Achieving Climate neutrality with the climate budget

Until now, the climate policy of many cities and federal states in Germany has been based on the financing of individual projects – an approach that is often selective and inefficient.

In order to meet the 1.5 degree target and the related legal requirements, however, it is necessary to align climate policy with the goals and make climate protection measures measurable and binding – which is precisely what the instrument of the climate budget offers. With the climate budget, climate protection becomes the integral part of governance.

The concept of the climate budget is tried and tested. In particular the city of Oslo, which introduced a climate budget in 2017, provides a model for its successful implementation. And in the Canadian province of British Columbia and its municipalities, decision-making is based on data and policies are measured by their impacts. For Berlin, the climate budget reflects qualities that the city has long stood for: creativity, sustainability and a diverse society.

The climate budget is based on goal-oriented political stewardship and continuous monitoring in order to effectively advance the cause of climate protection.

Social benefits and joint action

The goal-oriented approach to climate protection, as is reflected in the instrument of a climate budget, not only creates clarity for the implementing governmental action, it also provides the private sector with a secure basis for investments.

The central lever here is not individual consumption, but rather joint efforts for the public sphere, the economy and for the awareness of society. Mainstreaming climate factors into all relevant fields of governmental action (energy, building, mobility and the economy). Making actions measurable through established environmental benchmarks creates a clear and reliable framework. It also gives companies the necessary (investment) security and motivation to actively contribute to the necessary societal changes.

“We want to encourage politicians to introduce a climate budget and to count CO2 savings like they count money.”

Dr. Nicole Rudner

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