German spirit of self-improvement

It will soon be one month since the tremendous floods in the North Rhine-Palatinate. After almost forty years living in Germany the whole area is very familiar to me and has been the destination of many of my excursions: Bad Münstereifel, Altenahr, Ahrweiler or Erftstadt.

The scenery after the torrential rains was reminiscent of landscapes after a bombing raid. Many unfortunately died of drowning on the second floor of their homes. Few thought that a rainfall of such dimensions could be unleashed. There is now a public debate about what happened and the judiciary is investigating whether the population was adequately warned. Many people risked their lives to save others. For example, the foreman who after several hours of work managed to unblock the Steinbach valley dam (Steinbachtalsperre). If this dam had not held, the disaster would have been even greater.

Solidarity among the population was not long in coming. Volunteers, food and clothing appeared from everywhere. Quite a few people rolled up their sleeves and got down to work. For example, a Mexican friend of mine who has lived in Munich for ten years, with the permission of his wife and three children, went directly to the disaster area to collect debris. As we have seen and heard in many radio and television reports, there have been moments of great despair but also - in spite of everything - moments of good humor, so typical of the people of this area. This is not the first time they have suffered floods and, as a result, over the generations they have developed a certain resilience. It can be seen that the issue that remains to be resolved is how to channel a deluge of these same characteristics in the future. There are not many torrents in these areas that can accommodate so much water.

In the context of the national elections in Germany at the end of September, the reaction of politicians is in the spotlight. One of them is a candidate for Chancellor for the Christian Democratic Party, Armin Laschet, President of the Land of North Rhine-Westphalia, which has been hard hit by the flooding. It is not easy to prove a direct causality of this catastrophe with the so-called climate emergency, which is the big issue on the political agenda of the 21st century, along with the sustainability debate. Nevertheless, it is not bad for us to think about what kind of world we want to live in and at what cost.

Germany is a rich country and there will be no shortage of financial resources for the reconstruction plan. Not only have there been many victims, but many have lost the economic basis of their existence and their property. Many have been left with nothing for the time being. It will take many years to rebuild everything that has been lost, for example, the many vineyards in the area.

How can we learn from this? It is clear that nature is indomitable and we should continue to study the impact of man on it. It is said that we are in the Anthropocene Epoch, that is, the era in which man is the greatest danger to the planet. Let's see how we can use resources to leave a better world for future generations.