1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites
Live TV
Latest audioLatest videos
In focus
Israel and the crisis in the Middle EastGerman coalition collapseUS election
Mexiko Kelp Bass in Kelp Forest, San Benito Island
Image: Reinhard Dirscherl/NHPA/Avalon/picture allianceImage: Reinhard Dirscherl/NHPA/Avalon/picture alliance

Global Ideas

We focus on "best practice" climate and biodiversity protection projects that offer solutions. Global Ideas is supported by the German environment ministry within the framework of its International Climate Initiative.

Skip next section All Content on this topic

All Content on this topic

A boy is seen walking with a cow along the highway that runs from Vientiane, Laos, to Sihanoukville, Cambodia in Si Phan Don, Laos

Can a green transition save the Mekong River?

A race for resources and energy has put the Mekong's future in jeopardy. Sustainable projects are now offering new hope.
Nature and EnvironmentMay 30, 2024
77_Hairmat_Bild

Kenya community turning harmful hair extensions into carpets

Discarded synthetic hair extensions is an environmental hazard. A community in Kisumu found a way to repurpose them.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 8, 202401:45 min
SUVs parked in Paris city centre on February 1, 2024, as Paris' city hall organized a vote on February 4 on hiking parking fees for heavy vehicles

Paris votes to triple parking fees for SUVs

The bike-friendly French capital is pressing ahead with hefty parking fees — of as much as €18 an hour — for heavy cars.
Cars and TransportationFebruary 5, 2024
Logo "Global 3000"

Global 3000 - The Globalization Program

A Thai company specializing in sustainable fashion and China's ultrafast fashion giant SHEIN.
GlobalizationDecember 23, 202226:01 min
Bhutan Wasserkrise Schülerinnen der Central School in Tsirangtoe

Water worries in Bhutan

Bhutan is feeling the effects of climate change, but is fighting the water crisis with bold ideas.
Nature and EnvironmentSeptember 1, 202206:35 min
Magazin Global 3000 | 20.09.2021

India: trees as family members

The organization Familial Forestry distributes seedlings to slow desert expansion in Rajasthan.
Nature and EnvironmentAugust 26, 202205:56 min
DW Sendung Global 3000 | Malediven Seegras

Maldives: Seagrass beds provide a vital service

Seagrass beds play a key role in the Maldives, storing CO2 and protecting the islands from erosion.
BusinessAugust 19, 202205:56 min
Logo "Global 3000"

Global 3000 - The Globalization Program

Can selective breeding or genetic engineering make our meat production more sustainable?
BusinessAugust 19, 202226:06 min
Three people work in a backyard garden, crouched on the soil

Backyard gardens empower women

An NGO in Ghana encourages women to plant their own backyard gardens, feeding their families and securing an income.
Food SecurityAugust 6, 202206:41 min
Tanzania: People dig a fallow soil with the hills in the background, clouds in the sky

Tanzania: Restoring the soil with reforestation

Droughts in Tanzania make planting trees a challenge. The project Justdigit has a simple method to fight back.
Nature and EnvironmentJuly 29, 202206:57 min
A group of people in the mountains of Lebanon, surrounded by rocks and grassland

In Lebanon, making cedar seed bombs — and friends

A project to bring back Lebanon's iconic cedar forests is fighting for the environment and against discrimination.
Nature and EnvironmentJuly 29, 202205:58 min
Logo "Global 3000"

Global 3000 - The Globalization Program

Cedar trees could be growing in Lebanon again and desalination might help alleviate global water shortages.
GlobalizationJuly 29, 202226:01 min
Grassland in South Africa

Restoring grasslands in South Africa

Two women run a project to conserve grasslands degraded by overgrazing that are vital to water resources.
Nature and EnvironmentJuly 21, 202205:28 min
Adriano Karipuno, law student, Amazon, wears a headdress and looks into the camera

