DThat eco-friendly future, as can already be experienced at the World Climate Conference in Glasgow, looks very joyful, at least from a culinary point of view. The fast food outlets in the exhibition hall at the former shipyard on the River Clyde show not only the prices on their menus, but their carbon footprint as well. It is not clear which product’s weight the information pertains to, but it is clear that sausage containing 0.7 kg of carbon dioxide has a particularly bad ecological footprint and is therefore a deterrent. It doesn’t look much better with shredded chicken weighing 0.5kg or Scottish smoked salmon weighing 0.4kg. It tastes great, but you should be ashamed to eat it—and best not get caught. If you want to do everything right, you need to order candied beets with broccoli (0.2 kg) or preferably Scottish barley broth (0.1). While dining, everyone in the more than 20,000 Congressional participants understands: Tough times are breaking out.

Of course there are bright spots too. One of the exhibitors is introducing an electric-powered racing car apparently used in “Formula E”. And at the Scottish Pavilion, Hochlander will serve a guaranteed greenhouse gas-neutral single malt whiskey. The good barman can’t tell how the drink is distilled, but after two or three glasses everyone here confirms that climate protection is a lot of fun. At the stand next door, which is largely orphaned, the Turkish delegation is a little lost in their glasses of tea. Your President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reportedly did not travel to Glasgow for security reasons. Other innocent Democrats, including Russia’s Vladimir Putin and China’s Xi Jinping, also stayed away.