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The complex interdependencies of climate change, energy security and sustainable economic development cannot be tackled by a single regions on its own. For combined efforts, decision makers and the civil society of different regions need to exchange concepts, values and experiences. Europe and its member states have been strongly committed to climate politics for a long time. EU is currently implementing a variety of policies and projects, ranging from the extended use of renewable energies and reduction of dependence on fossil resources to strict emission regulations and national climate action plans. It is obvious that these valuable experiences shall be shared with other regions. Asia, the continent with the fastest growing population, economy and demand for energy, plays a crucial role in mitigating the world’s temperature rise and transforming its economies toward a more sustainable one.

The purpose of the study trip is to acquaint Asian representatives with Europe`s and Germany`s attempts to tackle with energy and climate challenges. By visiting institutions and doing field trips throughout Europe, the participants will get a concrete impression of a variety of initiatives and policy making processes. A special focus is on the German Energy transition "(Energiewende)". The exchange is supposed to be mutual: participants of both regions will bring in their views and discuss how to develop new concepts in the Asian context. The participants come from all Asian subregions and are working in different fields such as academia, journalism and NGOs.

The first destination is the German capital Berlin. The participants will meet with representatives of the German government, industry, members of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung and media. In Hamburg, European Green Capital in 2011, the programme includes meetings with local authorities, civic initiatives and a workshop about energy and climate research in cooperation with the University of applied Science Luneburg at the German Climate Computing Center (DKRZ). The concluding part of the study trip will take place in Brussels where the participants talk to members of the European parliament and the European commission.