December 22, 2011
In North America and Northern Europe roughly more than one third of CO2 emissions are due to heating, which is correlated to average temperatures from October to April. The latest estimates of the German aggregate energy consumption and CO2 emissions in 2011 confirm this rule of thumb. The total German energy consumption is expected to… » read more
Posted by Eberhard Rhein
December 20, 2011
The 17th International Climate Conference in Durban has terminated its two weeks` work with a procedural conclusion to work for an international climate agreement to be signed by 2015. This result owes much to the tenacity and negotiating skill of the EU delegation, but also to the EU`s credible climate policy, demonstrated once again by… » read more
Posted by Eberhard Rhein
December 16, 2011
In 10 years Germany will have to do without nuclear power, which contributed 20 per cent to German electricity supply in 2010. Will Germany replace nuclear power essentially through coal and gas; or will it be able to make a big leap forward towards renewables and higher energy efficiency? Six months after the German parliament… » read more
Posted by Eberhard Rhein
Sometimes stupid conflicts between people, families or countries persist over many years because of intransigence of the parties or lack of proper outside mediators. The conflict between Greece and Macedonia is one of these. It lasts ever since the breakup of Yugoslavia two decades ago and the independence of the Yugoslav republics , all of… » read more
Posted by Eberhard Rhein
December 13, 2011
Diplomatic conferences rarely end with a failure! Diplomats do not like being accused of failure. This goes in particular for long conferences with thousands of participants which cost millions of euro. The 17th international climate conference, COP 17 in the official jargon, that ended in the dawn of Sunday 11th December, 36 hours after its… » read more
Posted by Eberhard Rhein
December 7, 2011
2011 will go into European history as an “annum horribilis”, fraught with panic, uncertainties and political ineptitude. But in five years from now it will also be praised as a year of major reforms that have consolidated the euro-zone and made the EU fitter for the huge socio-economic challenges waiting at the horizon. It has… » read more
Posted by Eberhard Rhein
December 6, 2011
Since 1995 Transparency International, the Berlin-based, international non-governmental organisation, committed to the fight against corruption, has published global corruption reports, which rank the perceptions of corruption in 183 countries. The 2011 report that has come out December 1st confirms a common impression: wealthy countries that internalise protestant ethics are performing best, followed by those with… » read more
Posted by Eberhard Rhein
December 5, 2011
EU countries would benefit from joint bond emissions to finance their public debt. Joint bonds would create a huge market comparable to that for US federal debt and enable governments to secure better terms thanks to higher liquidity. Joint bond emissions will have to be guaranteed by all participating countries. In order to secure low… » read more
Posted by Eberhard Rhein
Thoughts on energy and climate, the Mediterranean and whatever comes to mind.
