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German chancellor Angela Merkel has listed climate change as one of the “great challenges” where she sees her Christian Democrats in the position to show what they "are made of" in the future during her last speech as head of the conservative party CDU. If it could not be contained, it “will change the face of our planet,” she told the delegates at a party conference in Hamburg. With her decision not to seek re-election as party chair, Merkel had kicked off an internal election campaign for the party’s leadership, which is set to culminate in a vote at the party meeting later in the day. Delegates are set to elect one of three candidates for the conservative leading role on Friday who are likely to also become CDU Chancellor candidate for Germany's next election. Other challenges she mentioned in her speech, which was met with 10 minutes of standing ovations, were the “technological progress that offers us many opportunities, from medicine to mobility to the Energiewende, but which also poses questions of human dignity”, as well as “the increasing turning away from multilateralism, the retreat to nationalism, the reduction of international cooperation to the principles of deal making.” Merkel should not step down early and continue her chancellorship for the remainder of the current legislative period, said Joseph Daul, president of the European conservative European People’s Party at the conference. The period after the European elections in 2019 demands “a sure hand, experience and skill. So I plead to the future party leadership and say: give her all the support. We need her in these difficult times in Europe,” said Daul.

See the 91tv article Climate and energy views of candidates to follow Merkel at helm of CDU for more information.