Acting responsibly

The European Union has a historical responsibility to cut emissions at home, said Thomas Gelin, a Greenpeace EU campaigner.

"The EU's 2040 climate targets should drive a shift away from fossil fuels, starting with an EU ban on new fossil fuel projects, toward renewables and energy saving, to cut people's energy bills, make their homes easier to heat and cool, and clean the air they breathe," he told the Guardian.

Cheng Zhao, a foresight expert at a social business and a project coordinator with a think tank that focuses on sustainability and business in Germany, said climate topics were once top priorities for the government.