Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius enjoys social media revival – DW – 06/08/2025
How do you keep calm in times of crisis? What do people need to be happy? Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius is often quoted online for answers. This once-powerful man would have preferred to be a philosopher.
"Look within. Within is the fountain of good, and it will ever bubble up, if thou wilt ever dig."
Wise statements like this can be found in the "Meditations" of Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius (121-180 C.E.). He had never intended these reflections for publication, having written them purely for himself, but they have become some of the most widely read writings after the Bible and the Quran. A bestseller, so to speak, which has been translated into numerous languages worldwide.
Known today as a philosopher-king, Marcus Aurelius ruled at a time marked by crises and catastrophes. He ascended to the throne in 161 C.E., just a few years before the Marcomannic Wars (166-180 C.E.) — the Marcomanni were Germanic tribes — which would shake the Roman Empire to its foundations. In addition, there were economic problems, social tensions and the spread of the Antonine Plague, a form of smallpox, throughout the Roman emperor's territory.
Two museums in Trier are co-hosting a major exhibition on Marcus Aurelius Image: Landesmuseum Trier
'You have power over your mind, not outside events'
Equanimity — that was one of the basic principles of Marcus Aurelius, who was a great fan of the Stoics, an ancient school of philosophy founded by the Greek Zeno of Citium in 300 B.C.E.
Marcus Aurelius wanted to be a good ruler, but what is good governance?
That question, which remains relevant to this day, was of great concern to him, as reflected in his "Meditations."
But his contemporaries would never have read his writings, according to archaeologist Marcus Reuter, director of the Rheinisches Landesmuseum in Trier. "The Romans also never saw him as a philosopher-king. His writings were never made public during his lifetime. He wrote for himself, in the quiet of his room in the evening."
Aurelius only acquired the image of the philosopher-king after the publication of his "Meditations" in the 15th or 16th century.
Reuter and historian Viola Skiba, director of the Stadtmuseum Simeonstift in Trier, have co-curated a joint exhibition , in each of their institutions, on Marcus Aurelius, set to run from June 15 to November 23, 2025. Skiba says the themes of the exhibition are more current than they had anticipated. Particularly in these crisis-ridden and polarized times, the question of what good leadership looks like has taken on a new urgency. At the same time, the question is as old as human history itself, and was clearly a focus in the ancient world.
Museum directors Marcus Reuter and Viola Skiba co-curated the joint exhibition Image: Rheinisches Landesmuseum Trier
Donald Trump 'not a role model'
What, according to Marcus Aurelius, distinguishes good governance? "Basically, it is guided by the cardinal virtues of antiquity," says Skiba. Those desirable virtues include wisdom, justice, prudence and moderation. A key concept is the "orientation towards the common good," acting in a way that truly benefits the community as a whole. "This is, so to speak, also what separates a good ruler from a bad one according to [the Greek philospher] Aristotle."
Reuter adds that Marcus Aurelius would most likely have considered Donald Trump "not a good leader, and certainly not a role model."
But of course, Marcus Aurelius was a product of his time, who grew up within the social structures of antiquity. "There was slavery, and not even Marcus Aurelius wanted to abolish it," according to Reuter. The emperor also did not question "that there were people with and without Roman civil rights, or that women did not have the same rights as men."
From today's perspective, it may also seem odd to consider as virtuous an emperor who waged brutal wars. "According to ancient standards, the emperor was expected to ensure the security of the empire and protect its inhabitants — even by very brutal means if necessary," says Reuter.
"He was extensively involved in court cases. He endeavored to pass just judgments, and always put the interests of the state first," adds Reuter.
The construction of the Porta Nigra in Trier — today the city's famous landmark — can also be traced back to Marcus Aurelius. It was part of the city wall that Aurelius had built to protect its citizens.
A fragment from Marcus Aurelius' 'Meditations' from the 15th century Image: Bistumsarchiv Trier (BATr) Abt. 95,1 Nr. 23
'Very little is needed to make a happy life'
Aphorisms like the above can seem like mockery coming from a wealthy emperor, but they were meant sincerely. Indeed, Marcus Aurelius cultivated a rather modest lifestyle and even had imperial household items — his private assets — auctioned off when the state was in financial crisis. "As far as I know, no Roman emperor before or after him did that," says Reuter.
He also apparently spent a lot of time pondering the meaning of life, which is presumably the reason so many young people nowadays are interested in him and his writings. In Reuter's estimation, "his 'Meditations' are a little treasure trove containing something to address nearly every situation in life."
The archaeologist points out that Marcus Aurelius' writings don't lend themselves to being read from front to back, but are well-suited to dipping into to find inspiration. They are, after all, the private musings of someone who spent time thinking about what was truly important in life. So it's small wonder that quotes by the Roman emperor can be found all over social media.
