Hidden Agendas, Dangerous Ideologies: How the Populist Right Threatens Climate Adaptation

Climate Adaptation According to the AfD

Right-wing populist parties are increasingly using the topic of climate adaptation to promote their ideologies under the guise of environmental concern. Andreas Jurca, a member of the Bavarian state parliament from the AfD, linked the lack of flood protection to migration following the devastating floods of June this year, stating, “Imagine if we had built dikes instead of paying criminal foreigners repatriation aid.” The election platforms of the AfD for the regional elections in Saxony, Thuringia, and Brandenburg outline an adaptation policy that promotes a nationalist nature and homeland protection along with a ‘new regionalism’.

In the same breath, climate protection is presented as an enemy, with adaptation used as a counterpoint. Karsten Hilse, the AfD’s spokesperson for environmental policy in the Bundestag, called for a climate adaptation fund instead of the ‘doomed-to-fail ‘protection of the climate’.’ The Brandenburg AfD’s election programme for the 2024 state election makes this stance even clearer: “Our energy policy is based on the principle: climate adaptation instead of climate protection.”

A Strong Response Is Needed

At first glance, working with the AfD might seem the lesser evil to secure majorities for climate adaptation. However, it must be clear that effective climate adaptation and right-wing populist ideologies are incompatible. 

To explore this further, public bodies and civil society should examine how the connections between right-wing populism and climate adaptation are developing in Germany and Europe. Furthermore, there must be a public that denounces the exploitation of climate adaptation, as well as clear quality standards for implementing adaptation measures. This approach could lay the groundwork for a socially just and sustainable alternative.

The campaign for the early federal election is a crucial opportunity for all democratic parties to clearly distance themselves from right-wing populist narratives in the area of climate adaptation. To make our towns and communities climate-resilient, livable, and healthy for all, much is needed—but certainly not the AfD.