International Climate Protection Initiative as a model for international climate funding
At an event today on the margins of the climate negotiations in Poznań, the Federal Environment Ministry presented its International Climate Protection Initiative. This year the programme, which is funded by part of the auctioning revenues from emissions trading, is supporting more than 100 projects in developing, newly industrialising and transition countries with a total volume of around 200 million euro. The focus is on establishing climate-friendly industry, protecting climate-relevant ecosystems and adapting to the consequences of climate change.
Moving the global economy towards a low-carbon future requires such massive funding that it will only be possible with new financing solutions. The Climate Protection Initiative is a unique model worldwide. The Initiative reinvests revenues from the auctioning of emission allowances in climate protection projects.
Federal Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel: "Those who claim that in times of financial crisis, climate protection is a luxury know nothing about economics. Actually, the very opposite is true: we need a climate-based economic recovery plan. Investing billions in industrialised and newly industrialising countries presents a major opportunity for the global climate and the economy. But we have to invest wisely, namely in the future of our children and grandchildren on this planet."
Project selection by the Federal Environment Ministry is based on innovative and transferable concepts with a multiplier effect. Some examples of projects under the International Climate Protection Initiative are:
- With a low-interest credit line, the Federal Environment Ministry supports urban investments in renewable energies and energy efficiency in Johannesburg, South Africa.
- The water pump station in Jordan consumes huge volumes of electricity. A pilot project will achieve energy savings of up to 50 percent.
- A project run by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) in rural areas of India creates jobs through the expansion of bio-energy use.
- Insurance against climate risks is currently being increasingly discussed as a means of adapting to the impacts of climate change. The Federal Environment Ministry is providing 2 million euros for a GTZ model project aimed at enabling smallhold farmers and small-scale agricultural enterprises in rural regions of China to take out microinsurances against weather hazards arising from climate change.
- In the Amazon region of Peru, the Initiative supports measures for protected areas and methodological bases for reducing emissions from deforestation. The project aims to achieve reductions of 130,000 tonnes.