The exhibition in Trier builds on this contemporary interest in Marcus Aurelius and the topics that occupied him. It's designed to inspire visitors from all over the world to reflect on themselves, society, and what a long-ago Roman emperor still has to say to us today. Or, as Viola Skiba puts it, "Every society is based on individuals, and if each and every individual asks themselves these philosophical and political questions, then it also works as a whole."
This article was originally published in German.
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DW
4 days ago
- DW
Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius enjoys social media revival – DW – 06/08/2025
How do you keep calm in times of crisis? What do people need to be happy? Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius is often quoted online for answers. This once-powerful man would have preferred to be a philosopher. "Look within. Within is the fountain of good, and it will ever bubble up, if thou wilt ever dig." Wise statements like this can be found in the "Meditations" of Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius (121-180 C.E.). He had never intended these reflections for publication, having written them purely for himself, but they have become some of the most widely read writings after the Bible and the Quran. A bestseller, so to speak, which has been translated into numerous languages worldwide. Known today as a philosopher-king, Marcus Aurelius ruled at a time marked by crises and catastrophes. He ascended to the throne in 161 C.E., just a few years before the Marcomannic Wars (166-180 C.E.) — the Marcomanni were Germanic tribes — which would shake the Roman Empire to its foundations. In addition, there were economic problems, social tensions and the spread of the Antonine Plague, a form of smallpox, throughout the Roman emperor's territory. Two museums in Trier are co-hosting a major exhibition on Marcus Aurelius Image: Landesmuseum Trier 'You have power over your mind, not outside events' Equanimity — that was one of the basic principles of Marcus Aurelius, who was a great fan of the Stoics, an ancient school of philosophy founded by the Greek Zeno of Citium in 300 B.C.E. Marcus Aurelius wanted to be a good ruler, but what is good governance? That question, which remains relevant to this day, was of great concern to him, as reflected in his "Meditations." But his contemporaries would never have read his writings, according to archaeologist Marcus Reuter, director of the Rheinisches Landesmuseum in Trier. "The Romans also never saw him as a philosopher-king. His writings were never made public during his lifetime. He wrote for himself, in the quiet of his room in the evening." Aurelius only acquired the image of the philosopher-king after the publication of his "Meditations" in the 15th or 16th century. Reuter and historian Viola Skiba, director of the Stadtmuseum Simeonstift in Trier, have co-curated a joint exhibition , in each of their institutions, on Marcus Aurelius, set to run from June 15 to November 23, 2025. Skiba says the themes of the exhibition are more current than they had anticipated. Particularly in these crisis-ridden and polarized times, the question of what good leadership looks like has taken on a new urgency. At the same time, the question is as old as human history itself, and was clearly a focus in the ancient world. Museum directors Marcus Reuter and Viola Skiba co-curated the joint exhibition Image: Rheinisches Landesmuseum Trier Donald Trump 'not a role model' What, according to Marcus Aurelius, distinguishes good governance? "Basically, it is guided by the cardinal virtues of antiquity," says Skiba. Those desirable virtues include wisdom, justice, prudence and moderation. A key concept is the "orientation towards the common good," acting in a way that truly benefits the community as a whole. "This is, so to speak, also what separates a good ruler from a bad one according to [the Greek philospher] Aristotle." Reuter adds that Marcus Aurelius would most likely have considered Donald Trump "not a good leader, and certainly not a role model." But of course, Marcus Aurelius was a product of his time, who grew up within the social structures of antiquity. "There was slavery, and not even Marcus Aurelius wanted to abolish it," according to Reuter. The emperor also did not question "that there were people with and without Roman civil rights, or that women did not have the same rights as men." From today's perspective, it may also seem odd to consider as virtuous an emperor who waged brutal wars. "According to ancient standards, the emperor was expected to ensure the security of the empire and protect its inhabitants — even by very brutal means if necessary," says Reuter. "He was extensively involved in court cases. He endeavored to pass just judgments, and always put the interests of the state first," adds Reuter. The construction of the Porta Nigra in Trier — today the city's famous landmark — can also be traced back to Marcus Aurelius. It was part of the city wall that Aurelius had built to protect its citizens. A fragment from Marcus Aurelius' 'Meditations' from the 15th century Image: Bistumsarchiv Trier (BATr) Abt. 95,1 Nr. 23 'Very little is needed to make a happy life' Aphorisms like the above can seem like mockery coming from a wealthy emperor, but they were meant sincerely. Indeed, Marcus Aurelius cultivated a rather modest lifestyle and even had imperial household items — his private assets — auctioned off when the state was in financial crisis. "As far as I know, no Roman emperor before or after him did that," says Reuter. He also apparently spent a lot of time pondering the meaning of life, which is presumably the reason so many young people nowadays are interested in him and his writings. In Reuter's estimation, "his 'Meditations' are a little treasure trove containing something to address nearly every situation in life." The archaeologist points out that Marcus Aurelius' writings don't lend themselves to being read from front to back, but are well-suited to dipping into to find inspiration. They are, after all, the private musings of someone who spent time thinking about what was truly important in life. So it's small wonder that quotes by the Roman emperor can be found all over social media. The exhibition in Trier builds on this contemporary interest in Marcus Aurelius and the topics that occupied him. It's designed to inspire visitors from all over the world to reflect on themselves, society, and what a long-ago Roman emperor still has to say to us today. Or, as Viola Skiba puts it, "Every society is based on individuals, and if each and every individual asks themselves these philosophical and political questions, then it also works as a whole." This article was originally published in German.
