Comparative Analysis of Climate Programs in Germany and the USA

Environmental problems are on the main agenda of the developed countries of the world. This article examines programs to combat climate change in Germany and the United States. Both countries adopted the Paris Agreement in 2016. The key areas of their activity are also similar, as is the main goal: to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 2030. Along with this, several significant differences can be distinguished. First, Germany adheres to a stable course within the approved program, while in the United States the actions of the political party in power have a significant impact on the implementation of the agreement. President Trump even began the process of withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, and it was only under President Biden that the United States returned to fulfilling the goals of this agreement. Second, some differences can be identified with respect to emission reduction targets. In Germany the year 1990 was indicated as the base year, while in the USA, when the new program was finalized, the base year was replaced by 2005, when the value of emissions was higher than in 1990. Thirdly, when the countries develop a program to combat climate change, they face different problems: in Germany, which forms part of the EU, the procedure for adopting changes is long since all EU countries must accept all the amendments; in the United States it is necessary to repeal a number of laws passed under Trump, and to get approval of the climate change laws in Congress, with a significant number of Republican voters, many of whom may not support the President's initiative. We should also note the desire of the United States to lead the movement towards climate change on the international stage, while Germany does not set such a goal. The article also provides a comparative analysis of the programs, which makes it possible to highlight the most promising areas of the US and Germany policy to combat climate change, as well as the strengths of each program