Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited Brussels on Thursday and the verbal solidarity was immense. “We are one family; family members help each other,” Ursula von der Leyen stressed. EU Council President Charles Michel promised the guest from Kyiv “maximum support”. However, this solidarity has not yet come in particularly concrete terms, as Stephan Israel analyzes.
Many people still pour money down the drain heating their homes because their house or apartment is poorly insulated. And this is likely to remain the case for some time to come. On Thursday, the Industry Committee voted in favor of numerous exemptions to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). About a quarter of the affected buildings is supposed to be exempt from the renovation obligation, as Manuel Berkel reports.
The Greens, in particular, are very strict when it comes to lobbying. But this week, such accusations against Green MEP Jutta Paulus have come to light. Now EPP members call for consequences: Paulus should withdraw as rapporteur for the EU legislative project to reduce methane emissions in the energy sector, EPP politicians demand.
It is rare for a guest to be so eagerly expected in Brussels that the European Quarter rolls out the red carpet and receives them with great fanfare. But when Volodymyr Zelenskiy made his appearance before the EU Parliament and later at the EU summit, it was clear that he was meant to feel right at home. There were ovations, cheering and the Ukrainian national anthem. “You have inspired not only your country but the whole world with your resistance,” Parliament Speaker Roberta Metsola greeted the guest. She said that Ukraine will win against Russia’s “brutal and illegal invasion”.
The Ukrainian president had arrived at Brussels Airport from Paris that morning with French President Emmanuel Macron, where he was received by EU Council President Charles Michel, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo. The only other person to receive such an honor is a US president.
Zelenskiy is Europe’s war president, the man from the front. This was already made clear by his clothing. Alongside the suits, the Ukrainian president clearly stood out in brown pants, sturdy shoes and a black sweater. Volodymyr Zelenskiy also proved in Brussels that he is a good speaker. He had a tailor-made message for each audience. He praised the British government for the early as well as determined support and, at the same time, demanded fighter planes and long-range missiles.
In Paris, he met Europe’s more reluctant tandem, Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz, for a late dinner. Not much leaked from the late-night conversation. According to diplomats, the visitor from the war zone made it clear that the situation on the front was critical.
Speaking before the EU Parliament, Volodymyr Zelenskiy addressed the whole of Europe. Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine is an attack against the “European way of life“. The Russian regime hates everything that Europe stands for, namely democracy, the rule of law, the social model and diversity. Only a Ukrainian victory would ensure that Europe’s values would prevail in the historic struggle against “anti-European forces”. The fate of Ukraine and the EU are linked, the message goes.
Almost at the same time, a few hundred meters away in the Europe Building, EU leaders arrived for the special summit. “We are here to send a signal of solidarity and support for Ukraine,” Chancellor Olaf Scholz said upon arrival.
Emmanuel Macron feels pressure to do more almost a year after the Russian attack on Ukraine began. He pointed to the difficult situation on the front lines, saying, “We see that the next weeks and months are crucial.” The West, he said, must send weapons that are useful now, not make promises that can only be fulfilled in the distant future. And in general, he said, the next deliveries will not be discussed publicly. The question of fighter jets for Ukraine “does not arise that way,” France’s president said.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy insisted that the member states give the green light for the start of accession negotiations by the end of the year. This was important for the motivation of the Ukrainians. EU Council President Charles Michel promised the guest “maximum support”. The EU will stand by Ukraine until it is a club member. In some capitals, however, the date is considered very unrealistic.
Ursula von der Leyen did not want to be left behind. The EU will do everything to ensure that Ukraine wins this war and that a just peace settlement is reached, said the Commission President. Russia must pay for the destruction and for the blood spilled. The EU Commission wants to be ready as soon as reconstruction can begin. Clarifying where alleged war criminals should be tried and the extent to which blocked foreign currency from Russia’s central bank can be used for reconstruction is a priority.
Von der Leyen also wants to press ahead with the tenth sanctions package, which has been in the works for some time. Talks with the member states are planned for the weekend. It is intended to hit further Russian exports to the tune of €10 billion. In addition, loopholes in the existing sanctions regime are supposed to be closed. The punitive measures against Belarus and Russia are supposed to be synchronized, an EU diplomat said. The Commission President also mentioned further sanctions against Russian propaganda.
