Episode #9: Climate Leaders 101: Annalena Baerbock’s assertive push towards renewable climate policies amid Germany's energy and security crisis

RAIA(ffairs)

Annalena Baerbock’s childhood was one marked by a collaborative household and by attending the Green Party protests with her family. This has influenced her two central political stances: she emphasizes the importance of having a radical attitude when it comes to climate action, and the importance of togetherness whilst doing so. In this episode of our Climate Leaders 101, we discuss the German climate leader’s rise in the Green party with RAIA summer program intern and IE student, E. Püren San. We discuss the significance of her candidacy speech in 2018 as a defining moment for her leadership, as her plans for Germany’s coal phase-out and transition to renewables. We attempt to understand how Baerbock consolidates national climate action with social policy, and how she has also dealt with climate action at an international level during her time as a Minister for Foreign Affairs. Furthermore, we look at Germany’s dependence on Russian natural gas and how Baerbock’s approach to climate advocacy has changed with the Ukraine-Russian war. Particularly, Püren answers our key question: has the war compromised the promises made by the climate leader?The Climate Leaders 101 series is brought to you as a collaboration between RAIA and IE University’s School of Global and Public Affairs as part of the EU Commission’s Initiative 1Planet4All. 1Planet4All is a project that seeks to promote the active participation and commitment of European youth in the fight against the climate emergency. It is part of the DEAR program of Education for Development and Awareness, an initiative of the European Commission Commission and with the support of 14 development and humanitarian aid NGOs, including Ayuda en Acción (Aid in Action). The 1Planet4All project seeks to bring together young individuals to help achieve the 2023 objectives.Check out the report on Annalena Baerboack written by E. Püren San: https://raiagroup.org/ie-gpa-x-raia-summer-research-programCheck out E. Püren’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/e-p%C3%BCren-san-ieu/