council. She is committed to promoting sustainable development in Tuvalu. denkhausbremen: What does climate justice mean to you?  Teresa Lifuka: For me, climate justice is a human centered approach. It’s about people in Tuvalu or in any country receiving the aid and assistance that they genuinely need, especially in the face of climate change. Equity is essential – the assistance needs to reach the grassroots level, the communities, which is the level that I work with. I think about climate justice as taking our concerns to court – which is very important – but also as money and funds to help grassroots communities adapt to the impacts of climate …

Hamira Kobusingye: Africa should forge its own path towards a sustainable future

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Hamira Kobusingye is a climate activist based in Uganda and the founder of the organisation Climate Justice Africa. In 2023, she received the Bremen Solidarity Prize for Climate Justice. In conversation with denkhausbremen Hamira Kobusingye talks about her climate activism in Uganda, the importance of climate education on grassroots-level and her fight against a new oil pipeline project (Photo: Bremen Senator Press Department). denkhausbremen: What does climate justice mean to you?  Hamira Kobusingye: When I envision climate justice, I see a world where no one’s life is valued more than another’s. Even today, African communities are exploited by the Global North, particularly regarding investments in oil fields. A glaring example is the long-lasting impact of an oil spill from a Shell pipeline in the Niger Delta, which has left residents with severe air, water, and soil pollution. Additionally, children in regions like the Congo are forced into labor to mine cobalt, which is then used to manufacture electric cars in Europe. This exploitation must end immediately; it is fundamentally unjust. Everyone deserves the right to …

Sunny Omwenyeke: Western countries must take responsibility!

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Dr. Sunny Omwenyeke in conversation with denkhausbremen about climate change as a reason for flight, his work to empower refugees to fight for their rights and the responsibility of Western countries to work on their colonial history and the damage they have created across Africa. Sunny Omwenyeke is a long-term activist of the refugee movement in Germany and founder of the Bremen Solidarity Center (BreSoC) e.V. (Foto: Ana Rodríguez). denkhausbremen: What does climate justice mean to you?  Sunny Omwenyeke: To me, climate justice would be a situation where countries that are most responsible for all the mess in our climate take more responsibility, where they are held accountable. Those are essentially the Western countries that have such a long record of exploiting and devastating many other countries – simply because they want to maintain their standard of living here. These countries are inconsiderate and greedy. If the Global North is serious about addressing climate justice, for me that would mean to pay something back to other countries they have destroyed. Even as we speak, this …

Isadora Cardoso: Climate justice means a good life for everyone

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Isadora Cardoso is a queer feminist climate activist and researcher from Brazil, who has been working on gender and climate justice for many years. After being with the Research Institute for Sustainability in Potsdam, Isadora is currently working as a PhD Fellow at the Freie Universität Berlin. The conversation with denkhausbremen revolves around false narratives around gender and climate issues as well as intersectional perspectives on climate justice (Foto: Ana Rodríguez). denkhausbremen: What comes to your mind when you think of climate justice? Isadora Cardoso: The first thing I can think of, is that climate justice is about a good life for everyone, especially for people that are most affected by injustices in general. Where even the most marginalized people in our societies from all corners of the world can live in dignity and have access to a good environment, housing and so on. These are basic rights, every human deserves them. The climate crisis aggravates the structural injustices that already exist today. This is why for me climate justice involves every fight for justice. …