DW
23-05-2025
- DW
Wildfires through the eyes of the toughest firefighters – DW – 05/23/2025
When Kelly Ramsey joined an elite unit of wildland firefighters called the "hotshots" in Northern California, she thought she knew what she was signing up for. But climate change has flipped a switch, transforming wildfires from a natural occurrence into an unstoppable force. We'll hear her story and check in with firefighters in Canada and Australia about what it now takes put out the flames. Interviewees: Kelly Ramsey, author of "Wildfire Days: A woman, a hotshot crew and the burning American West" Hugh Murdoch, incident commander, British Columbia Wildfire Service Rick McRae, fire behavior specialist and visiting fellow at University of New South Wales Canberra TRANSCRIPT Kelly Ramsey: I knew it was coming. We all knew it was coming. Almost every crew in California was getting called to this fire at some point. It's 2020 – Kelly Ramsey's first fire season in Northern California. She joined a hotshot crew, which is kind of like joining the Navy Seals of wildfires. And for their last assignment, they get sent to a massive fire that's been burning for nearly two months. Kelly: It was something like 37 fire starts that was eventually more than 1,000,000 acres. By this point, the wildfire's consumed an area five times bigger than New York City. Kelly: So, I'm sitting in the back with, you know, these seven men, and we swing onto the highway. You know, I've been to big fires already at that point, I'd been to 100,000- and 200,000 acre-fires. But a fire that big, you might take an hour to get from one side of it to another. This was 5 or 6 hours just going from the eastern part of the fire to the northern part. So already it's this feeling of like, "Oh my God." They pass through a charred moonscape filled with thick yellow smoke. When do they do see fire, even experienced crew members go … Kelly: Whoa, and kind of everybody in the back of the buggy turns and is like, look at that fire behavior or look at that column or whatever. Often you don't say anything at all. Everybody's just like, oh, [BLEEP] . So, one of their assignments is to cut off a wildfire before it reaches the highway. The goal is create a dead zone so the wildfire has nothing left to consume. Right now, the wind is working in their favor. They grab their torches and start dripping fire. Kelly: So that night we've been burning for, I don't know, 12 hours or something. I sort of lose track of time. And I'm on the road with my buddy and we've just dragged two strips of fire with our drip torches down the edge of this road, and the fire is romping. It is torching trees en masse which is like, torching is when the tree kind of goes up like a Roman candle. Just like all at once WHOOSH! it just like lights from the bottom to the top. And so these trees had been torching just like 10 at a time and it sounds like a jet engine roar, you know? It, it feels scary, but for the entire day, the wind has been pushing in to, let's say, my right or to the East, it's been pushing in toward the main fire. So, it's drawing all those flames in toward the main fire, and it's also drawing the smoke all over toward the main fire. So that's what we want to see. Perfect. But, at this moment, I'm on the road with my buddy and all of a sudden the wind shifts. You see this like wall of smoke in the sky just kind of shift and fall over. And you can see all these bright orange sparks just wafting into the air and then landing. This massive ember wash is just raining over the road. They want to keep the biggest fire in California's history from becoming even bigger. Kelly: Obviously this is really not what you want. In this episode, we're going to hear more from Kelly about what life's like on the frontlines of wildfires. We're also going to hear from Canadian and Australian firefighters who've watched climate change turn wildfires into unstoppable events. They say there's a very real threat that wildfires will start hitting places across the globe that used to be safe. This is Living Planet. I'm Kathleen Schuster. Kelly: So we spread out about 10, 20 feet in a line. We're looking for these embers that are falling out of the sky all over us, like falling stars. And they're tiny. Often they will be, you know, a piece of a burning leaf that is, let's say the size of quarter or even like a dime. Something that small can start an entirely new wildfire. So, when it catches, and it, you know, lands in some duff or some dry leaves or some dry pine needles, and it starts to form a fire you're walking through the forest and the darkness and what you're looking for is essentially a tiny glow. It's like the flicker of a little candle. Within a matter of minutes, they see an ember land in a dry, rotten tree stump. Kelly: So, by the time we get there, this thing is already a 10 by 10 foot blaze. For non-US listeners, that's 3 by 3 meters. Kelly: Like the entire stump is just engulfed in flame and smoldering, and then it started to creep into the ground cover and you know little plants and grasses around the stump, and it's already starting to establish itself as a fire. So, we immediately got 5 or 6 people just, you know, digging a little hand line around