Climate-friendly bike tour through Leipzig and lecture "Climate change - what can I do?" were on the programme
Every year, students at the University of South Carolina (UofSC) have the opportunity to take part in the Maymester Study Abroad Programme. The several-week stay abroad is organised by Lara Ducate, Professor of German and Applied Linguistics at the UofSC.
Lara Ducate teaches German language and culture at UofSC and has also been offering a course on sustainability for several years. As part of this course, Ducate and a small group of students travel to Germany for several weeks every May (Maymester Programme) to look at current renewable energy projects in Germany. On these trips, the students can see live how wind turbines, solar modules or organic viticulture can contribute to greater sustainability and a more climate-friendly economy. HTWK Leipzig is also always on the programme.
On 18 May 2022, the trip took Lara Ducate and her students to Leipzig again for a short trip. Professor Stephan Schönfelder and research assistant Felix Kaule welcomed the guests from South Carolina at Leipzig Central Station. The group set off on their climate-friendly and sustainable cycle tour through Leipzig on rental bikes sponsored by Nextbike. Once they arrived at the Vienna Building of the Faculty of Engineering in Wächterstraße, the students got to know their Leipzig hosts. Prof Frank Illing (Chair of Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering and Renewable Energies) presented the photovoltaic system on the roof of the Wienerbau. With the best view over Leipzig's city centre, he gave an insight into photovoltaic systems as one of the most important renewable energy sources.
Next Stop: The Warming Stripes on the Sachsenbrücke. The Warming Stripes, developed by climatologist Ed Hawkins in 2018, visualise with vehement urgency how the average annual temperatures on Earth have risen in recent years - a measure of climate change.
From the Warming Stripes in Clara Zetkin Park across the Auwald forest, the group reached the faculty's Nieperbau building at Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 134 around midday. After lunch, they joined German students for the Studium Generale lecture "Climate change - What can I do?" by Prof Jens Schneider (Chair of Networked Energy Systems) at HTWK Leipzig.
Before travelling to Germany, Schneider shared the speech by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report with the UofSC students via YouTube. In his speech, Mr Guterres speaks clearly to political and economic decision-makers, urging them to take more decisive action to prevent the climate catastrophe. The UofSC students also took part in the online Ecochallenge event in the run-up to the event, a competition in which points are collected for sustainable behaviour.
A comparison of the German and US perspectives with the students from UofSC and HTWK Leipzig revealed some similarities and differences in the discussion round on 18 May 2022: While Germany uses its small contribution to climate change as an excuse for inaction, the US likes to point to China - without whose cooperation the US would achieve nothing. Prof Jens Schneider added that China likes to point to the historical responsibility of Europe and the USA for the greenhouse gases emitted to date and to shift responsibility back. "However, this excuse mentality will not prevent the climate catastrophe," emphasised Schneider during the discussion.
Afterwards, further presentations awaited the guests as part of the 3rd Public Climate School. Prof Jens Schneider accompanied the students from the HTWK to Leipzig University in the city centre on Nextbike bicycles. The Public Climate School concluded the sustainability tour through Leipzig.
"The professional exchange on sustainability and climate change with Lara Ducate and her students unfortunately had to be paused due to the pandemic. I am all the more pleased that we were able to resume regular visits from South Carolina this year. The cultural and interdisciplinary perspectives are an enrichment for everyone involved and ultimately also a building block for internationalisation at HTWK Leipzig," says Prof. Stephan Schönfelder. If the pandemic allows, there will be another visit next year.