He did not have the right to go home without results, Zelenskiy urged. In London, he said, the talks on combat aircraft and long-range missiles had been “positive”. Certain agreements, however, were not public, he said. Zelenskiy described the meeting with Scholz and Macron in Paris as “powerful” and important. The impression was also positive, he said, but he did not want to go into details.
He said he came to Brussels primarily to say thank you. “We have received positive signals that we will get the necessary weapons,” Zelenskiy said in the evening. Discussions are underway to form an alliance for combat aircraft similar to the one for battle tanks, a diplomat said. In addition to F-15 aircraft, Ukraine could also get Soviet-made Mig-29s from individual Eastern European member states.
In response to the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the EU focuses on a targeted relaxation of state aid rules for climate-friendly technologies. The procedures for state aid should become “simpler, faster and more predictable,” according to the EU summit’s final declaration. Subsidies and tax breaks for green industries should be “targeted, temporary and proportionate,” it said. This should prevent distortion of competition and safeguard the internal market.
There are also plans to use money from existing EU pots more flexibly to support companies. The German government had pressed for this. In addition, the EU states want to do more to combat the shortage of skilled workers – for example, through training and continuing education. Access to important raw materials is also emphasized.
The summit thus largely follows proposals from the Commission. The Commission’s President Ursula von der Leyen announced that legislative proposals would be drawn up by mid-March for discussion at the next EU summit on March 23 and 24. In the run-up to the summit, a number of member states had warned that a far-reaching relaxation of state aid rules would distort competition in the single market in favor of financially strong states such as Germany. This warning is also reflected in the final declaration.
It is unclear whether new EU funding will also be made available. The final declaration merely states that “a fully effective EU policy response requires fair access to financial resources.” To that end, “existing EU funds should be used more flexibly and options to facilitate access to finance should be explored.” The leaders also noted the Commission’s intention to present a European sovereignty fund in the summer. They also called on the Commission to quickly present its reform proposals for the Stability and Growth Pact.
France, Italy and Spain, in particular, have advocated such a debt-financed fund. Support is now coming from the United States: US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is advising the EU to introduce its own subsidy program. “If Europe takes action to introduce subsidies similar to ours, that’s good climate policy,” Yellen said. “We have the same goals, Europe and the United States.” Earlier, US President Joe Biden made it clear that the United States would no longer unravel the IRA. In addition, Washington insists it has preemption on critical supply chains.
“The supply chain starts in America,” Biden said in his State of the Union address on Tuesday. During a visit to Washington, German Economy Minister Robert Habeck had tried to persuade the US to make concessions. The results of his trip are now to be incorporated into the Commission’s proposal. With Till Hoppe
Rarely has the need for rapid and ambitious retrofits been greater than in the current energy crisis. “A gradual increase in building renovations from less than one to four percent per year and a prioritization on poorly insulated and gas-heated buildings would save 14 percent of gas demand for heating annually by 2025,” DIW energy expert Karsten Neuhoff said this week, calling for the recommendations of the German government’s Expert Commission on Gas and Heat to be fully implemented.
For the time after that, the ITRE position on the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) adopted on Thursday does not suggest any particularly ambitious targets for the buildings sector. At the heart of the reform are minimum energy performance standards (MEPS). This is intended to ensure that the most wasteful buildings meet certain minimum standards from certain dates. These include:
That’s too little for an alliance of environmental and industry groups. “While the minimum targets provision is slightly more ambitious than the Commission’s proposal, the report introduces an exemption that would result in nearly a quarter of the most inefficient residential buildings remaining unrenovated by 2037,” said Arianna Vitali, secretary general at the Coalition for Energy Savings.
Member states can exempt publicly owned social housing from renovation requirements to prevent rent increases and save on subsidies. With the Commission’s approval, national governments will also be allowed to claim a shortage of skilled workers and a lack of economic viability – for a total of 22 percent of the housing stock. Further relief will apply, among other things, to listed buildings.
On the other hand, the exceptions do not yet go far enough for CSU member of parliament Angelika Niebler: “Social housing in Germany is partly privately owned and thus cannot benefit from the exception, for example.”
Parliament goes somewhat further than the Commission with regard to new buildings and the solar roof obligation. From 2028, new buildings may no longer cause emissions and must be equipped with solar systems where technically and economically feasible. For renovations, the solar obligation is to take effect from 2032.
Environmental Action Germany (DUH) nevertheless considers the deal unsuitable “for setting the necessary framework conditions for a socially just and climate target-compatible transformation of the building sector”. DUH had previously pointed to a loophole for phasing out fossil-fuel heating.
