he one thing on his mind defending the homeland from the russian invasion. you are watching dw news live from berlin. we have extended coverage today throughout the day on the russian invasion of ukraine. of course, you get all the latest news on our website. that's d w dot com. i'm terry martin. thanks for watching and she's up to date. don't miss our highlights. the d w program online. d, w dot com highlights in many countries, education is still a privilege. hummadi is one of the main causes some young children work in mind, jobs instead of going to class others can attend classes only after they finish working. millions of children all over the world can't go to school.

we ask why? because education makes the world more, just make up your own mind. d. w. made for minds who is a nie bower is a climate activist and leading figure in the fridays for future movement in germany and globally. she joins us to day on the w. miss. no bower, thank you for being with us. you've said recently that europe's dependence on fossil fuels is the root cause of the war in ukraine, and that europe should respond by radically building up renewable energy. what good do you think of that could do now in the short term when i, when i say that, i'm just looking at the situation right now together with economists. we've at diplomats, we've, we've experts everywhere who see that the dependency on rational fossil fuse is one

of the, of the, of the many things that make 2 teen so powerful right now. and this isn't anything of this, this understanding of, of the roots of pollutants power hasn't to do anything with the concrete action that need to be taken. now we ukrainian, or to right now they need support from all over europe. they need what is needed to protect them, and that is very clear. yet we're looking at the big picture. we have important to, to be honest about who is financing part of the text. and that is germany, for instance, you know, who is, you know, getting half of its energy from putin. we've heard germany's finance minister christianity and now who is not necessarily one of fridays for future as best pals say that renewable energy is the energy of freedom. do you think germany's

government shares your assessment in terms of the need to push for renewable energy know well if they don't you know get it now that renewable andries, and just the greenest and cheapest kinds of entities. but also the rest peaceful energy that we have. i wouldn't know what to wait for. i mean open your eyes, it's out there and it's, it's those was a few import that. yeah, that's empower pooty in that finance those rules. and it's too hard to understand that democracy is, can be truly free. that can be truly sovereign and have as long as the energy supply depend on autocrat next door. that has, you know, obvious tendencies to start was we have a stark energy crisis on the horizon. you call for a massively building renewable energies. but now in germany, even green members of the government are thinking of pushing back the phase out of nuclear and coal. it doesn't seem like renewable energies are a viable solution,

at least in the short term energy experts told us. and sorry. and i think in this bond is important to differentiate between responses to a war and transformative action that needs to be taken in or to get independent from fossil fuels, from cruising and others. and we're seeing very clearly that studies very strong. sorry about how of course we can get 100 percent renewable. and yet in the medium term and how everything that we're doing now in terms of energy action, need to have a chance with character. and this is not the time to play games, and this is not the time to do some kind of symbolic gestures that higher and fuel conflict like this. and of course, at the same time, and i think it's important to, to challenge as much as possible. ukraine needs support and that is not just a question of diplomacy, whether it's a question for their

t p. 's actions of report that is needed. germany and other countries in europe are, however, going to have to likely bridge the decreasing amount of gas and oil, or the more expensive gas and oil coming into the countries. and it takes time to build a big amount of renewable energy sources. is it acceptable then to accept a pushback of call or even nuclear, at least in germany, where no course not. we have brought a government in a very, very tricky situation where we highly depend on the field from autocrat like hootin . and that has a cost and the on to that of course, can be an increasing dependency on fossil fuels, but needs to be, you know, and the independence. and that is what we get the most democratic, the most peaceful, the green is the cheapest, the most protected kind of energy so that we have renewables and there is

a cost attached to that, but cost is attached to everything. and the question is just 2 bath costs and how do we handle it in a just way? and that's, of course, where the government is asked to, to make sure that those who can't afford it get access to, to clean and cheap energy as quickly as possible. but that can never be an excuse to delay any kind of action in the same time. the spoken a very strong language yesterday. again, the climate crisis is escalating, and this is not the time to not play out the crises against java, but you connect the dots and see the big picture here. what do you think of the german government's commitment to massively invest in the military with a bill of up to 100000000000 euros? i'm a climate activist. i have no intention of getting involved in the military or geo politics discourse that we have in germany. we're seeing is that, you know,

many expert, i wondered where exactly with money as opposed to go. and when we will be at the point where the government makes the money all phrases, money for things that are actually transformative, that actually contribute to a more safe and more just and yet more sustainable society you and fridays for future want germany to become climate neutral by 2035, do you think that is an achievable goal, especially in light of the war in ukraine and what that means for the energy market? well, when we're writing the demands, we're not just writing random wish. wish said we, you know, that we just come up with, i may not know which address, but we see what is possible if you really want, if you provide the political vill, if you, if you organize people around it should formation towards climate, justice. and of course possible, of course we can be renewable by 2035 and just yesterday the government kind of

