Since the 2021 German-US conference CLIMATE BRIDGE, the political leadership of both countries changed. How do the new governments impact climate politics? How do politics affect scientific and professional cooperation between Germany and the US?
The book presentation and panel discussion “Climate Bridge” in Bottrop Germany was hosted by our partner Emschergenossenschaft (EGLV), a public water management association in the Ruhr Region. Their head of research and development Prof. Dr. Issa Nafo highlighted the impact of climate change on water management and the importance of local initiatives to support municipal cooperation.
Rutgers faculty Wolfram Hoefer summarized the outline of the book: Section I, Tools and Process, compares environmental planning approaches on both sides of the Atlantic and outlines different approaches to common problems. Section II, Uncertainty and Space, introduces case studies from both the United States and Germany highlight adaptation strategies for uncertainties caused by climate change. Section III, Place and Connectedness, addresses people’s dependence on ecological systems for our physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Angela Oberg, director of the Rutgers Office of Climate Action, shared the message by Rutgers president that we are committed to driving climate action in New Jersey and beyond and that we continue to be steadfastly committed to international collaboration.
Our local academic partner, The University Alliance Ruhr, represented by Hans Stallmann, is continuing interdisciplinary research partnerships because the global problem climate change requires international cooperation. Thorsten Wichmann, professor of spatial planning at Technical University Dortmund (member of the University Alliance) argued that we need to move away from the ideological ballast of the discussion and focus on the facts. This was supported by Johannes Boettger, landscape architect from Cologne. He further added that municipal partners are aware of the challenges and rely on landscape architects to offer well-designed pragmatic solutions. The moderator Sebastian Schlecht from the Laboratory for Landscape and Architecture for the Ruhr Metropolis (la.la.ruhr) summarized that our international collaboration on climate change is even more important in the current political context.
Please join us when we continue the discussion in New Jersey, at the Rutgers Cook Campus (IFNH 101) on September 17, 2025 at 4:00 pm. Climate Bridge – Rutgers University Press
This article was originally published here.