CSF talks to...climate activist and professional Jan Michael Ihl

In April, as we marked the Earth Day on April 22, we're shining a spotlight on climate issues. We were lucky to talk to Jan Michael Ihl , a climate activist who has contributed to numerous regional and international initiatives, having worked for Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland e.V. (BUND Bundesgeschäftsstelle) and volunteered for Greenpeace .

Apart from that, here's a quick glimpse into his biography in his own words: "an action climber, navigating little inflatables on the sea, being imprisoned in Gibraltar for entering a nuclear submarine of the British Royal Navy, engaging in climate actions across Europe, from Spain to Finland, and even to Lake Baikal in Siberia." 

Intrigued? Check out his honest and captivating responses to our questions about climate change.

What's the primary challenge you as a climate activist and professional face in combating the climate crisis?

The primary challenge is the widespread ignorance of the climate crisis in society.

Progress does not only often feel like it’s too little, too late, but in reality, it actually is.

To be honest this can easily lead to despair or serious depression. I was there back in 2018 when I realised climate change is not like any other threat to the nature or environment we live in, but is a far more existential and long-lasting threat than anything we’ve seen before. It’s not just affecting people far away – for whose lives and wellbeing we should fight for empathetically and compassionately as well. Nor is it just affecting animals or plants that may face extinction. This might immediately and drastically affect my life, and the lives of my two kids too.

How does civil society influence national climate policies? What are the latest achievements?

The success of campaigns run by grassroots initiatives proves that even small groups can make a change.

Take Greenpeace which started with a bunch of hippies who rented a yacht and sailed to Amchitka to protest against nuclear tests; or Fridays for Future, which started with a girl not going to school on Fridays.

With regards to the bigger climate picture, recent achievements in the EU or Germany might be considered small. To be honest, there’s no big achievement that immediately comes to my mind. We are at least getting closer to the phase-out of fossil fuels both in the electricity and mobility sectors, with cars fueled by fossil fuels maybe becoming a thing of the past sooner than we expected. That’s because sometimes change happens quickly after a tipping point is reached, or when a small, but critical mass is pushing for change.

Are you satisfied with the current climate policy of the EU? If you had the authority to shape the EU's climate policy, what would be your initial priority?

Of course not. The EU needs to phase out coal and other fossil fuels ASAP, and also stop importing gas from Russia immediately (partly through third-party states which never joined the sanctions against Russia). The potential for PV (photovoltaics) solar power is huge, and so many surfaces perfect for PV are still hardly used, for example house roofing. PV basically needs to be the default on any new roof, and added to as many roofs as possible, both on commercial properties and on private buildings.

If I agreed with military intervention (which I don't and is justifiably a legal taboo in Germany), I might also consider using the army to install wind mills in everyone’s garden, especially in the gardens of those who still spread myths about windmills causing too much subsonic noise and ruining their sleep.

That’s the nocebo effect talking. Instead it’s probably your fridge at home, or the nice sound of the ocean, that’s trying to ruin our sleep. But is anyone trying to abolish either of those?

A far sooner phase-out of fuel-powered cars is another policy the EU and its less car-addicted member states should enforce upon states whose policies are led by reactionary petrolheads, and make big investments in the following: train and cycling infrastructure, banning and replacing short- and mid-distance flights with a European night train network etc. We are in a climate emergency so the EU definitely needs to urgently consider way more effective, potentially drastic measures.

What is your must-read book that offers deeper insights into the topic of climate change?

To be honest I don’t manage to read a lot of books, with my job and looking after my kids, but I often read excerpts or summaries of studies and follow a few top-notch scientists on social media platforms to stay informed. That being said, for everyone who wants to contribute something to slow down climate change I’d rather recommend books on activism.

One of my favourite books is a novel, The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey, a book that came to me on a cycling trip through Canada and the US in a second-hand bookshop in Vancouver, British Columbia, IIRC.

It’s fun to read and makes you think about civil disobedience, and what kinds of actions are appropriate. Quick disclaimer: I do not necessarily endorse all their views and methods.

Also if you feel disempowered or depressed, you should read books on climate anxiety.

That term wasn’t even common in 2018, when I suffered from it, but now there are some helpful books, in German e.g. Klimagefühle by Lea Dohm and Mareike Schulze, two studied and trained psychologists and therapists. 

How do you personally incorporate climate-conscious practices into your daily life?

Compared to many my CO₂ footprint has been pretty small at least since 2019, the year of my last flight. That flight was to Istanbul, in an exchange project with Berlin-based urban transformation and pro-cycling NGO Changing Cities and great feminist cycling activists from Istanbul’s Bisikletli Ulaşım Platformu.

I buy groceries as much as I can from a so-called no-packaging store called Unverpacktladen, where I bring my own bottles and vessels to fill dry goods like pasta, rice and cereals, but also oil, soap and dental tabs (instead of toothpaste in plastic tubes).  I do my daily commutes mostly by bike, use public transport and avoid cars.

I just did a road-trip with my kids through the Alps to Marseille in the Easter holidays, with an electric car – a great experience, but of course even if it was green energy, such a trip still leaves a CO₂ footprint! 

I don’t buy any fast fashion, but instead clothing that’s worth repairing again and again. Some of my outerwear I bought 20+ years ago and I could tell stories about their repairs.

For instance, my ex-wife really disliked that I always wore the same old Patagonia stuff, but that’s okay, because I still enjoy wearing my softshell jacket from way back in 2004. Instead I changed my partner - for various other reasons!

Still, buying outdoor clothing – more or less indispensable for cycling, hiking and mountaineering – comes with quite a footprint, but that varies a lot depending on where you buy and how often.

Looking to the future, what changes or milestones do you hope to see in the fight against climate change?

It’s doubtful we can still keep global warming under 1.5 degrees if we have apparently broken that limit already. Hey, states, you misunderstood: that wasn’t a “goal” to reach, it was meant as a limit!

Whatever limits are now discussed: we should fight for any reduction in global warming that is possible. For example, 1.8 degrees warming is of course better than 2.0, and that will save lives, species and will also save us huge costs from all the social effects. Those people who are so fearful of migrants right now need to realise the following: more climate change means we need to evacuate a variety of islands and coastal regions sooner or later, meaning external migration will keep growing. The cost of this evacuation will also be a lot bigger than the costs we talk about now with regards to migration.

A social milestone might be the turning of public opinion on certain matters: take the strong scepticism towards certain technologies and e-cars, but also towards cycling, wind and solar power.

We will surely come to a point where almost everyone considers cycling a default option for transportation, or if you need a car the E-car will be the default option, and a photovoltaic system on your roof or your balcony will be a normal thing. In hindsight we might recognize tipping points in these developments, and in a way these are milestones. It’s just hard to plan how and to prognose when we can reach them. The sooner the better!

The CSF team extends their gratitude to Jan Michael Ihl for this interesting and environmentally inspiring conversation.

*The views and opinions expressed in this interview are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions ofthe Civil Society Forum.

*Photo: Björn Obmann @ecobjoern