Once the directive comes into force, gas or oil-fired boilers should no longer be allowed to be installed, and from 2035 – or with the approval of the Commission in 2040 – they should disappear completely. But the certification of boilers for renewable energies alone is supposed to be enough to keep them running. Since any gas heating system can run on biomethane, this provision alone could undermine the ban, fears Elisabeth Staudt of DUH.
“Then the MEPs’ proposal also stipulates that any heating system that runs on one percent renewables and 99 percent fossil fuels can be classified as ‘renewable,’” criticizes Jozefien Vanbecelaere of the heat pump association EHPA.
BDEW, on the other hand, draws attention to possible conflicts with another regulation: “It is not expedient that the MEPs want to enable the member states to set individual requirements for gas-based technology options in the future. The ecodesign framework, intended to prevent national market barriers, actually applies to energy requirements for heat generators in the EU internal market.”
However, the Buildings Directive is to be significantly expanded to include the issue of adaptation to climate change. MEPs have tightened up the Commission’s proposals: Member states are to ensure that new buildings are adapted to changes in the climate when they come into force. As an example, the ITRE agreement now explicitly mentions green infrastructure, such as green roofs and walls.
The skilled trades dread the new requirements. “Other topics will be added to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive,” criticizes Holger Schwannecke, Secretary General of the German Confederation of Skilled Crafts (ZDH). “The adopted draft report gives rise to fears that energy-related renovation and construction will become considerably more complex and expensive.”
The vote in the plenary session of the Parliament is scheduled for mid-March. The Council decided on its general approach months ago. However, a spokesperson for the Swedish Council Presidency explained yesterday that there is no date yet for a first trilogue.
Few moments shaped David Wortmann’s career as much as his meeting with Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2004. At the time, Wortmann was a research assistant to Hermann Scheer, an SPD member of the Bundestag. Among other things, the team was working on the German Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG). Then he received an invitation from the man who once played Terminator and had since become governor of California.
Even then, smoking was prohibited in public buildings in the US, so the ex-actor invited us outside: “He received us in a tent in the courtyard of the building. Made up as if we were on a film set and smoking a cigar,” says Wortmann. It didn’t stop there. “Schwarzenegger asked smart questions and let us advise him. This led to a very ambitious climate program in California,” says Wortmann. “That’s when I realized that good work can have an international impact.” For Wortmann, that was a key moment – and the start of a career ripe for change.
Today, Wortmann works as a mediator between business and politics and is very well connected in Berlin and Brussels. He regularly speaks with representatives of governments, ministries, the EU Commission or the Council of Europe. He turned this into a business model back in 2012 and founded the strategy consultancy DWR eco with Doreen Rietentiet. This advises and supports companies and institutions in the green transformation.
In his podcasts “Let’s Talk Change” and “Deep Dive Clean Tech”, he talks with protagonists from business, politics, science and the media about the sustainable transformation of the economy. In “Pod steh uns bei” (“The podcast (Lord) help us”), he regularly assesses the climate policy issues of the week in various host constellations, including together with Luisa Neubauer. He is an entrepreneur, networker and political advisor in one.
Considering his roots, today’s orientation fits all too well. Born in Herdecke, North Rhine-Westphalia, in 1976, Wortmann grew up in the countryside: “During my childhood, I spent a lot of time in the forests and meadows of my rural surroundings,” says Wortmann. “It was a bit of Bullerby: streams, meadows, snow, ponies. We lived on a single remnant farm in Hagen, at the transition from the Ruhr to the Sauerland.”
He later specialized in sustainability and founded the Sustainable Development Forum at the University of Passau while studying economics and political science. Since then, he has been switching back and forth between economics and politics.
As a student assistant, he worked for the Green Party’s Hans-Josef Fell in the Bundestag, then as a research assistant for Hermann Scheer. In 2005, he moved to the start-up First Solar, which is working to lower the cost of solar energy. Then it was back to the government environment: At the German government’s economic development agency, he headed the energy and environment department, lived for a time in Asia, among other places, and brought investors to Germany from around the world.