Indigenous Brazilians' legal fight for Amazon

Under Bolsonaro, threats to the Amazon have escalated. The Karipuna are fighting back in the Brazilian courts.
Nature and EnvironmentJune 30, 2022
School children carry buckets of water in Bhutan

Bhutan fights back against water crisis

Bhutan is struggling with increasing droughts and floods. How can the country tackle its water challenges?
Nature and EnvironmentJune 23, 2022
A man stands on a beach in Horcones, Chile, which is covered all over with fish carcasses

Extinction crisis threatens humanity

Talks are currently underway on an international treaty to tackle biodiversity loss. Here's what you need to know.
Nature and EnvironmentJune 21, 2022
DW Global Ideas Webspecial Biodiversity Teaser, a butterfly against a mountain range, with four different parts of the butterfly replaced by images of a fish, bird, bat and spider

How can we prevent biodiversity loss?

With 1 million species at risk of extinction, what can be done to protect the world's precious biodiversity?
Nature and EnvironmentJune 21, 2022
Luiz Henrique Lopes Ferreira with cashew products in Brazilian Amazon

Using candy and jam to protect Brazil's Amazon rainforest

Can ensuring young people have economic opportunities in the Amazon help prevent deforestation and protect biodiversity?
Nature and EnvironmentJune 21, 2022
Global Ideas Infofilm über Biodiversität

Can we save species from extinction?

Can animal parks, rescue stations, catch quotas and protected areas help us save some species from extinction?
Nature and EnvironmentJune 21, 202204:17 min
People standing in front of a blast furnance

How can we make steel green?

The wonder material is responsible for almost 10% of global warming. Cleaning it up won't be easy.
Nature and EnvironmentJune 7, 2022
Two men, two boys sit in a boat on the lake with the text "electric mobility on the water"

Electric boats for Lake Victoria

In Kenya, a startup is renting electric motors to local fishermen — for the sake of the environment.
Nature and EnvironmentJune 3, 202207:00 min
Babita Baswal, 32, stands outside the maternity unit in Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi

Indian heatwaves threaten maternal health

Soaring temperatures can mean more preterm and stillbirths, but many pregnant women aren't aware of the risks.
Nature and EnvironmentJune 1, 2022
Farmer in Central Kalimatan, Borneo, Indonesia

Borneo: Forests for a better future

Indonesian farmers are planting trees to restore the country's threatened forests — and provide a sustainable future.
Nature and EnvironmentMay 31, 2022
Teenagers ride a young horse on the pastures in the Jalalabad region of Kyrgyzstan

Protecting walnuts and pasture in Kyrgyzstan

How smartphone tech is helping shepherds make the most of grazing lands, and in turn protect a unique walnut forest.
Nature and EnvironmentMay 24, 2022
A flock of gray geese (Anser anser).

The perilous life of migratory birds

From habitat loss to hunting, humans pose all kinds of danger to migratory birds. But it doesn't have to be this way.
Nature and EnvironmentMay 13, 2022
graphic of a map of the world in background with a thermometer and money illustrated on top

Funding the fight against climate change

The cost of mitigating climate change and its effects is rising. Carbon taxes and credits could help.
Nature and EnvironmentMay 6, 202204:04 min
Two men talking wearing hardhats

Financing green projects in Ghana

An online platform is trying to help businesses get green projects off the ground.
Nature and EnvironmentMay 5, 2022
Bumblebee on a chicory flower

Carbon farming: Climate fix or greenwashing?

