BERLIN, June 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

German president spoke out at the opening of "Environment Week" - leading industrial nations called upon to keep their promises

"I am convinced that there is no better breeding ground for our ideas and solutions than our open society with open markets and free and fair competition. It is urgent to establish a reliable political framework so that we can avoid harmful factors and reach our desired goals. In my opinion, an environmental policy based on the market economy and the promotion of growth means that the costs of pollution and environmental risks are paid for by those who cause them, and not by the taxpayer. And also that environmentally-friendly production methods bring competition benefits for companies." - It was with these words that Germany's head of state, Joachim Gauck, today launched "Environment Week" in the park of Bellevue Palace in Berlin, a project of the German president and the Deutsche Bundestiftung Umwelt (DBU).

Gauck stressed that the international community of states had taken a small, but not insignificant step forward at the end of last year in Durban when it "finally set out on the path" towards a global climate agreement from 2020. Gauck: "All leading industrial nations in Europe and worldwide must be prepared to take this path! Germany, as well as the USA, Japan, Canada, China and India. Anyone who delays to gain a short-term advantage will hurt themselves and everyone else in the long term. I am confident that this realization will prevail: sustainability no longer means restrictions or doing without, but responsibility and rationality. Humanity, human life, every form of life can only unfold on this earth in harmony with nature, not in conflict with it. Otherwise it destroys itself. For this reason, the only things that make economic sense in the long term are those that make ecological sense."

Today and tomorrow, around 200 companies and institutions will be presenting new technologies, products and projects that promote the sustainable treatment of resources. The presentations in the park of Bellevue Palace are intended to give an overview of the range and variety of activities in environmental technology, research, education and protection and to demonstrate that this is an important issue for the future that is of great significance for Germany. Four hundred experts in almost 100 forums will also discuss issues connected with conservation, sustainability, energy efficiency, protection of resources, climate and nature, and mobility, as well as tourism, leisure and sport, food, building and housing.

More information at http://www.dbu.de

Contact:
Franz-Georg Elpers
Telefon: +49(0)541-9633521
Telefax: +49(0)541-9633198
presse@dbu.de

SOURCE Deutsche Bundestiftung Umwelt (DBU)