it. And then we called for an engine to bring water. And it wasn't hard to catch it, but you know, imagine if we didn't. This is just the first of many spot fires Kelly and her crew will have to pounce on before the night is over. And as they race to prevent this million-acre fire from gaining even more ground, Kelly feels the whole summer of extreme wildfires in her muscles and in her mind. We're going to come back to Kelly, and also find out why none of should kid ourselves into thinking we could survive hotshot training, trust me we wouldn't… But before we do that let's stick with this image of uncontrollable embers a few moments longer. Wildland firefighters are trained to deal with normal wildfire behavior – including what to do about embers, of course. What's changing though is that, as one expert put it, climate change hasn't just turned up the dial. It's flipped a switch. Meaning, it's not just amplifying fire behavior. It's changing the predictability of wildfires altogether. Hugh Murdoch: When you're flying you can still be feeling that heat. Hugh Murdoch is one of five incident commanders for British Columbia's Wildfire Service. He's been fighting wildfires in Canada for over 30 years… Hugh: But it's remarkable to me that I've been on fires now where you fly at a good speed and you just keep going and going and going. And the fire is just there, outside your, your right-hand window and it's just percolating away and the trees look so small in comparison to the flames. And then if you fly down closer to the ground level and you get a better appreciation for how big those trees really are, and they're not small. Seeing fires growing not just by a methodical march of the perimeter or the fire's edge, but by throwing embers well in advance of itself. If we imagine for a second, a wildfire capable of throwing an ember a mile or roughly 2 kilometers ahead of itself, then it's not that hard to picture how fast these fires can move through a forest that's too dry. Or even being capable of blowing clear acro ss lakes and rivers, Hugh says. Hugh: Fires are certainly getting much, much bigger. The difference is really very significant. So, picture an area about the size of Manhattan, maybe just slightly smaller. That's about how big Hugh says a "good-sized" wildfire used to be. It would grow by about 10% a day. Now these huge wildfires are able to grow by the size of a Manhattan, if you will, in one single day. Hugh: And the intensity that it's burning is just really growing at an alarming rate. This trend is being seen in other regions, too. Take for example a study released last year by researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder. The researchers looked at satellite data from the last two decades. They found that wildfires in the American West grew about 250% faster over a 24-hour period compared to wildfires in 2001. And in that same period, it was exactly those fast-moving fires that caused the most destruction. They also cost about $19 billion to suppress. Hugh: You know that the helicopters will only want to get so close to those large fires because there's so much heat coming off of the forest like the typical "hot air rises." Well, that's awfully hot air. So, it's rising very, very quickly. And it's sucking the air in to fill that void. So inevitably these large fires can make their own weather and their own winds. Before we get into how exactly fire can create it owns wind and weather, it's worth considering what it takes – both physically and mentally -- for someone to even become a wildland firefighter. Let's take Kelly and the hotshot crew she was on as an example. First off, why are they called hotshots? Kelly: It doesn't just mean like, oh, because we're the coolest, like "Oh, you're such a hotshot." (laughs) I think it's probably about like the heat of the work that we do. And that heat starts with building muscle and stamina during basic training… Kelly: So you are definitely hiking. And when I say hiking, I don't mean a hiking trail. I mean, like you look at an incredibly steep vertical mountain where your face is, is at, like, looking at the slope when you're standing on it. The slope is like in your face you know? And you have to maintain a certain crew pace and you have to carry at least 45 lbs. But most people carry 60 plus pounds up that hill. Forty-five pounds is about 20 kilos… or the equivalent of carrying a child on your back… Kelly: You have to be able to meet a bunch of specific qualifications, like running a mile and 1/2 in 10 1/2 minutes. You have to do a certain number of sit-ups, push-ups, pull-ups. They do calisthenics like wall-sits and leg lifts. Kelly: I worked with several guys who have been marines and they said that being a hotshot was harder than being a marine. And I got that from another guy who'd been an army ranger. And just like any other elite team, they have a specific look. Yellow shirts, green pants, and here, the importance of their boots cannot be emphasized enough. Kelly: (laughs) Yeah… (laughs) The boots are a big deal. And there's really differing boot styles and opinions on boots, even from hot shot crew to hot shot crew. So, the crew that I was on was really big on super tall boots. Boots that