A Workshop in Berlin, explained to children the climate change. Why it has such dramatic consequences, when glaciers and icebergs melt.

In the Workshop, there are only ice in the high mountains, the glaciers, the thawing photo: Comstock Images Stockbyte/getty

BERLIN taz | In the experiment room gurgles already a machine that produces small ice cubes, as 15 children between nine and twelve years of age, with large eyes come in. You are now in the Neues Museum in Berlin, at the "Sundays for the Future"-to participate in the Workshop. Philipp Foolhardy, trained pre - and early historians will go with you on a trip back in time. In a historical search for traces of it is about how the climate has changed before, and how people are to changes in the climate have reacted.

Even in the stone age, the people and animals had to adapt to a changing nature. "The difference is, however, that the environment was still dominated by the people," explains Foolhardy. "Today, it is the other way around."

it starts with an Experiment, which is designed to simulate the glacier melt. On a long table in the middle of the room, two vessels with water in it. The children fill the containers with ice cubes from the machine. While swimming in the water, towers the other on a pile of stones. So a crust of ice is to be simulated. On the edge of the stone pile colorful Playmobil figures are. At the water border of the children to draw a line. At the end of the workshop, you will see the result.

it Continues with a search task. Laminated Print of objects from the exhibition are to the Front and to see the early history of: animal skulls, arrowheads, or pottery cookware. The first group is in search of a Mammoth Tusk. "I know from the movie 'Ice Age' ", calls Helene, one of the participants:the inside.

It is a Fund from Berlin-Spandau coming from the cold of time, so from time to 16.000 BC. To have lived this period, the Paleolithic, humans as hunters and gatherers, and afterwards moved to prey animals such as mammoths or bears, lived nomadic. In the cold temperatures to survive, the seams, the people clothes made of animal skins. From animal teeth and bone made jewelry or first tools.

By Killing the animals, people took impact on the Evolution

"By nature man has no sharp claws or teeth. With the help of tools and other inventions, he has managed, however, to the effect that he can't hunt animals, or in very cold regions of life, although he can do it purely anatomically, actually,“ explains Foolhardy.

By Killing the animals the people but also influence the Evolution. "By the Hunt, the people have ensured that large animals such as mammoths and cave bears are extinct", so Foolhardy. Smaller animals, such as moose and hares, which live in warmer environments with a lot of forest, have increased, however. This Phase is called in the archaeology of the Quaternary extinction wave. It took place in the Transition from the ice age to the warmer period. The warmer it was, the smaller the animals were. Thus, had to be also adapted to the hunting weapons. With fish hooks made of bone, harpoons, or bow and arrow and the people were targets on the hunt now also more accurate.

In the Neolithic period in Central Europe between 9,000 and 3,000 BC, people began to finally settle down, to build settlements and to develop tools to clear forest for pasture and Agriculture. Thus, the man is a handle, increasingly, in the world of plants.

Back in the experiment room boldly shows Great the small participants:the Workshops are some examples of how researchers are:indoor temperature change in the past can prove. Using a Eisbohrkerns, so a drilling Core, obtained usually through a hole in an ice sheet or glacier, can be explained by the different thickness of the layers, for example, recognize how warm it was at different points in time in the past. A thin layer of says, that it was too wet this time, and hot, while a thicker layer shows that it was drier and colder.

Today, the human impact on the environment by industry, agriculture, urban development and transport, is stronger than ever. "In the meantime, the person takes, as far an influence on the nature that the climate is changing. This is the biggest difference to the climate changes in the past. Today, it is not natural, but man-made“, so Foolhardy.

In relation to the predictions of many scientists say the climate change, he remains confident: "The man is so creative that he can deal with the modern Situation and in the sense of a positive change not only for themselves, but also for the world can act."

Dorothea Parak, research assistant for education and outreach at the New Museum, initiated the Workshop. It is not the first climate-Workshop in Germany. The topic is everywhere, more and more interest.

"We, as museums should, if we can, technically, in current debates involved and help to develop an explanation," said Parak. The fact that there are in the exhibition objects are from the ice age, can throw the visitors a direct view on climate change in history.

"We can thus also provide an Argument against people who say it, but climate change was but also already earlier, and we can then say, Yes, but under different conditions. Climate changes were already in the stone age, just as climate change today is not natural, but man-made and a lot of fast-paced,“ says Parak.

The ice cubes from the beginning of the experiment, are now melted. While the water level of the vessel remained without stones, rose border next to the molten crust of ice, and the Playmobil figures are knee-deep in the water. "Now all drowning," says one of the children, and all the laughter. The connection of the experiment to the climate change today, you don't seem to be pulling in this Moment.

The next Workshop is on 29. March in the New Museum in Berlin, Tel.: 030-266 42 42 42