Making the economy more resilient with a climate stimulus programme

Gilching / Berlin (April 28, 2020) – 68 large German and international companies from all sectors of the economy, together with Torqeedo, call upon politicians on the occasion of the Petersberg Climate Dialogue to combine economic measures to deal with the Corona crisis with ambitious climate policy.

At today's launch of the 11th edition of the Petersberg Climate Dialogue, a broad alliance of 68 large companies from all sectors of the economy address political representatives in a business statement: The private sector is prepared to assume societal responsibility in the crisis and, at the same time, stick to the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement. To achieve this, governments must act decisively now and restore urgently needed investment security with climate-friendly long-term economic stimulus programmes.

The participating companies, including Torqeedo, are renowned representatives from all sectors of the economy, such as heavy industry, chemical industry, mechanical engineering and vehicle manufacturing, the financial sector and large companies from the building and mobility sectors. Together, they employ almost one million people in Germany and more than 3 million people globally, representing a global turnover of about one trillion Euro.

Christoph Ballin, CEO Torqeedo says: "The Corona pandemic has shown that proper preparation for a crisis situation makes an important difference. The time to prepare for the climate crisis is now. We must reduce the use of fossil fuels on land and on the water to implement the Paris Climate Convention and meet the 2° goals.”

Sabine Nallinger, Managing Director of Foundation 2°: “Many companies from all sectors of the economy have already begun to make their business models climate-friendly, based on scientific evidence. These investments must not be jeopardized. The German government should work with all Member States of the European Union to assure that there is no turning back from European climate policy.”

Through an ambitious design of the EU Green Deal, the German government can help to lead the European economy out of the crisis with a significant boost to innovation and modernization, position European companies as leading players in sustainable technologies on the world market and secure jobs in Europe.

For this to succeed, the German government should work to ensure compliance with the Paris Climate Agreement also in times of the Corona crisis. By the next UN Climate Change Conference COP 26 at the latest, all governments should present ambitious climate targets (NDCs) in line with the objectives of the Paris Climate Agreement. Together with an international alliance of progressive companies, Foundation 2° will support the German government in this endeavour.