came up pretty much to the knee, or at least mid-shin down like 16-inch boots. They're leather. And most hotshots that I know prefer a boot with a little bit of a stacked heel. It's easier to just stand on a super steep slope if you have a bit of a heel to the boot. All fire-resistant, of course. Hotshots are among the first in and the last out. Their main tasks are digging line – literally digging shallow trenches to form a physical border that can break the forward march of a wildfire. And preventative burning as needed. The point is to get rid of any potential fuel well in advance … or even down to the wire… Kelly: You are literally right next to the flames or within you know 10- 20 feet of the flames. And in that case you're digging line fast. So yeah, I've had situations where I was digging line and they're, you know, two or three-foot flames that are just a few feet away from me. And in that case, you really move. When the fire's finally out, the hotshots get to "mop up," turning over and testing every last inch of sometimes miles of where the fire was to make sure it's really out. After long days of this for at last two weeks at a time, everything hurts. Kelly: I had, like, sort of knots in my forearms. My hands started to go numb. And they didn't stop being numb until a couple months after the season ended. You also will get like a chafe in your armpits from the pack rubbing against your flesh, so the skin will like become raw and open, and you have to kind of like bandage it up or tape it up in order to keep working. So, this is more or the less the condition the crew is in the night they have to catch every last ember. Kelly: And it ended up taking until 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning. You know, at this time, we've, we've been on since 6:00 the previous morning. But we and, you know, not just our crew, but other crews and a couple of engines that have been sent to help us. And we're able to know that at least along that road, our burn has held, it's going to be OK and we've you know, hopefully been able to contain the main fire. They're all keyed up. They climb back into their buggy and head for the camp site… Kelly: And everyone's throwing Gatorades to everybody else. You know, you strip off your yellow shirt because we only wear those when we're on the line. We don't wear them to, like, hang out. We definitely don't sleep in them. So, you strip off that shirt and change into a dry cotton shirt and then sit down in the buggy and there's this amazing feeling of peace as the buggy just rumbles through the darkness back to where we're going to camp. This feeling of like we did it, and now we get to sleep for a while and we'll see what happens tomorrow. So there's, like, the first relief is you unlace the boots and pull them off. And it's like your feet are released from this straight jacket and then you pull off the sweaty socks and your feet are completely free and then you take off these salt and ash and sweat crusted pants and you put on long underwear. None of the clothing is clean at this point, but the semi-clean clothing against your body is just like an intense relief and just so comforting. And then you snuggle into your sleeping bag. And I think that night I didn't even need a melatonin or a Benadryl or anything, I just was gratified and tired, and looked up at the sky and just fell asleep. We'll be right back. PROMO BREAK Kathleen: You know I have to say, what's super striking about this interview is you're like are so happy telling me all of this. Kelly: (big laugh) I'm grinning, it's so true! Kathleen: (slight laugh) And I, I fully appreciate that. But I'm just like there's a bit of a disconnect for me. I'm like, wait, hold on… Kelly: It's so fun! It's so fun. It's the most fun job I've ever and probably will ever do. Kelly says it's crazy… and it really is, considering how tough her first fire season was. Not only did she get deployed to California's largest wildfire in history, the August Complex, but she says, that summer, her team racked up over 1,000 hours of overtime in less than five months. And it's very likely that a good number of the US's 100 or so hotshot crews had similar experiences that year. In 2020, the US came within just a few thousand acres of matching its worst fire season on record, which was 2015. Both times, over 10 million acres – or 4 million hectares – of land went up in flames. One thing stands out, though … The number of fires in 2020 was actually lower… going back to what experts are saying. These fast-moving fires are much more destructive. So, Kelly goes on to do a second, grueling year. She loves it, but she knows not everyone feels that way. Hugh Murdoch, up in British Columbia, mentions a big shift he's noticed. The fires are getting worse … and fire responders are caught between the pressure from the job and the pressure from the public to stop the unstoppable. Hugh says in his community about four hours east of Vancouver, the tension is "real and mounting." Hugh: You know, I would not wear a shirt that identified myself as employee of the British Columbia Wildfire Service. In certain communities … for certain. Kathleen: Really? Hugh: 100% and that's not uncommon. And yet, literally