Even though Wortmann is politically active, he is not currently seeking a direct mandate and thus a move into politics. “I feel comfortable in both worlds, but I can currently make more of a difference in business,” Wortmann says. “I always go where I feel I can make a difference” – and currently that is the position between business and politics. Pascal Mühle
Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited Brussels on Thursday and the verbal solidarity was immense. “We are one family; family members help each other,” Ursula von der Leyen stressed. EU Council President Charles Michel promised the guest from Kyiv “maximum support”. However, this solidarity has not yet come in particularly concrete terms, as Stephan Israel analyzes.
Many people still pour money down the drain heating their homes because their house or apartment is poorly insulated. And this is likely to remain the case for some time to come. On Thursday, the Industry Committee voted in favor of numerous exemptions to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). About a quarter of the affected buildings is supposed to be exempt from the renovation obligation, as Manuel Berkel reports.
The Greens, in particular, are very strict when it comes to lobbying. But this week, such accusations against Green MEP Jutta Paulus have come to light. Now EPP members call for consequences: Paulus should withdraw as rapporteur for the EU legislative project to reduce methane emissions in the energy sector, EPP politicians demand.
It is rare for a guest to be so eagerly expected in Brussels that the European Quarter rolls out the red carpet and receives them with great fanfare. But when Volodymyr Zelenskiy made his appearance before the EU Parliament and later at the EU summit, it was clear that he was meant to feel right at home. There were ovations, cheering and the Ukrainian national anthem. “You have inspired not only your country but the whole world with your resistance,” Parliament Speaker Roberta Metsola greeted the guest. She said that Ukraine will win against Russia’s “brutal and illegal invasion”.
The Ukrainian president had arrived at Brussels Airport from Paris that morning with French President Emmanuel Macron, where he was received by EU Council President Charles Michel, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo. The only other person to receive such an honor is a US president.
Zelenskiy is Europe’s war president, the man from the front. This was already made clear by his clothing. Alongside the suits, the Ukrainian president clearly stood out in brown pants, sturdy shoes and a black sweater. Volodymyr Zelenskiy also proved in Brussels that he is a good speaker. He had a tailor-made message for each audience. He praised the British government for the early as well as determined support and, at the same time, demanded fighter planes and long-range missiles.
In Paris, he met Europe’s more reluctant tandem, Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz, for a late dinner. Not much leaked from the late-night conversation. According to diplomats, the visitor from the war zone made it clear that the situation on the front was critical.
Speaking before the EU Parliament, Volodymyr Zelenskiy addressed the whole of Europe. Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine is an attack against the “European way of life“. The Russian regime hates everything that Europe stands for, namely democracy, the rule of law, the social model and diversity. Only a Ukrainian victory would ensure that Europe’s values would prevail in the historic struggle against “anti-European forces”. The fate of Ukraine and the EU are linked, the message goes.
Almost at the same time, a few hundred meters away in the Europe Building, EU leaders arrived for the special summit. “We are here to send a signal of solidarity and support for Ukraine,” Chancellor Olaf Scholz said upon arrival.
Emmanuel Macron feels pressure to do more almost a year after the Russian attack on Ukraine began. He pointed to the difficult situation on the front lines, saying, “We see that the next weeks and months are crucial.” The West, he said, must send weapons that are useful now, not make promises that can only be fulfilled in the distant future. And in general, he said, the next deliveries will not be discussed publicly. The question of fighter jets for Ukraine “does not arise that way,” France’s president said.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy insisted that the member states give the green light for the start of accession negotiations by the end of the year. This was important for the motivation of the Ukrainians. EU Council President Charles Michel promised the guest “maximum support”. The EU will stand by Ukraine until it is a club member. In some capitals, however, the date is considered very unrealistic.
Ursula von der Leyen did not want to be left behind. The EU will do everything to ensure that Ukraine wins this war and that a just peace settlement is reached, said the Commission President. Russia must pay for the destruction and for the blood spilled. The EU Commission wants to be ready as soon as reconstruction can begin. Clarifying where alleged war criminals should be tried and the extent to which blocked foreign currency from Russia’s central bank can be used for reconstruction is a priority.
Von der Leyen also wants to press ahead with the tenth sanctions package, which has been in the works for some time. Talks with the member states are planned for the weekend. It is intended to hit further Russian exports to the tune of €10 billion. In addition, loopholes in the existing sanctions regime are supposed to be closed. The punitive measures against Belarus and Russia are supposed to be synchronized, an EU diplomat said. The Commission President also mentioned further sanctions against Russian propaganda.
