Organisation profile

Sustainability has many facets. Inter- and transdisciplinary research and teaching characterize the School of Sustainability. Scientists in our research projects work together in the laboratory, on the heath, in the grassland, in the classroom, with the city administration, with farmers, with non-governmental organizations, with companies, with students in the lecture hall and of course at their desks.

Furthermore, we work with regional and national political actors, e.g. ministries, as well as international organizations, e.g. UNEP, UNESCO, EU. We are part of national and international bodies, e.g. sustainability advisory boards of companies, member of the German Sustainability Award, World Biodiversity Council (IPBES), in order to contribute to social change with scientific findings.

Main research areas

Vision
Sustainability science investigates on a theoretical, conceptual and empirical level how to promote sustainable development and how to find and implement effective solutions for current social and ecological challenges. The aim is to create a more sustainable future.

Sustainability researchers are called upon to take responsibility for their research, which is anchored in existing scientific knowledge and methods and serves to make the world a better place for everyone.

Mission
We promote change towards a sustainable future by developing theories, concepts and practices of inclusive education for sustainability, research, governance and management.

We acknowledge the diversity and dynamics of values, norms and behaviour and contribute with transdisciplinary methods to ensuring that tensions and differences between different disciplines, methods, topics and standards are fruitfully taken up and used with productive compromises and further developments towards sustainable development.

Principles
The School of Sustainability is guided by the normative concepts of ecological system integrity and social and economic justice.

Ecological system integrity refers to the safeguarding of life-support systems, as well as the maintenance of the well-being of life on Earth.

With social and economic justice we strive for a world in which all people can fulfil their potential without endangering system integrity and the well-being of others.

Information about the School
The School of Sustainability includes...
... ca. 25 professors
... ca. 100 research assistants
... ca. 1000 students in Bachelor and Master courses

In various inter- and transdisciplinary projects we are constantly researching and working together on changes and solutions for current challenges.

  1. 2023
  2. Published

    Substantial light woodland and open vegetation characterized the temperate forest biome before Homo sapiens

    Pearce, E. A., Mazier, F., Normand, S., Fyfe, R., Andrieu, V., Bakels, C., Balwierz, Z., Bińka, K., Boreham, S., Borisova, O. K., Brostrom, A., de Beaulieu, J. L., Gao, C., González-Sampériz, P., Granoszewski, W., Hrynowiecka, A., Kołaczek, P., Kuneš, P., Magri, D., Malkiewicz, M., Mighall, T., Milner, A. M., Möller, P., Nita, M., Noryśkiewicz, B., Pidek, I. A., Reille, M., Robertsson, A. M., Salonen, J. S., Schläfli, P., Schokker, J., Scussolini, P., Šeirienė, V., Strahl, J., Urban, B., Winter, H. & Svenning, J. C., 10.11.2023, In: Science Advances. 9, 45, 15 p., eadi9135.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  3. Published

    Lost in translation? Tanzanian students’ views on sustainability and language, and the implications for the pledge to leave no one behind

    Ulmer, N., Divine, N. & Wydra, K., 13.11.2023, In: International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education. 24, 7, p. 1381-1397 17 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  4. Published

    Welche Faktoren bedingen die Akzeptanz von Technologien zum digital-gestützten Üben durch Lehrkräfte? Eine systematische Literaturübersicht

    Kahnbach, L. & Lehr, D., 21.11.2023, Digitales Lehren und Lernen im Fachunterricht : Aktuelle Entwicklungen, Gegenstände und Prozesse. Michael, A., Michael, B., Christion, H. & Poldi, K. (eds.). Weinheim: Beltz Juventa Verlag, p. 133-158 26 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions to collected editions/anthologiesResearch

  5. Published

    “We are Rosas”: a case study on how identity matters in local food groups

    Pöggel, K. & Fischer, D., 27.11.2023, In: Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy. 19, 1, 17 p., 2278244.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  6. Published

    A Matter of Framing: Analyzing Value Communication in Sustainable Business Models

    Norris, S., 12.2023, In: Organization & Environment. 36, 4, p. 503–528 26 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  7. Published

    Assessing protected area effectiveness in western Tanzania: Insights from repeated line transect surveys

    Kiffner, C., Giliba, R. A., Fust, P., Loos, J. & Waltert, M., 12.2023, In: African Journal of Ecology. 61, 4, p. 966-979 14 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  8. Published

    Can we have it all? The role of grassland conservation in supporting forage production and plant diversity

    Kachler, J., Benra, F., Bolliger, R., Isaac, R., Bonn, A. & Felipe-Lucia, M. R., 12.2023, In: Landscape Ecology. 38, 12, p. 4451-4465 15 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  9. Published

    Environmental heterogeneity modulates the effect of plant diversity on the spatial variability of grassland biomass

    Daleo, P., Alberti, J., Chaneton, E. J., Iribarne, O., Tognetti, P. M., Bakker, J. D., Borer, E. T., Bruschetti, M., MacDougall, A. S., Pascual, J., Sankaran, M., Seabloom, E. W., Wang, S., Bagchi, S., Brudvig, L. A., Catford, J. A., Dickman, C. R., Dickson, T. L., Donohue, I., Eisenhauer, N., Gruner, D. S., Haider, S., Jentsch, A., Knops, J. M. H., Lekberg, Y., McCulley, R. L., Moore, J. L., Mortensen, B., Ohlert, T., Pärtel, M., Peri, P. L., Power, S. A., Risch, A. C., Rocca, C., Smith, N. G., Stevens, C., Tamme, R., Veen, G. F. C., Wilfahrt, P. A. & Hautier, Y., 12.2023, In: Nature Communications. 14, 1, 11 p., 1809.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  10. Published

    Finding the Best Match — a Case Study on the (Text‑) Feature and Model Choice in Digital Mental Health Interventions

    Zantvoort, K., Scharfenberger, J., Boß, L., Lehr, D. & Funk, B., 12.2023, In: Journal of Healthcare Informatics Research. 7, 4, p. 447-479 33 p., 00148.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  11. Published

    Future-proofing ecosystem restoration through enhancing adaptive capacity

    Frietsch, M., Loos, J., Löhr, K., Sieber, S. & Fischer, J., 12.2023, In: Communications Biology. 6, 1, 9 p., 377.

    Research output: Journal contributionsScientific review articlesResearch