five years ago you'd wear it with pride, and now it's just like I don't want to get dumped on at the grocery store. […] And to be clear, there's not a lot of people that support what you're doing. But it's just not worth the attention at all. Kathleen: I mean, if you don't mind my asking, have you had somebody approach you before and chew you out or…? Hugh: Oh, 100%, yeah. We've got a cabin at a lake just east of here. It's an area where tourism is important and the forest industry is important. And we had a horrific fire there in 2023. When he does go to his cabin, he keeps a low profile. But some of his coworkers don't have that luxury, because the fallout can be felt within their own four walls. Hugh: You know that their families are irate with them. It's like made Thanksgiving dinners and Christmases and whatnot awkward for people. That year, nearly 2300 fires burned across British Columbia – causing more than $720 million in damages between August and September alone. 2023 was Canada's worst fire season ever recorded. Between mid-April and late October, there were times when fires were burning from coast-to-coast, destroying an area bigger than England. You might also remember those fires from images of the smoke that drifted down into the US and blanketed New York City. The smoke caused New York's temperature to drop by 3 degrees Celsius that June. Things got so bad that other countries sent in personnel to help. Hugh: We got an awful lot of assistance from the United States. Strange, like very, very strange that in Canada's busiest year, the United States is having one of their quietest years on record ever. That year, the US was able to send nearly 2500 people to help out. Which might not have happened if it had had as busy a fire season as Canada. To be clear, Canada relied on long-standing agreements with its other partners, too -- Mexico, Costa Rica, and crucially, three partners in the Southern Hemisphere – South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia. But even that wasn't enough. When all was said and done 12 countries had to send help. If they hadn't, Hugh says… Hugh: I'm absolutely convinced the landscape would look very different today than it does. What comes up again and again with different fire experts from the US, Canada and Australia is that climate change is making wildfires more extreme. And this is pushing fire response to its limits, because, and they all agree on this, there is no technology in the world that can replace manpower. And manpower, of course, has its limits. Hugh: It's a daunting task, but you know we, we don't get asked to stop hurricanes or tornadoes or tsunamis. It would be naive to think that we can stop all forest fires, and that's partly how we got into this mess too, right? We've been very good at putting out fires when they're small for a very long period of time. But every year there's a buildup of more and more dead material on the ground, and there's a buildup of more and more resources that are vulnerable to fire, whether it's homes or cell towers or fence lines or recreational properties or businesses, so that there's more in front of these fires as well. But when a lightning system comes through and starts 100 fires in a very small area in one day … we just have to be realistic about the fact that we're not going to get all these fires put out in their infancy. Especially because, as Hugh mentioned before, extreme wildfires are creating their own weather and their own wind. Rick McRae has been watching this trend in Australia for decades... Rick: So when I left work just a few hours before New Year's Eve, our car park was very close to the airport control tower. I could barely see the airport control tower, which is never a good thing for an international airport. And it turned out at that point we had the worst air quality in the world. We're going to skip back in time for a moment to the days leading into 2020. Right smack dab in the middle of an Australian fire season that's gone down in history as "The Black Summer." That evening when Rick walks out to his car, Australia is in the middle of an outbreak of fire thunderstorms known as pyro-CBs (pronounces as pyro-sibs) What's a pyro-CB, you ask? Rick: Well first I've got to correct you, it's pyro C.B. My mistake …pyro Cb. The C.B. stands for cumulonimbus, the meteorological term for "thunderclouds." And pyro, for "fire," of course. Rick says meteorologists complain that pyro C.B. isn't actually the right term. Rick: They say, well, actually it's a yeah, "cumulonimbus flammagenitus." And strangely, that one that term never took off… That really would be a mouthful. So pyro Cb it is… Rick has decades of experience in bushfire response and now researches these types of phenomena alongside the fire research unit at the University of New South Wales in Canberra. What Rick's talking about is when the large smoke column from a wildfire goes extreme and becomes something more on par with a volcanic plume. A pyro CB can be seen from far off, but not so well up close… Rick: So most people's direct experience is that eerie blackened sky at in the early afternoon and the red glows and the embers starting to brew up. Rick says the land is becoming "fully