An EU project hopes that encouraging farmers to capture carbon to sell credits to businesses will help reduce emissions.
Nature and EnvironmentMay 3, 2022
Casualty of a window strike in New York City

How to keep birds from colliding into glass

Conservationists seek to convince cities and building owners to introduce changes to stop birds from flying into glass.
Nature and EnvironmentApril 19, 2022
Woman gardening in Rio de Janeiro favela 

Brazil's flourishing community gardens

In one of Rio de Janeiro's most deprived neighborhoods residents are finding hope by growing fruit and vegetables.
Nature and EnvironmentApril 15, 2022
DW "Global Us" Sendungslogo Composite

New monsoon forecasts in India

A new monsoon forecast system will enable farmers to plan ahead – and enjoy superior harvests
BusinessApril 15, 202206:43 min
DW "Global Us" Sendungslogo Composite

Sustainable sugarcane production in Ghana

Audrey S-Darko is helping farmers in Ghana improve their sugar harvests and benefit the environment
BusinessApril 15, 202206:29 min
DW "Global Us" Sendungslogo Composite

Sustainable fishing in Tunisia

Med Bycatch Project wants to see sustainable fishing in Tunisia
BusinessApril 15, 202204:51 min
Jinghong hydropower plant in on the Mekong River, China

Water wars — or environmental peacebuilding?

With drought hitting communities around the world, can shared water resources be a source of peace as well as conflict?
Nature and EnvironmentApril 5, 2022
A woman holding a pink menstruation cup

Can you have a greener period?

Disposable sanitary items are highly polluting. But how green are alternatives like menstrual cups and period underwear?
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 31, 2022
A person holding radishes

Mexican farmers using human waste to feed crops

Dry toilets and compost made from human waste could help improve Mexico's environmental degradation and save water.
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 29, 2022
Stacks of different color fabric in plastic

New clothes from old fabric scraps

A Thai startup is saving surplus fabric from the scrap heap and making the circular economy a reality.
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 24, 2022
An aerial photo of the Sundarbans

Sundarbans' climate refugees face an uncertain future

Sagar Island has been a haven for climate refugees in India. Now it too is succumbing to rising sea levels.
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 21, 2022
Global Ideas Thailand Textil-Start-up moreloop

Work wear made from spare fabric

An online platform in Thailand is helping give surplus fabric a new life and cut down on wasted resources.
BusinessMarch 18, 202206:33 min
A monkey-repelling machine attached to a tree

India: Tech solutions to deter marauding monkeys

Instead of using traps or poison, some farmers are testing light and sound to keep hungry animals from their crops.
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 18, 2022
Logo "Global 3000"

Global 3000 – The Globalization Show

Despite climate change, India continues to rely on coal for energy. German anti-vaxxers have emigrated to Paraguay.
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 16, 202226:00 min
A local fisherman fits the electric motor onto his boat

Can e-boats help clean up Lake Victoria?

To help combat pollution, Kenya is introducing fishing boats with electric motors in the hope they will help improve wat
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 16, 2022
Global 3000 | Bio Costa Rica | Wasser

Trees counter water scarcity

Even though Costa Rica gets a fair amount of rain, city dwellers often encounter water shortages.
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 15, 202206:03 min
A man holding dirt in his hands

Ivory Coast brings digital tech to agriculture

Developers are producing apps they hope will revolutionize the west African country's farming sector.
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 10, 2022
A small, upturned fishing boat on a dried-out lakebed

Why did Chile's huge lagoon really disappear?

Chileans are pinning hopes on a new, green constitution to tackle their water woes.
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 8, 2022
San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica, from above

Costa Rica can't wait any longer for water

Farmers in Costa Rica are being encouraged to work closer with nature to protect forests and their sources of water.
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 1, 2022
Eduardo Kopper sits in front of a container at his Poas I crypto-mining project in Costa Rica

Can cryptocurrency go green?

Companies are jumping on the green crypto bandwagon. But are they just wasting precious renewable power?
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 24, 2022
Cordula Weimann speaks at a protest in Germany

Finding hope in the face of the climate crisis

DW asked people working in climate activism, research and science what gives them grounds to be optimistic.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 18, 2022
Octopus in Mexico

A brighter future for Mexico's octopuses

Could octopus farms help animals survive climate change and warming waters?
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 17, 2022
Logo "Global 3000"

Global 3000: The Globalization Magazine

Kenya: Running for a better life. Mexico: Farming octopuses. Thailand: Under water.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 15, 202226:01 min