organizationGovernment / Public AdministrationGermany

Berlin Senate Department for the Environment

Berlin's state-level ministry responsible for environment, climate protection, transport, and circular economy policy.

Senate Department for Urban Mobility, Transport, Climate Action and the Environment — Berlin.de

The Berlin Senate Department for the Environment (officially: Senatsverwaltung für Mobilität, Verkehr, Klimaschutz und Umwelt, or SenUMVK) is a government agency of the State of Berlin, holding the rank of a ministry. It is one of ten specialized administrations of the Berlin Senate and serves as the highest state authority responsible for environmental, transport, and climate protection policy in the German capital.

The department oversees the implementation of Berlin's environmental policy, including the Berlin Energy and Climate Protection Programme 2030 (BEK 2030) — the central instrument guiding the city toward climate neutrality — as well as the Berlin Mobility Act. It actively promotes the circular economy, climate protection, and urban mobility transformation. Berlin already performs above the national average in resource efficiency metrics such as land use, water consumption, and recycling rates for glass and paper.

As of May 2024, the department is led by Senator Ute Bonde (CDU), a lawyer and former Managing Director of the Berlin-Brandenburg Transport Association (VBB), one of Europe's largest transport associations. The department's circular economy and sustainability division employs around 40 staff, approximately 15 of whom focus on ministerial tasks, strategy development, and project implementation.

The department is internationally active, representing Berlin in climate and sustainability networks including the C40 Climate Leadership Group and Climate Alliance. Berlin has set a target of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, with the department steering the city's integrated energy and climate-protection strategy.

Ideas that could help Berlin Senate Department for the Environment

Urban Tire Pollution Hotspot Mapping Service
A standardized road dust sampling and analysis service that produces spatial maps of TAC and TRWP contamination for city governments, linking pollution hotspots to road type and traffic density to guide infrastructure and stormwater management decisions.
Why it helps: Berlin is one of the two study cities; this agency oversees urban environmental quality and would directly use spatial TRWP maps to prioritize street cleaning interventions and identify industrial emission hotspots near auto facilities.