flammable" and that's creating the conditions for infernos that generate fire thunderstorms. That year, Australia had just experienced two years in a row of dry conditions, and was in the grips of one of its hottest and driest years on record. All of that fuel created hot air powerful enough to punch right through the atmosphere and into the stratosphere. Rick: So, you can end up at the top of the cloud, 15,16 kilometers above sea level, which is really extraordinary stuff. And the base of this thing might be 20 square kilometers, and because it's expanding as it goes, it's the size of a very large thunderstorm. Now the temperature at the top of the cloud can get to say - 60 Celsius. And once it passes - 40 -, 40 Celsius as it rises, it can create lightning pyrogenic lightning, and this even has the ability to start new fires downwind. Over the span of about a week, Australia's bushfires spawn 18 of these massive firestorms. The air quality index in Canberra hits 5400– 23 times levels considered safe. By the time Australia's unprecedented fire season comes to an end, nearly 50 million acres have burned. 33 people have died. And billions of plants and animals have been lost to the flames. We'll be right back. PROMO BREAK Kelly's second year is intense and just as eventful as the first… maybe even more so. She watches firsthand as more than one crew member nearly gets killed by a falling tree. And her body starts to rebel. Kelly: So I decided to step away for what I thought was one summer because I had some health problems that I wanted to address. She develops an autoimmune disorder and can't help but wonder – was it the stress? The overexertion? The smoke? There's very little data on how many wildland firefighters have left, but Kelly seems to be just one of many. US media reports point to a growing attrition rate of around 45% and application rates dropping by half in the past few years. The Canadian media has reported similar problems. As for Australia – AFAC, the country's fire and emergency management council, says its robust firefighting network of professionals and volunteers is pretty stable in urban areas. But numbers are starting to decline slightly in rural areas – due in part to an aging population and the pressure of cost of living. Hugh and Rick can attest to how much harder these jobs are getting. And a big part of that is because of anthropogenic climate change. An international study by the World Weather Attribution found, for example, that climate change made Canada's wildfires in 2023 inferno twice as likely. And if conditions stay as they are, that type of event will become seven times more likely in the future. Add to this even more tragic examples, like Los Angeles – where an unstoppable fire swept a mile and a half across the urban edge. A new record, Rick says. Or a sudden, increased risk of extreme fires in areas that didn't use to make headlines – like South Korea. The good news is there are solutions, and one of them is bolstering personnel with firefighters from different countries. Like what Hugh described a few minutes ago. Hugh: And I would say that you know that difference, whether it's 50 people or 500 wherever those people are, they're making a difference. So, if it's 50 people onto one fire or 10 groups of 50 onto 10 different fires. It's pretty fantastic to have to help. It's one way to share the load, the equipment… and also knowledge. Hugh himself spent time in Australia during the Black Summer. He also went down to Los Angeles during those fires in January. He says there's always something new to learn. And especially when it comes to the Santa Ana winds that drove LA's fires, Rick says, sharing that knowledge internationally will be vital for places like Australia where there's been an uptick in these wind patterns, too. Kelly ultimately takes an indefinite hiatus from the hotshot crew. With good reason, too -- she became a mom. Kelly: I'm no longer a hotshot. I'm a washed up former hotshot but I do miss the job all the time. I, like, would love to go back to the in some capacity and it just is hard to see a way that that would be compatible with having a family. And I know a lot of people, including men who struggle with this and you know, there's a crisis of attrition in the profession. There's always a staffing shortage with federal wildland firefighters and I think a huge part of that is how hard it is on families and on people who want to be parents. So long-winded way of saying when I left (big laugh). There was one other thing Kelly did when she left the hotshot crew – she wrote book, so if you want to know more about her story and what it takes to fight wildfires, you can check that out. It's called "Wildfire Days: A woman, a hotshot crew and the burning American West." If after hearing this episode you're wondering about to prepare for a wildfire, we've dropped a few links in the show notes to help get you started. What did you think of this episode? We want to know! You can send us an email at or drop us a comment on Apple podcasts. This episode was written, produced, and soundscaped by me, Kathleen Schuster. It was edited by Neil King. Our sound engineer was Jürgen Kuhn. Living Planet is produced by DW in Bonn, Germany.
