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. 2015
  2. Published

    The Monster and the polar bears: constructing the future knowledge landscape of synthetic biology to inform responsible innovation.

    Withycombe Keeler, L. & Foley, R. W., 02.01.2015, In: Journal of Responsible Innovation. 2, 1, p. 81 - 84 4 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  3. Published

    Assessing Online Consultation in Participatory Governance: Conceptual Framework and a Case Study of a National Sustainability-related Consultation Platform in Germany

    Schulz, D. & Newig, J., 01.01.2015, In: Environmental Policy and Governance. 25, 1, p. 55-69 15 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  4. Published

    Bilingual (German–English) molecular biology courses in an out-of-school lab on a university campus: Cognitive and affective evaluation

    Rodenhauser, A. & Preisfeld, A., 01.01.2015, In: International Journal of Environmental and Science Education. 10, 1, p. 99-110 12 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  5. Published

    Biodegradation screening of chemicals in an artificial matrix simulating the water-sediment interface

    Baginska, E., Haiß, A. & Kümmerer, K., 01.01.2015, In: Chemosphere. 119, p. 1240-1246 7 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  6. Published

    Ecotoxicological and Genotoxic Assessment of Hospital Laundry Wastewaters

    Kern, D. I., de Oliveira Schwaickhardt, R., Lutterbeck, C. A., Kist, L. T., Alcayaga, E. A. L. & Machado, Ê. L., 01.01.2015, In: Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology. 68, 1, p. 64-73 10 p., 72.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  7. Published

    Elution of monomers from provisional composite materials

    Schulz, S. D., Laquai, T., Kümmerer, K., Bolek, R., Mersch-Sundermann, V. & Polydorou, O., 01.01.2015, In: International Journal of Polymer Science. 2015, 7 p., 617407.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  8. Published

    Historical emissions of octachlorodibenzodioxin in a watershed in Queensland, Australia: estimation from field data and an environmental fate model

    Camenzuli, L., Scheringer, M., Gaus, C., Grant, S., Zennegg, M. & Hungerbühler, K., 01.01.2015, In: The Science of The Total Environment. 502, p. 680-687 8 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  9. Published

    How interest groups adapt to the changing forest governance landscape in the EU: A case study from Germany

    Jürges, N. & Newig, J., 01.01.2015, In: Forest Policy and Economics. 50, p. 228-235 8 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  10. Published

    Interacting effects of pollination, water and nutrients on fruit tree performance

    Klein, A.-M., Hendrix, S. D., Clough, Y., Scofield, A. & Kremen, C., 01.01.2015, In: Plant Biology. 17, 1, p. 201-208 8 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  11. Published

    Key Competencies: Reconciling Means and Ends in Education for Sustainable Consumption

    Fischer, D. & Barth, M., 01.01.2015, Schools for Health and Sustainability: Theory, Research and Practice. Simovska, V. & Mannix McNamara, P. (eds.). Dordrecht: Springer, p. 41-60 20 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksChapterpeer-review

  12. Published

    Labelling Sustainable Software Products and Websites: Ideas , Approaches , and Challenges

    Kern, E., Dick, M., Naumann, S. & Filler, A., 01.01.2015, 29th International Conference on Informatics for Environmental Protection. Atlantis Press, p. 82-91 10 p. (Advances in Computer Science Research).

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticle in conference proceedingsResearchpeer-review

  13. Published
  14. Published

    Participatory scenario planning in place-based social-ecological research: Insights and experiences from 23 case studies

    Oteros-Rozas, E., Martín-López, B., Daw, T. M., Bohensky, E. L., Butler, J. R. A., Hill, R., Martin-Ortega, J., Quinlan, A., Ravera, F., Ruiz-Mallén, I., Thyresson, M., Mistry, J., Palomo, I., Peterson, G. D., Plieninger, T., Waylen, K. A., Beach, D. M., Bohnet, I. C., Hamann, M., Hanspach, J., Hubacek, K., Lavorel, S. & Vilardy, S. P., 01.01.2015, In: Ecology and Society. 20, 4, 66 p., 32.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  15. Published

    Postkoloniale Perspektiven auf 'weltwärts': Ein Freiwilligendienst in weltbürgerlicher Absicht

    Kontzi, K., 01.01.2015, Baden-Baden: Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG. 256 p. ( Entwicklungstheorie und Entwicklungspolitik; vol. 15)

    Research output: Books and anthologiesBook

  16. Published

    Processes for green and sustainable software engineering

    Kern, E., Naumann, S. & Dick, M., 01.01.2015, Green in Software Engineering. Calero, C. & Piattini, M. (eds.). Cham: Springer International Publishing AG, p. 61-81 21 p. (Green in Software Engineering).

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksChapterpeer-review

  17. Published

    Promoting landscape heterogeneity to improve the biodiversity benefits of certified palm oil production: Evidence from Peninsular Malaysia

    Azhar, B., Saadun, N., Puan, C. L., Kamarudin, N., Aziz, N., Nurhidayu, S. & Fischer, J., 01.01.2015, In: Global Ecology and Conservation. 3, p. 553-561 9 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  18. Published

    Putting Architecture in its Social Space: the Fields and Skills of Planning Maastricht

    Herberg, J., 01.01.2015, Architecture, Materiality and Society: Connecting Sociology of Architecture with Science and Technology Studies. Müller, A.-L. & Reichmann, W. (eds.). Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan, p. 166-197 32 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksChapterpeer-review

  19. Published

    Soil carbon, multiple benefits

    Milne, E., Banwart, S. A., Noellemeyer, E., Abson, D., Ballabio, C., Bampa, F., Bationo, A., Batjes, N. H., Bernoux, M., Bhattacharyya, T., Black, H., Buschiazzo, D. E., Cai, Z., Cerri, C. E., Cheng, K., Compagnone, C., Conant, R., Coutinho, H. L. C., de Brogniez, D., Balieiro, F. D. C., Duffy, C., Feller, C., Fidalgo, E. C. C., da Silva, C. F., Funk, R., Gaudig, G., Gicheru, P. T., Goldhaber, M., Gottschalk, P., Goulet, F., Goverse, T., Grathwohl, P., Joosten, H., Kamoni, P. T., Kihara, J., Krawczynski, R., La Scala, N., Lemanceau, P., Li, L., Li, Z., Lugato, E., Maron, P. A., Martius, C., Melillo, J., Montanarella, L., Nikolaidis, N., Nziguheba, G., Pan, G., Pascual, U., Paustian, K., Piñeiro, G., Powlson, D., Quiroga, A., Richter, D., Sigwalt, A., Six, J., Smith, J., Smith, P., Stocking, M., Tanneberger, F., Termansen, M., van Noordwijk, M., van Wesemael, B., Vargas, R., Victoria, R. L., Waswa, B., Werner, D., Wichmann, S., Wichtmann, W., Zhang, X., Zhao, Y., Zheng, J. & Zheng, J., 01.01.2015, In: Environmental Development. 13, p. 33-38 6 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  20. Published

    Sports and Nature Conservation: Ten Theses on the Optimisation of Shared Communication

    Adomßent, M., 01.01.2015, In: Journal of Biodiversity, Bioprospecting and Development . 2, 3, 5 p., 153.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  21. Published

    Towards a thick understanding of sustainability transitions - Linking transition management, capabilities and social practices

    Rauschmayer, F., Bauler, T. & Schäpke, N., 01.01.2015, In: Ecological Economics. 109, p. 211-221 11 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review