Right-wing and populist parties are gaining strength in more and more EU countries, and in some countries they are in government, often in conjunction with a social divide. Even if the respective political stances of the parties must be viewed in a differentiated manner, the development raises the following questions: How does the parties' often climate change denying attitude influence climate policy? To what extent does the communication trigger fears and emotions? And does this give rise to reservations in society and its willingness to support climate and environmental protection measures?

Studies for Germany and other countries show that people actually want more climate protection; the proportion of those who would like to see less commitment from their favourite party is very small. This contrasts with the low profile given to the issue of climate change in the recent federal election campaign, which scientists and climate movements such as Fridays for Future have clearly criticised.

Against this background, three invited experts will take a closer look at the positions and narratives of right-wing populist actors on climate change and its consequences: After an introduction by Prof Dr Manfred Fischedick, President and Scientific Director of the Wuppertal Institute, they will give keynote speeches highlighting important explanatory approaches, point out ways to counter populism and jointly discuss the importance of democracy in advancing climate protection.

The guests on the podium:

• Prof Dr Bernd Sommer from the Technical University of Dortmund will speak about "Right-wing populist counter-movements in the conflict area of socio-ecological transformation".
• Dr Sonja Thielges from the German Institute for International and Security Affairs will give an impulse on the topic "From climate ambition to energy dominance: Donald Trump and the fate of climate policy after the US election".
• Dr habil. Fritz Reusswig from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research will give a lecture entitled "Mission Impossible? Populist affects and narratives against climate policy and transformation".

The panel discussion will be moderated by Junior Professor Dr Karoline Augenstein from the Institute of Political Science at the University of Wuppertal and board member of transzent.

The event is a joint project of transzent and the Wuppertal Institute. Participation is free of charge. Please register in advance via the following link:

Democracy under pressure: How does current populism influence climate policy?