Local Germany
28-02-2025
- Local Germany
How Muslims in Germany are celebrating Ramadan this year
For the some 1.9 billion Muslims around the world, Ramadan is one of the holiest times of the year, marking a time of deep reflection, community, fasting and spiritual contemplation. This year, the holy festival begins on February 28th and will run until the three-day festival of Eid at the end of March - and there are plenty of celebrations happening around Germany. With a rapidly growing number of Muslims living in the Bundesrepublik, local gatherings and community events for Ramadan and Eid are becoming bigger and more vibrant every year. Here's what to expect - and how to join the festivities - in 2025. What's Ramadan all about - and how is it celebrated? In Islamic lore, Ramadan marks the time in which the Quran was first revealed to the Prophet Mohammed through the angel Jibreel. According to the Muslim faith, the revelation of this divine text sparked a new phase of hope and salvation for humanity, which can be realised through fasting and contemplation of the sacred book during the holy month of March. For the 30 days of Ramadan, Muslims are not allowed to eat or drink anything from sunrise to sunset, and must also refrain from smoking and sex during the daylight hours. This period of fasting is one of the five pillars of Islam and is believed to purify the soul and bring devotees closer to God. The name Ramadan stems from the arabic word 'ramad', which translates as scorching heat or sun-baked sand. Ramadan is therefore the 'hot month' in which sins and impurities are burned away through fasting and other acts of devotion. The dryness of 'ramad' also refers to the feeling of thirst that worshippers experience during the fast. Are Muslims allowed to eat anything at all? Two meals a day are usually consumed in the evening and early morning hours during Ramadan. Each of these long fasting days starts with the meal of suhur before dawn and ends with the meal of iftah after sundown. The second meal is usually a big community affair in which neighbours, friends and extended family gather together to break their fast in the evening. Traditionally, it begins with three dates - which is how the Prophet Mohammed is said to have ended his fast - but this isn't mandatory. Describing the feeling of breaking the fast, Camilla Al-Mousllie, a Syrian citizen living in Braunschweig, said the first time is always "something special". "You simply perceive everything completely differently," she told reporters at NDR. "You can really feel the first sip of water, how it goes down and where it ends up. It's a completely different perception of food and drink after you've fasted. That moves me every year." Not everyone must take part in the fast, however. People with mental or physical health issues are not expected to join in, while pregnant women are allowed to make up days of fasting later on. What happens at the end of Ramadan? Following the weeks of self-denial during Ramadan, Muslims break their dawn-to-dusk fast with the joyful festival of Eid al-Fitr, or Eid for short. This celebration is known as Zuckerfest, or "Sugar Feast" in German, because families often purchase a lavish selection of food and sweet treats to enjoy during Eid, and also give sweets as gifts to young children. This year, Zuckerfest will be celebrated on March 30th and 31st. It begins with a special morning prayer known as the Salat al-Eid, which is held at big mosques in cities like Frankfurt, Cologne and Berlin. After this, people often gather with friends and family to enjoy luxurious festive meals and exchange gifts. In preparation, new clothes are purchased and every home is scrubbed from top to bottom. In some federal states, practising Muslims can get the day off work if the main Eid celebrations happen to fall on a workday. This year, however, the festivities begin on a Sunday. What events are happening around Germany in 2025? Every year, the festivities on offer during Ramadan and Eid seem to become larger and more bombastic - and this year is no exception. Through the country, you can expect to encounter a colourful array cultural festivals and talks as well as invites to cross-faith events and shared iftah meals at mosques and open houses. At Cologne central mosque, for example, there will be a series of 'Ramadan Rendevouz' talks on spiritual and social topics held on three consecutive Thursdays and one Monday in March. Visitors can enjoy delicious baklava and Turkish tea after sundown, while listening to renowned speakers and taking part in intercultural exchange and dialogue. The mosque will also host Zuckerfest celebrations during Eid. Meanwhile, Muslim dating app Muzz is hosting a series of iftah gatherings at Berlin Zionskirche, where both Muslims and non-Muslims can get together to enjoy a hearty end-of-day meal as well as oriental music and light-hearted quizzes. As usual, there will also be a number of community Zuckerfest events happening around the capital, including a three-day street festival for families with food and children's entertainment on Turmstraße in Moabit. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Muzz | DE (@muzz_de) In Frankfurt, a 'Happy Ramadan' light display have been turned on in the city centre for the second year in a row - this time without any protest from right-wing circles. The lights will be on display along Große Bockenheimer Straße for the 30 days of the festival. "We are showing that Muslim life is a natural part of our city," Mayor Nargess Eskandari-Grünberg of the Greens explained. "Frankfurt stands for diversity and openness." In Nuremberg, meanwhile, the 'Brücke-Köprü' cultural exchange project will be hosting a special interfaith dinner at the Christuskirche on Siemensplatz. People of all religions and backgrounds are welcome to enjoy a delicious meal together in celebration of both Ramadan and Lent, and guests are encouraged to contribute (halal) food to the buffet. How large is Germany's Muslim population? Germany is home to one of the largest Muslim populations in Europe, with estimates suggesting around 5.3 to 5.6 million Muslims were living in the country as of 2023. This represents approximately 6.5 percent of the total population. While Muslims are often treated as a single bloc, there is huge diversity within the community, which stems from countries as far afield as Turkey, Syria, Pakistan, Indonesia, and the Balkans. Since the guest worker generation arrived in the mid-20th century, Turkish migrants have made up the largest Islam faith group in Germany, accounting for about half of practising Muslims in the country. However, refugees from places like Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan have also significantly contributed to the numbers in recent years. Most Muslims in Germany reside in urban areas, with large communities in cities like Berlin, Frankfurt, Cologne, Hamburg, and Munich. There are estimated to be around 300,000 Muslims in Berlin alone, making around eight percent of the population, while 1.5 million reside in the populous state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
