19. May 2025 | Institute for Planetary Health Behaviour

Explaining CO₂ Pricing Clearly: Climate Journalism Panel in Erfurt

How can complex climate policies be communicated in a way that is effective, impactful, and fair, especially in times of social uncertainty? This guiding question was at the heart of the panel "Climate Journalism in Times of Rising CO₂ Prices", which brought together around 50 participants at the CORRECTIV.Lokal Conference at the University of Erfurt on May 10–11, 2025.

Sarah Pelull from the Institute for Planetary Health Behaviour joined Silvio Wenzel (Science Media Center), Laura Wahl (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen Erfurt), and Astrid Schaffert (Institut Zukunft KlimaSozial) to discuss the role of journalism, science, and politics in communicating societal transformation processes.

Using CO₂ pricing as a case study, the panel made one thing clear: socially just climate policies—such as the proposed “climate bonus” (Klimageld)—require clear and accessible communication. Especially at the local level, journalism plays a key role in making complex climate policies tangible, explaining their local impacts, and connecting them to everyday life realities.

Climate communication should be grounded in scientific evidence, take social implications into account, and be conveyed with journalistic responsibility. In doing so, it can help build public trust and enable informed engagement with climate policy measures.