Limiting the increase in the global mean temperature to well below 2 degrees compared to the pre-industrial level is fundamentally possible - this is shown by the IPCC in its special report on 1.5 °C global warming.
Important measures are rapid and far reaching reductions of all greenhouse gas emissions, above all carbon dioxide. In addition, carbon dioxide must be extracted from the atmosphere. It can be stored in natural sinks such as soils and forests, for example. Furthermore, the carbon dioxide extracted from the atmosphere can be converted back into energy sources through chemical processes.
In Net-Zero-2050, Cluster I of the Helmholtz Climate Initiative, respective strategies and new approaches are scientifically examined and evaluated in four projects with regard to the German framework. In addition, two case studies are carried out with external stakeholders from the field.
The results flow into a pilot roadmap for a CO2-neutral Germany by 2050 and are intended to drive the public and political debate about CO2 neutrality at various levels - also in the Helmholtz Association itself.
Net-Zero-2050 currently focuses exclusively on CO2 emissions and the associated CO2-neutrality.