|
Europe's Very Own Al Gore
Whether it was the Founding Fathers of the American Revolution or leaders such as Martin Luther King in the Civil Rights Movement it must be acknowledged that there has not been a successful movement in history that did not have strong, principled and charismatic leaders. While we are luckily past the point of fighting for national independence or obtaining civil rights, there is a worldwide issue that is taking precedent today; global warming. One of the most easily recognized faces in the fight against global warming is former Vice President Al Gore. His film, An Inconvenient Truth (2007), along with his tireless actions to increase awareness of global warming, have earned him the Nobel Peace Prize and a wide variety of other accolades. Overseas, Europe recently lost an environmental figure with as much passion and initiative as his American Counterpart; his name was Dr. Hermann Scheer.
Dr. Hermann Scheer, born April 29, 1944, was one of the leading environmental figures throughout Europe. He was most well known for being an active member of the German parliament, President of Eurosolar (The European Association for Renewable Energy), as well as being the chairman of the World Council for Renewable Energy. Through his various positions, Scheer was able to focus on his main passion, renewable energy. Scheer acknowledged the potential dangers that continued use of cheap fossil fuels caused and felt that renewable energy was the only viable option for solving this problem. As a result of his influential work in the realm of alternative energy, Scheer was awarded the Right Livelihood Award (Alternative Nobel Prize) in 1999. Dr. Scheer authored the groundbreaking environmental piece, Energy Autonomy: The Economic, Social and Technological Case for Renewable Energy in 2007. The work outlined a path to a complete restructuring of the energy economy, which eliminates the use of fossil fuels and replaces it with a decentralized renewable energy system. The work inspired the 2010 German documentary, Die 4. Revolution - Energy Autonomy, which looked at effective renewable energy systems throughout the world. Dr. Scheer's political legacy can be found in the continued use of Feed-in Tariffs in Germany, which he played a large role in implementing. These tariffs are used to give incentives for the use of renewable energy, such as wind power, hydropower, geothermal and solar photovoltaics. As a result, in 2005 10% of the electricity in Germany came from renewable energy sources, most of which was supported with feed-in tariffs. The policy has saved more than 50 million tons of carbon emissions to date.
Though less known than figures such as Al Gore, Dr. Hermann Scheer's environmental work should be equally appreciated. As a front man for renewable energy, Scheer was able to help create policies that will help the environment well after his death. This accomplishment is coupled with a lifetime of passion and dedication that helped to influence people across the world. His novel and the documentary it inspired only add to Scheer's legacy. On October 14, 2010, Scheer died suffered an unexpected and untimely death after falling victim to heart failure.
|