He did not have the right to go home without results, Zelenskiy urged. In London, he said, the talks on combat aircraft and long-range missiles had been “positive”. Certain agreements, however, were not public, he said. Zelenskiy described the meeting with Scholz and Macron in Paris as “powerful” and important. The impression was also positive, he said, but he did not want to go into details.
He said he came to Brussels primarily to say thank you. “We have received positive signals that we will get the necessary weapons,” Zelenskiy said in the evening. Discussions are underway to form an alliance for combat aircraft similar to the one for battle tanks, a diplomat said. In addition to F-15 aircraft, Ukraine could also get Soviet-made Mig-29s from individual Eastern European member states.
In response to the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the EU focuses on a targeted relaxation of state aid rules for climate-friendly technologies. The procedures for state aid should become “simpler, faster and more predictable,” according to the EU summit’s final declaration. Subsidies and tax breaks for green industries should be “targeted, temporary and proportionate,” it said. This should prevent distortion of competition and safeguard the internal market.
There are also plans to use money from existing EU pots more flexibly to support companies. The German government had pressed for this. In addition, the EU states want to do more to combat the shortage of skilled workers – for example, through training and continuing education. Access to important raw materials is also emphasized.
The summit thus largely follows proposals from the Commission. The Commission’s President Ursula von der Leyen announced that legislative proposals would be drawn up by mid-March for discussion at the next EU summit on March 23 and 24. In the run-up to the summit, a number of member states had warned that a far-reaching relaxation of state aid rules would distort competition in the single market in favor of financially strong states such as Germany. This warning is also reflected in the final declaration.
It is unclear whether new EU funding will also be made available. The final declaration merely states that “a fully effective EU policy response requires fair access to financial resources.” To that end, “existing EU funds should be used more flexibly and options to facilitate access to finance should be explored.” The leaders also noted the Commission’s intention to present a European sovereignty fund in the summer. They also called on the Commission to quickly present its reform proposals for the Stability and Growth Pact.
France, Italy and Spain, in particular, have advocated such a debt-financed fund. Support is now coming from the United States: US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is advising the EU to introduce its own subsidy program. “If Europe takes action to introduce subsidies similar to ours, that’s good climate policy,” Yellen said. “We have the same goals, Europe and the United States.” Earlier, US President Joe Biden made it clear that the United States would no longer unravel the IRA. In addition, Washington insists it has preemption on critical supply chains.
“The supply chain starts in America,” Biden said in his State of the Union address on Tuesday. During a visit to Washington, German Economy Minister Robert Habeck had tried to persuade the US to make concessions. The results of his trip are now to be incorporated into the Commission’s proposal. With Till Hoppe
Rarely has the need for rapid and ambitious retrofits been greater than in the current energy crisis. “A gradual increase in building renovations from less than one to four percent per year and a prioritization on poorly insulated and gas-heated buildings would save 14 percent of gas demand for heating annually by 2025,” DIW energy expert Karsten Neuhoff said this week, calling for the recommendations of the German government’s Expert Commission on Gas and Heat to be fully implemented.
For the time after that, the ITRE position on the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) adopted on Thursday does not suggest any particularly ambitious targets for the buildings sector. At the heart of the reform are minimum energy performance standards (MEPS). This is intended to ensure that the most wasteful buildings meet certain minimum standards from certain dates. These include:
That’s too little for an alliance of environmental and industry groups. “While the minimum targets provision is slightly more ambitious than the Commission’s proposal, the report introduces an exemption that would result in nearly a quarter of the most inefficient residential buildings remaining unrenovated by 2037,” said Arianna Vitali, secretary general at the Coalition for Energy Savings.
Member states can exempt publicly owned social housing from renovation requirements to prevent rent increases and save on subsidies. With the Commission’s approval, national governments will also be allowed to claim a shortage of skilled workers and a lack of economic viability – for a total of 22 percent of the housing stock. Further relief will apply, among other things, to listed buildings.
On the other hand, the exceptions do not yet go far enough for CSU member of parliament Angelika Niebler: “Social housing in Germany is partly privately owned and thus cannot benefit from the exception, for example.”
Parliament goes somewhat further than the Commission with regard to new buildings and the solar roof obligation. From 2028, new buildings may no longer cause emissions and must be equipped with solar systems where technically and economically feasible. For renovations, the solar obligation is to take effect from 2032.
Environmental Action Germany (DUH) nevertheless considers the deal unsuitable “for setting the necessary framework conditions for a socially just and climate target-compatible transformation of the building sector”. DUH had previously pointed to a loophole for phasing out fossil-fuel heating.
