Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania: conservationist Succow wants to encourage the last generation

Greifswald (dpa/mv) - The conservationist and winner of the alternative Nobel Prize, Michael Succow, shows understanding for climate activists of the last generation.

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania: conservationist Succow wants to encourage the last generation

Greifswald (dpa/mv) - The conservationist and winner of the alternative Nobel Prize, Michael Succow, shows understanding for climate activists of the last generation. "I started to encourage these young people," said the 81-year-old of the German Press Agency. They are very important, not outsiders, and their fears must be taken seriously. For example, he resisted criticism that the activists should first finish their studies or integrate into the world of work.

"It's no longer possible without a citizens' movement," said the native of Brandenburg, who now lives near Greifswald. Succow has been committed to environmental and nature conservation all his life and came into conflict with the state himself during the GDR era. He also sees differences in his commitment. "This sticking, this hard struggle, was unthinkable at the time. Today, this generation is pushing the limits because they feel that it is having an effect." A coup is how Succow and his comrades-in-arms secured large areas in East Germany for nature conservation during the period of reunification.

Similar to the young activists, Succow is convinced that the greatest urgency is required when it comes to environmental and climate protection. "In many developing countries in the Global South, we have already passed the tipping point of climate change, so that entire regions are drying up and thus generating ever stronger migration movements," said the scientist, who has traveled all over the world. "You can still build fences or walls that high." Succow said, "I know a little more about the state of the earth than many do."