ifo Schnelldienst 18/2011

The nuclear accident in Fukushima has given new stimulus to the debate about the future of energy supplies worldwide. In Germany, the result was a radical shift in policy by the federal government and the decision to phase out nuclear energy. Now the public debate is concentrated on the energy-policy turnaround and not just on the nuclear power issue. It has not only been the events at Fukushima that underscore the need for an energy-policy turnaround but even before this the recognition of the scientific findings on climate change. In order to discuss the need for an energy-policy transition and to identify alternative development paths, the Ifo Institute in conjunction with the Technical University of Munich conducted the symposium: “Quo vadis Germany? Energy-policy turnaround in Germany” on 12 July 2011. This issue contains some of the contributions to the symposium.