2024 German Climate Adaptation Strategy

The impacts of climate change in Germany are tangible and quantifiable. In Germany and around the world, 2023 was the hottest year on record since measurements began in 1881; the average temperature in Germany has already risen by 1.8°C (linear trend) since then. The years 2014 to 2023 were already 2.3°C warmer than in 1881. At the same time, Germany has experienced devastating effects from heavy rainfall and flooding in recent years, particularly in 2021 and most recently in 2024. In future, all regions of Germany will be affected by a further rise in temperatures, an increase in the numbers of hot and dry days and a greater risk of heavy rainfall and flooding. Depending on the rate of global warming, the cumulative economic damage is expected to reach 280 to 900 billion euros by mid-century.

That is why the German government has made adaptation to the impacts of climate change a top priority in the 20th legislative period, alongside ambitious climate action. To tackle this challenge, it has created a new, binding framework for this with the Federal Climate Adaptation Act (Klimaanpassungsgesetz , KAnG). The Act requires the federal, federal state and municipal governments to address the impacts of climate change across the board and identify adaptation measures. This new precautionary climate adaptation strategy outlined here is the first strategy with measurable targets for adaptation to the impacts of climate change within the scope of responsibilities and competences of the German government, as required by section 3 of the Federal Climate Adaptation Act. As stipulated in section 1 of the Act, the strategy contributes to preserving equivalent living conditions by increasing the resilience and robustness of ecological systems, the economy and society to better withstand the effects of climate change both now and in future.