CLIMATE GOALS ADDENDUM 3 (2026)
Climate Goals. Winning the challenge of climate goals through the creation of skills and competences worldwide
ADDENDUM 3:
FOCUS GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS AND POLAND
Our international research on the demand for skills related to the energy transition continues, adding a European focus in 2026 with three new countries — Germany, the Netherlands, and Poland — and bringing the total panel of respondents to 17 countries across four continents, with 2,850 interviews: Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates for the Middle East; India, China, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkey for Asia; the United States, Chile, and Argentina for the Americas; Algeria for Africa; and Germany, Italy, Poland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom for Europe.
The Fondazione MAIRE – ETS, with the sponsorship of MAIRE Group, brings to the discussion the perceived urgency of the creation and upskilling of competences that are necessary to reach climate goals.
This year, we will publish three separate papers, each focusing on a different country.
The first paper focuses on Germany, which stands out for its high level of awareness regarding the energy transition and for its pragmatic approach, viewing change as both an environmental necessity and an industrial evolution.
Click below for more details and to read the paper!
FOCUS ON GERMANY
The first paper, “Climate Goals” Addendum 3 from 2026, focuses on Germany.
The survey reveals an extremely interesting international picture.
Germany stands out for its high level of awareness of the energy transition and its pragmatic perspective, seeing the transition as both an environmental necessity and an industrial evolution. Germans perceive the energy transition as a demanding process that requires immediate efforts to unlock future potential, while attention is increasingly shifting to the tangible structural and infrastructural hurdles that must be overcome to complete the process. This vision is supported by a "tripartite" governancemodel, where responsibilities are shared among politicians, private industry, and citizens. However, private companies are increasingly perceived as the primary drivers of operational progress.
The path forward is viewed as a strictly technical endeavor, rooted in the long-standing excellence of Germany’s energy, engineering and construction, and automotive sectors, that requires the immediate upskilling of the workforce to create "hybrid" professionals combining hard and soft skills.
The 2026 results of the study confirm nevertheless the perception that the true engine of the energy transition has shifted away from Europe. Emerging economies are prioritizing the transition as a top-down national mission, sustained by high levels of investment and strong public confidence. China and India are moving faster: they are committing more to education and training for energy transition and expressing stronger confidence in the benefits of the shift. Meanwhile, European countries – Germany, the Netherlands and Poland – are taking a more measured, and in some cases skeptical, approach, especially when weighing priorities and the trade off between costs and benefits.
The main findings of this study were presented on March 26, 2026, during the event “Climate Goals and the Reshaping of Energy. Awareness and Perspectives in Germany” — a MAIRE event held at the Italian Embassy in Berlin.
FOCUS ON THE NETHERLANDS
The second paper of “Climate Goals” Addendum (2026 edition) focuses on the Netherlands. The paper will be published by May 2026.
FOCUS ON POLAND
The third paper of “Climate Goals” Addendum (2026 edition) focuses on Poland. The paper will be published by June 2026.
CLIMATE GOALS - THE COMPLETE SERIES
In this section, you can find all the reports published since 2023 in the “Climate Goals” series: every year, the research expands to include new countries.
Read them all!
Enhancing the energy transition (2026)
The “Climate Goals” research continues! Addendum 3 of our study on global perceptions of the urgency of implementing the energy transition and developing the new skills required to do so expands the survey to include a European focus, adding three new countries — Germany, the Netherlands, and Poland — and dedicating an in-depth paper to each of them.
Enhancing the energy transition (2025)
The “Climate Goals” research continues! Addendum 2 to our research on the global perception of the urgency of implementing the energy transition and creating the new skills needed to do so integrates the survey by adding two new countries (Qatar and Argentina) and updating the data on the US and China.
Enhancing the energy transition – COP29 (2024)
“Climate Goals” research continues! Addendum 1 of our paper on the perceived global urgency for the creation of new competences for the energy transition has two new protagonists: Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, looking forward to COP29.
Enhancing the energy transition – COP28 (2023)
“Climate goals.Winning the challenge of climate goals through the creation of skills and competences worldwide”: this is the title of our first research, created to investigate the responsiveness of countries on this theme’ urgency, and presented at COP28 in Dubai in December 2023.
