“Democracy does not work without science: Science forms the basis for far-reaching decisions that shape our lives in all areas. However, the voice of science often remains in the background.

The discussions about climate change over the last 30 years have shown that science must be prepared to enter into a constructive dialog with society and to show possible paths and options for action, much more strongly and concisely than before. Other social groups do this very professionally and often have particular interests in mind. The task of science is to conduct research objectively and detached from individual interests, and then to communicate the results in such a way that they reach the center of society and politics.”

Michael Staudinger is one of Austria’s best-known and most experienced meteorologists. Until 2021, Staudinger was director of the Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics (ZAMG); before that, the climate researcher was head of the legendary Sonnblick Observatory in the Grossglockner massif. Staudinger is an advisor to the World Meteorological Organization in Geneva.