Grüner Wasserstoff, weiße Prioritäten? Energiewende zwischen Klimagerechtigkeit und Kolonialität

In the organizer's words:

With future technology to climate neutrality - this is the promise of the Global North to import "green" hydrogen. The producing countries in the Global South are also set to benefit, for example through new jobs, the fight against energy poverty and equal partnerships. However, a closer look at specific examples reveals the potential for conflict inherent in the planned megaprojects. In Namibia, plans to produce "green" hydrogen raise the question of colonial continuities against the backdrop of genocide and land seizures during German colonial rule. A project in Western Sahara is being planned on territory occupied in violation of international law.

Can "green" hydrogen really be part of a climate-friendly future? What interests are at the forefront? Whose voices are being heard in the debate and what arguments are missing? We talk about the right to self-determination, reparations, solidarity partnerships - and about forms of resistance against colonial continuities in the name of climate protection.

Fatim Selina Diaby (she/none) works as a freelance writer, poet and in political education. As part of several collectives, she organizes and engages at the intersection of health, climate and racial justice. Together with We Smell Gas, Fatim Selina has realized a video series on green hydrogen.

Emma Lehbib is the spokesperson for the Sahrawi diaspora in Germany and is academically and activistically committed to her people's right to self-determination and against the exploitation of resources in Western Sahara - especially in the context of international energy projects.

Boniface Mabanza is coordinator of the Kirchliche Arbeitstelle Südliches Afrika at the Werkstatt Ökonomie/Heidelberg with a focus on trade policy, raw materials policy and globalization. He is a trainer for development policy and anti-racism for various institutions and is active in numerous networks of the African diaspora in Germany and Europe.

Johanna Tunn conducts research at the University of Hamburg on the risks of the German hydrogen strategy, particularly in relation to projects in Namibia. The focus is on political-ecological perspectives, colonial continuities and questions of climate justice.

Moderation: Canê Çağlar is a political educator, moderator, doctoral candidate and educational scientist. Her work focuses on structural discrimination, decolonization and educational justice. Her recent work includes lectures for the Ministry of Science, Research, Equality and Districts (BWFGB) in Hamburg and articles for Kohero magazine.

The event is part of the series Hamburg. handelt. decolonial?, in which we want to make decolonial perspectives on business and trade visible, and takes place in cooperation with the German Harbour Museum as part of Fair Week 2025.

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Access to the venue is barrier-free. If you have any questions about accessibility, please contact: kampagne@fairtradestadt-hamburg.de