Mannheim. The German Environmental Foundation (DBU) has awarded the German Environmental Prize for the 27th time. Today in Mannheim, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and the Head of the Board of Trustees of the DBU and Parliamentary State Secretary of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Rita Schwarzelühr-Sutter, presented this prize to soil researcher Prof. Dr. Ingrid Kögel-Knabner (60, Technical University of Munich) and entrepreneur Reinhard Schneider (51, Mainz). With his company Werner & Mertz, Schneider is dedicated to comprehensive sustainability at every stage of production in the laundry detergent and cleaning product industry. The prize has a total remuneration of EUR 500,000 and is the most prestigious independent environmental prize in Europe. The DBU honoured the prize winners as innovators in the field of environmental protection who offer solutions for the enormous ecological challenges we face at present. Sustainable development demands fundamental economic, political and technological change processes at all levels.
Focussing on the central role played by soil as an environmental medium
The DBU emphasized that Dr. Kögel-Knabner, as one of the most renowned and influential soil scientists and researchers in the world, has succeeded in shining a light on the central role played by the environmental medium of soil, which is often “fatally underestimated” in terms of importance compared to air and water. She has provided us with answers to the question of how soil can be used for long-term carbon storage. After all, soil is incredibly important not only for the climate but also for preventing climate change. Dr. Kögel-Knabner’s work is also important for nutrient dynamics, global food security, soil conservation and biodiversity. Her findings on quality and control mechanisms for stabilizing loam in soil have made it possible to monitor environmental changes in the soil via a modified management system, detect changes early on, and take preventive measures.
Making ecological products sustainable for the mass market
With his comprehensive corporate sustainability strategy and high level of personal dedication, Schneider has paved the way for environmental standards to be established at the highest level across an entire economic sector. He has consistently ensured that green products appeal to the majority of consumers on the mass market, pursues sustainability in his corporate decision-making and, in this way, earns the trust of the consumer. With countless initiatives for environmental protection and sustainable development, he has broken new ground: consistent recycling of used plastics, for example from household recycling, for new packaging, printing labels in an environmentally- and health-friendly manner, using plant oils from Germany for his laundry detergent and cleaning products rather than controversial palm kernel oil from tropical regions, voluntarily subjecting the company to environmental audits in accordance with the guidelines of the European Union – the approach to sustainability pursued by the company is “visible on a national and international level”.