Once the directive comes into force, gas or oil-fired boilers should no longer be allowed to be installed, and from 2035 – or with the approval of the Commission in 2040 – they should disappear completely. But the certification of boilers for renewable energies alone is supposed to be enough to keep them running. Since any gas heating system can run on biomethane, this provision alone could undermine the ban, fears Elisabeth Staudt of DUH.
“Then the MEPs’ proposal also stipulates that any heating system that runs on one percent renewables and 99 percent fossil fuels can be classified as ‘renewable,’” criticizes Jozefien Vanbecelaere of the heat pump association EHPA.
BDEW, on the other hand, draws attention to possible conflicts with another regulation: “It is not expedient that the MEPs want to enable the member states to set individual requirements for gas-based technology options in the future. The ecodesign framework, intended to prevent national market barriers, actually applies to energy requirements for heat generators in the EU internal market.”
However, the Buildings Directive is to be significantly expanded to include the issue of adaptation to climate change. MEPs have tightened up the Commission’s proposals: Member states are to ensure that new buildings are adapted to changes in the climate when they come into force. As an example, the ITRE agreement now explicitly mentions green infrastructure, such as green roofs and walls.
The skilled trades dread the new requirements. “Other topics will be added to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive,” criticizes Holger Schwannecke, Secretary General of the German Confederation of Skilled Crafts (ZDH). “The adopted draft report gives rise to fears that energy-related renovation and construction will become considerably more complex and expensive.”
The vote in the plenary session of the Parliament is scheduled for mid-March. The Council decided on its general approach months ago. However, a spokesperson for the Swedish Council Presidency explained yesterday that there is no date yet for a first trilogue.
Few moments shaped David Wortmann’s career as much as his meeting with Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2004. At the time, Wortmann was a research assistant to Hermann Scheer, an SPD member of the Bundestag. Among other things, the team was working on the German Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG). Then he received an invitation from the man who once played Terminator and had since become governor of California.
Even then, smoking was prohibited in public buildings in the US, so the ex-actor invited us outside: “He received us in a tent in the courtyard of the building. Made up as if we were on a film set and smoking a cigar,” says Wortmann. It didn’t stop there. “Schwarzenegger asked smart questions and let us advise him. This led to a very ambitious climate program in California,” says Wortmann. “That’s when I realized that good work can have an international impact.” For Wortmann, that was a key moment – and the start of a career ripe for change.
Today, Wortmann works as a mediator between business and politics and is very well connected in Berlin and Brussels. He regularly speaks with representatives of governments, ministries, the EU Commission or the Council of Europe. He turned this into a business model back in 2012 and founded the strategy consultancy DWR eco with Doreen Rietentiet. This advises and supports companies and institutions in the green transformation.
In his podcasts “Let’s Talk Change” and “Deep Dive Clean Tech”, he talks with protagonists from business, politics, science and the media about the sustainable transformation of the economy. In “Pod steh uns bei” (“The podcast (Lord) help us”), he regularly assesses the climate policy issues of the week in various host constellations, including together with Luisa Neubauer. He is an entrepreneur, networker and political advisor in one.
Considering his roots, today’s orientation fits all too well. Born in Herdecke, North Rhine-Westphalia, in 1976, Wortmann grew up in the countryside: “During my childhood, I spent a lot of time in the forests and meadows of my rural surroundings,” says Wortmann. “It was a bit of Bullerby: streams, meadows, snow, ponies. We lived on a single remnant farm in Hagen, at the transition from the Ruhr to the Sauerland.”
He later specialized in sustainability and founded the Sustainable Development Forum at the University of Passau while studying economics and political science. Since then, he has been switching back and forth between economics and politics.
As a student assistant, he worked for the Green Party’s Hans-Josef Fell in the Bundestag, then as a research assistant for Hermann Scheer. In 2005, he moved to the start-up First Solar, which is working to lower the cost of solar energy. Then it was back to the government environment: At the German government’s economic development agency, he headed the energy and environment department, lived for a time in Asia, among other places, and brought investors to Germany from around the world.
Even though Wortmann is politically active, he is not currently seeking a direct mandate and thus a move into politics. “I feel comfortable in both worlds, but I can currently make more of a difference in business,” Wortmann says. “I always go where I feel I can make a difference” – and currently that is the position between business and politics. Pascal Mühle
