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Germany's federal government needs to provide additional funds for climate mitigation and adaptation measures, and make these easily available to its states and local authorities, the country's state environment ministers said at . "Climate adaptation and nature conservation measures must be jointly financed – by the federal government and the federal states," said Petra Berg, environment minister in the state of Saarland, who chairs the environment ministers' conference. "Only together can we overcome the challenges of our time."

The ministers also pushed for a quick decision on insurance against extreme weather events, saying that new home insurance contracts should always include a natural hazard cover. If a voluntary solution could not be found, the federal government would have to introduce a statutory obligation, Tagesspiegel Background quoted them as saying. Currently, just over half of German households are insured against damage caused by floods, heavy rain or landslides.

Germany should also invest in strengthening water infrastructure, the ministers said. "The municipalities will not be able to fulfil the task of securing the water supply in times of emergency without further support," said Hesse's environment minister Ingmar Jung. He added that federal funding was key for a reliable water supply in future.

Along the rest of the world, Germany is already experiencing the effects of climate change, yet a lack of financial and human resources slows the implementation of preventive measures. The ministers agreed to continue to develop the idea of making climate adaptation investments a "joint task" between the federal and state governments, a step seen as key to ensure long-term financing.