German ministers advocate ambitious climate protection

German Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks and Education Minister Johanna Wanka said Monday that they stand up for ambitious and rapid climate protection to slow down the global temperature rise. The remarks came after the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released their latest report that pointed out profound effects of progressive climate change on people and nature. The German ministers saw the report as further evidence of the urgent need to combat climate change, a central challenge facing the society. "Climate change takes place daily, so the human must adapt to the new conditions. The scientists tell us that the longer we hesitate, this is becoming increasingly more difficult," said Hendricks. "We must firstly combat climate change and ensure that global warming the doesn't exceed 2 degrees Celsius. Secondly, we have to adapt to the impacts of unavoidable climate change," she said. Wanka stressed the necessity of further investigating climate change as well as the importance of close cooperation between political and science circles in the regard. The IPCC presented on Monday in Yokohama, Japan its report on the risks and consequences of climate change as well as ways to adapt to climate change. Hundreds of scientists, including 41 researchers from Germany, were taking part in the report. Monday's report is the second of three parts of the 5th IPCC assessment report.