hinted that the actually planning to transform some out of the energy sector. to an extent the bed pod will be 100 percent for new bud. bye 2035. we see again and again and again, we don't have a lack of technical possibilities. we don't have a lack of knowledge. we have a lack of political will and of and then open understanding what this crises about . and so, yes, we can get there and this was the situation, but now it has opened many drawers. we can backlash and you know, 20 years back, you know, repeating all that a mistake that was that were made before. we can jump 10 years ahead and say we are stopping the crisis. we stop accelerating them. we actually build those pace and peaceful democracy, said that independent from fossil fuels that provide real freedom for the people everywhere. talking about the i p c. c. it's latest report on how climate change

impacts the world was just released. what do you think of its findings? well, it's checking again and again and again. yet most of the things in the sy pissy report where clear a long time ago, these were the things that my grandma went, you know, on the streets about. and i think when you stop, you know, treating those i receive reports as a breakthrough report. the tell us about a new world when we, if the knowing and ignoring all that for decades and for think, you know, if anything, it's time now to connect. yeah. to connect the dots and to understand the equity c tell does everything we need to know to, to radically act and the war, finance and funded by a fossil fuel system is telling us about the conflict, the war dimension behind fossil fuels. and i wouldn't know what would stop us now from, from acting as needed. but a climate change is a go global problem. how can it be fought globally?

is such a powerful energy player like russia, is now basically considered a pariah state. how can one push climate change forward as a global problem when some countries may be, have to be shut out of dialogue just from now, i'm less worried about, you know, the energy interest in russia, which is a whole different story. i'm worried about those, you know, liberal democracies around the world that claim to us do it, that we con prices and still invest in fossil fuels. still found those product coating still, you know, does tend and energy dependency on the fossil fuels and those inputs. i'm worried about that. where are they right now and why, you know, finger pointing is anyone out those countries forget that, that being the excuse for everyone else, right now, those accounts are germany, the counselor, many other big industrial player. and if they would, if they would get started, if they would that change the pad and that we are in that they said of being lead

a role model. and this, it would be a complete different story. and it's asked who need to look at them. right? now, and of course, and i think that's an important dimension with seeing right now, we need to discuss energy partnerships. we need to discuss how richer industrialized countries can help us to get away from fossil fuels as soon as possible. we need an energy diploma that's taking place, but that is focus on what is needed on the timeline that we had on the few years said we have left to get things started. do you have any current concrete proposals on that front? what liberal democracies and rich countries should do to help the others go along. i think we need governments to become clear and be honest about not only the energy infrastructure that they build themselves, but also the energy infrastructure that they found themselves. we see huge tendency towards, you know, big industrialized camps on the globe or north to,

to be all cheery about climate action to praise their own targets as much as possible was funding financing and ensuring fossil fuel development and fossil fuel infrastructure. and the goal, the south, that's not how it can work out. so we need on us to hear a transparency here, and we need governments to be called out if necessary, in the whole attempt to brainwash themselves to some climate change heroes. while honestly the facts speak a different language, while emissions arriving, do you think we are now at a turning point that this situation does present a turning point for a people's and governments perceptions of the climate crisis and how to tackle it. i don't know about that, but i know that people right now has the power to kill side for justice and peace and climate justice. and all of that has never been as intertwined as independent as just today with seeing that there is no requirement justice without peace and no peace with our requirement. justice and independence from fossil fuels

as all out there. and if we want to, we can make this a turning point. do you think though that people, especially in europe, will understand this and will care about climate change in the face of the threats of war looming so close? yeah, again, i think it's in our hands because not about, you know, claiming one crisis pre at with the effort, but about connecting the dots and understanding what other causes of those fossil fuel conflicts and was with seeing, not just in the ukraine, but all over the world that is not a new story. it's been our dad has been widely ignored, especially by western media society when we, you know, bold about this and, and yeah, again, we're, we're able to, to connect the dots and to, to look at transformative solutions while supporting in the immediate situation. but again, we're seeing that also governments in society, it has

a tendency to ignore what's right in front of them that the, sorry about climate crisis for the past decade. so we need to understand that we needed and that we and our understanding of the crisis and experience of power, i'm needed to make those changes and to fight for those changes. need it. reason, know, bower. thank you very much for your time. thank you. ah, stories that people the world over d w on facebook and twitter up to date and in touch. follow us. ah, look closely. ah, listen carefully and don't know how those simple thing to miss to the girl. ah feel the magic

discovery of the world around you ah, subscriber to d. w documentary on youtube. a special day in a very emotional occasion and the european parliament in brussels. this plenary was scheduled especially to hear and listen to a video message that the ukranian president followed me as to lensky has by the members of the parliament. he wants to become a member of the european union. he was of course also talking about his people suffering and dying in the war in his country. but.