• 70,000 German pupils have undergone special training to prepare for potential large-scale emergencies, with courses aimed at improving the population's ability to provide assistance in civil defence and other exceptional situations.
• Green Party lawmaker Leon Eckert has called for more parts of the population to join in the emergency training efforts, citing the need for improved resilience among citizens and the importance of being able to interpret warning signals like sirens.
• Efforts to improve protection for Germany's population in the event of a national emergency have been heightened following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with a shift in mindset leading to the strengthening of civil protection systems after events like the devastating floods in the Ahr Valley in 2021.

Some 70,000 German pupils have undergone special training to prepare them for a potential large-scale emergency, according to government figures, as Germans undergo a shift in mindset triggered by the war in Ukraine.

A total of 69,008 boys and girls took part in the free classes between 2025 and the first quarter of this year, according to a response to a parliamentary enquiry by the opposition Green Party reported by the Rheinische Post daily.

The courses taught by five certified aid organizations are aimed at improving the population's ability to perform assistance in the event of a civil defence emergency and in other exceptional emergencies.

Despite the high number of pupils taking the classes, Green Party lawmaker Leon Eckert called for further parts of the population to join in.

While the government was investing heavily in infrastructure, Berlin was neglecting the resilience of its citizens, said Eckert.

He cited the example of warning sirens, noting that they remain ineffective if the public is unable to interpret the meaning of the signals.

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, efforts have been made to improve protection for the country's population in the event of a national emergency, including an attack or a natural catastrophe.

Warning sirens sounded in Berlin for the first time in decades last year as the country tested its nationwide alert system on an annual warning day.

Following the end of the Cold War, sirens were dismantled in many places across Germany - or authorities simply stopped maintaining them - amid the widespread belief they were no longer needed.

But the devastating floods in Germany's Ahr Valley in 2021, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine have let to a change in mindset, and authorities have begun to strengthen Germany's civil protection systems.