Mojib Latif awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany

Professor Dr Mojib Latif is one of the world’s best-known climate researchers – and one of the first to warn of the consequences of climate change. On 9 October, he will receive the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany from President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at Bellevue Palace in recognition of his research and tireless efforts to protect the climate.   

Latif has repeatedly made concrete proposals for implementing the results of his research and has explained climate change to the general public in many books, the Federal President’s Office said in its citation. His goal has always been to motivate and enable everyone to think about their own actions through education, enlightenment and information.

“For me, Mojib Latif embodies what it means to be an outstanding scientist. He researches with heart and soul and actively advances climate research,” says Professor Dr Katja Matthes, Director of the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel. “In addition, he has the ability to communicate even the most complicated interrelationships in an understandable and impressive way, which he proves time and again in a variety of different media formats”. Hardly any other researcher has been as consistent in highlighting the challenges of global warming and its expected consequences as he has been for decades, Matthes adds. These qualities have made Mojib Latif not only an outstanding researcher, but also a role model for the younger generation of scientists. His commitment, dedication and discoveries will continue to inspire and make us proud for many years to come. I congratulate Mojib Latif on this well-deserved honour and thank him for his tireless work”.

Mojib Latif began his scientific career in Hamburg, where he also completed his doctorate and habilitation. At the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, he became involved in communicating climate change to the public. In 2003, he was appointed professor at the Christian-Albrechts-Universität (CAU) in Kiel, and in 2004 he became head of the research division Ocean Circulation and Climate Dynamics at the then Institute for Oceanography in Kiel, now GEOMAR. He has consistently contributed his expertise at the international level, including as a co-author of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports.

Mojib Latif is President of the German Association of the Club of Rome and of the Academy of Sciences in Hamburg. He has received numerous awards for his outstanding commitment, including the German Environmental Award in 2015 and the Order of Merit of the State of Schleswig-Holstein in 2016.