climatestrike – Page 2 – Christian Frank

Shutdown two, week forty-eight

The incidence in Cologne has slightly gone up; it’s at 61 right now.

Last week we had our general election; the Social Democrats won but won’t be able to form a government without the Greens and the Liberals. Negotiations are underway, and we are watching. At the same time, the former governing party, the Christian Democrats, is slowly disintegrating.

COP26 is around the corner, and the world governments are not doing enough to address the climate emergency, so we need to go back to the streets for another global climate strike on October 22.

To quote Greta, it’s time to stop the Bla Bla Bla and get down to serious action!

Local action is happening at ZAD Rheinland, where activists are defending the village of Lützerath against the commercial interests of RWE.

(Election Night, Climate Justice Camp Cologne, 9/26/21)

Shutdown two, week forty-seven

The incidence in Cologne has declined again; it’s at 59 right now.

Friday was the day of the global climate strike – a huge success!

We had 25,000 people attending in Cologne alone and 620,000 in Germany overall, and many millions worldwide.

More and more people are beginning to realize that you cannot argue with physics – if we do not change our way of living, we’ll make our planet uninhabitable for future generations; alas, there is yet no Planet B.

Today we have our general election – the government we’ll elect this time will be the last one to prevent the worst outcomes and secure somewhat of a future for our kids.

Wish us luck! I will cover the result in a separate post later this week.

(Climate Justice Camp, Cologne, 9/25/21)

Shutdown two, week forty-six

The incidence in Cologne has declined further; it’s at 78 right now.

On a further positive note, our government expects a vaccine for the under-12-year-olds by early next year. Yay!

This Friday, September 24, is the next global climate strike. We’re proud to host the scientist Jason von Juterczenka in Cologne with an exciting talk on the 6th IPCC Assessment Report – we hope to see you there!

I am also eternally grateful to all the artists who moved their craft to a streaming platform and enabled us to attend events without physically attending. I have visited so many different venues over the last two years, and I hope that I will be able to continue to do so after the pandemic ends.

(Techno Lieben und Leben, Oberzissen, 9/18/21)

Shutdown two, week forty-five

The incidence in Cologne is further down, at 110 right now.

As the weather turns cold outside, people are (hopefully) settling back into their stay-at-home routine. The pandemic is still very present, and the virus is still quite deadly; the fourth wave has started.

This weekend marks 20 years of 9/11, with President Biden leading a day of nationwide grief and remembrance.

In Munich, a big car show, IAA, took place. We still haven’t realized that the necessary change in mobility does not mean simply replacing the power train.

The climate emergency is real, and we need to re-think mobility from the ground up. Alas, our governing party and their leading candidate do not get that at all.

But: Elections are coming up soon!

#CarIsOver #IAAhatFertig

(Open Space Königsplatz, München, 9/11/21)

Shutdown two, week forty-two

The incidence in Cologne is at 138. Need I say more?

Our climate camp is joining OKNB for the trip to Berlin and will take a break until mid-September, returning for the final week of climate election campaigning and the next global climate strike on September 24.

We desperately need a more competent government, one that values compassion and science. And doesn’t invent forms to prevent our Afghan friends from leaving the country and joining us.

On a private note, I’ve submitted my thesis on time. Wish me luck!

(Directions, Klimacamp Cologne, 8/23/21)

Shutdown two, week forty-one

The local incidence rate in Cologne is at 75 and rising.

We have failed the people of Afghanistan.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released their sixth Assessment Report, containing pretty dire predictions. If you’re interested in an excellent explanatory write-up, I recommend this post by our scientist Jason von Juterczenka.

Looking at the bleak outlook, Christian Stöcker also has an op-ed in Der Spiegel headlined “The parents are still far from angry enough” – so true!

Six weeks to the upcoming general election and the climate justice camp in Cologne is still going strong

(Climate Justice Camp, Cologne, 8/13/21)

Shutdown two, week thirty-eight

Are we still in lockdown?

Technically speaking, yes – the CoSchVO still affects Cologne, with an average incidence rate of 31.8 and R at 1.28, and restrictions are in place.

I’m keeping my distance and wearing a mask indoors; however, there are many parties in our parks, and many people travel for fun and vacation. I hope fall won’t be a big disaster! With R above 1, chances are slim, though.

The climate justice camp in Cologne is in its 8th week now – come and visit!

(Directions, Cologne Climate Camp, 7/25/21)

Shutdown two, week thirty-five

Not surprisingly, the numbers are going back up again.

Still, it feels almost as if the lockdown was over, at least outside. In shops and public transport, everybody wears a mask, though.

We’re getting closer to the next general election. Unfortunately, the current ruling party and their primary candidate are trying to tackle the climate emergency not by addressing the issues, such as burning fossil fuels, but by trying to outlaw protests.

Difficult weeks lie ahead of us.

However, the climate justice camp in Cologne is going strong, with daily activities and many people visiting.

(#NoVersGNRW Cologne, Ebertplatz, 6/28/21)

Shutdown two, week thirty-four

Infections rates are down; the weather is fine, and people are out and about. Almost nobody observes social distancing rules anymore. Summer!

We’re probably four to six weeks behind the UK on Delta-Infections. The numbers we get from the UK on infection rates and hospitalization are not encouraging – fall does not look promising right now.

The preliminary IPCC report is equally disturbing and does not bode well for our future either.

We need to unite behind science and continue to fight both crises!

Unfortunately, the answer of our state government is to outlaw climate protest rather than focus on fighting the climate emergency.

(Nightshift in the Climate Justice Camp, Cologne, 6/24/21)

Shutdown two, week thirty-three

The number of new infections is still going down; we’ll most likely ease the mask mandate soon now.

However, the information we receive from the UK on the Delta-Mutation is not encouraging. We need to prepare in summer for a possible fourth wave in fall. Doesn’t that sound somewhat familiar?

The other emergency is not going away, either. Our governing party just released an abysmal election program with no ambition to reach the 1.5-degree goal of the Paris accord.

We need to go back to weekly strikes.

(Warming stripes for NRW 1881-2020, CC-BY Ed Hawkins ShowYourStripes, 6/21/21)