As a moderator and process consultant, I have been actively involved in climate protection, climate adaptation, and energy transition issues for many years, and their urgency is more apparent than ever. In this article, I share my recent experiences from various tasks related to these topics, spanning from international to local levels

1. International Cooperation at the Municipal Level

  • Project: Municipal Climate Partnerships
  • Description: Implemented by the Service Agency Communities in One World of Engagement Global in cooperation with LAG21 NRW on behalf of the BMZ, this project involves around ten climate partnerships, each comprising a German municipality and a municipality from the Global South. The goal is to develop joint programs of action for cooperation on climate change mitigation and adaptation over a two-year period.
  • Role: Advising and moderating three-day face-to-face events in autumn 2022, each hosting approximately 60 to 90 international participants and high-ranking guests. Facilitating trust-promoting and results-oriented exchanges amidst diverse languages and hybrid elements.

2. Nationwide Exchange and Impetus for Municipal Stakeholders

  • Project: Green Cities 2035 – Climate-neutral municipalities with new alliances
  • Description: The Heinrich Böll Foundation, in collaboration with the German Institute of Urban Affairs (difu), initiated a nationwide series of online events for municipal stakeholders. Practitioners from local politics, the local economy, and citizens’ initiatives share perspectives and experiences on implementing ambitious and appealing climate policies at the local level.
  • Role: Preparation and moderation of the virtual kick-off event “Climate-neutral municipalities” in March 2022, as well as two additional online events on “Solar and wind” in June 2022 and “Participation culture” in September 2022.

3. Supra-Regional Multi-Stakeholder Alliance for Wind Energy Expansion

  • Project: WindRat
  • Description: WindRat is an independent and non-partisan association of players from the wind industry, environmental organizations, energy and climate protection agencies of the federal states, commercial enterprises, associations, and societies. The initiative aims to promote wind energy at social, political, economic, and scientific levels.
  • Role: Consulting and moderation of the virtual kick-off meeting and other virtual meetings of the WindRat since 2021.

4. Reducing Air Travel in the Academic Sector

  • Project: FlyingLess
  • Description: The FlyingLess project, conducted by ifeu in Heidelberg and funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, supports universities and research organizations in reducing air travel, a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the academic sector.
  • Role: Conception and implementation of half-day training workshops for multipliers in partner organizations, including EMBL (European Molecular Biology Laboratory) and MPI-Astronomy in Heidelberg, as well as the universities of Konstanz and Potsdam.

5. Meeting of Top Bavarian Officials

  • Event: LENK KOMMUNity Network Meeting
  • Description: The Bavarian State Agency for Climate and Energy (LENK) organized a large network meeting for approximately 150 district administrators and mayors from all over Bavaria at Nymphenburg Palace in Munich, focusing on making climate protection and energy transition a top priority.
  • Role: Advising and moderating the network event in autumn 2022.

6. Bavarian Wind Energy Campaign

  • Project: Windkümmerer
  • Description: Launched by the Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs, Regional Development, and Energy, the Windkümmerer project involves providing selected municipalities with needs-based advice and concrete support for wind energy projects.
  • Role: As a Trusted Partner of ifok GmbH, part of the Windkümmerer Unterfranken team, providing advice and moderation to the municipality of Üchtelhausen in the preparation of its referendum (held in June 2022), among other tasks