Activists of the “Last Generation” regularly make headlines.
Some of them are even paid – but not for protesting on the streets.
Munich – They stick themselves to runways or streets – recently activists from the “last generation” blocked traffic in many German cities.
Their goal: to generate awareness of the climate crisis and call on the government to take appropriate measures.
One of them is Lars Werner.
He has been there from the start and is now on the protest movement's governing body.
Werner quit his job in a psychiatric practice and has been there full-time since the beginning of last year, he reported in an interview with the
Süddeutsche Zeitung
.
But do you earn anything at all as an activist with the “Last Generation” – and if so: how much?
"Last generation": That's how much an activist earns on the board of directors
"I wanted to do protests, so I could no longer be there reliably for my patients," Werner explained to the newspaper.
He has been paid since autumn 2022: the 31-year-old earns 950 euros net per month, it said.
Werner is considered to be at risk of poverty, but he is apparently satisfied.
"This is my calling," he said.
The activist lives frugally, has no children and no car.
Together with his girlfriend - who also takes part in the protest movement - he lives in a cheap flat-sharing community in Göttingen.
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Two activists from the last generation glued themselves to the road in Leipzig with superglue.
© Hendrik Schmidt/dpa
The “Last Generation” is financed primarily through donations.
As this year's transparency report showed, the movement received a total of 901,832.61 euros in donations last year.
EUR 10,000 of this is considered a loan.
“Last Generation”: This is how activists get paid
There is also around 50,000 euros in funding from the Climate Emergency Fund (CEF).
However, the “last generation” does not receive this sum as a “direct benefit”, the report said.
Instead, the funding goes to the initiative "Non-profit educational work to support the last generation", a member organization of the change alliance in Berlin.
They invest the money in cooperation with the climate activists in educational work, for example for lectures.
The "Last Generation" themselves don't hire people and don't pay them to protest on the streets.
The appointments are made through the Berlin Transitional Alliance.
"Since September 2022, we have been able to pay salaries to promote civil disobedience," the
Süddeutsche Zeitung
quoted climate activist Penelope Frank as saying.
The salary is based on what you need to live.
A married person with two children therefore receives 1800 euros net, a single person a maximum of 1200 euros.
"Last Generation": Not paid for "resistance in the streets"
Lars Werner is also not paid for sticking on the street, he emphasized to the
Süddeutsche Zeitung
.
Possible fines for civil disobedience are also not covered, but must be borne by yourself.
"We do the protest in our free time," says Werner.
He gets money for educational work – i.e. climate lectures and workshops.
"Contrary to what is often claimed, neither in the last generation nor in the mentioned initiative of the change alliance are people paid for resistance on the streets," the protest movement wrote on the website.
This would not be compatible with the charitable purpose of the change alliance.
Only a small proportion of climate activists are paid.
According to the
Süddeutsche Zeitung,
70 people will receive money for their work.
(cheese)
Polarizing protest actions: The Office for the Protection of the Constitution checks the "last generation" for extremism.
List of rubrics: © Hendrik Schmidt/dpa
