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. 2022
  2. Published

    Assessing mire-specific biodiversity with an indicator based approach

    Hammerich, J., Dammann, C., Schulz, C., Tanneberger, F., Zeitz, J. & Luthardt, V., 01.10.2022, In: Mires and Peat. 28, 29 p., 32.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  3. Published

    Carbon fluxes within tree-crop-grass agroforestry system: 13C field labeling and tracing

    Zhou, J., Shao, G., Kumar, A., Shi, L., Kuzyakov, Y. & Pausch, J., 01.10.2022, In: Biology and Fertility of Soils. 58, 7, p. 733-743 11 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  4. Published

    Corporate sustainability management accounting and multi-level links for sustainability – A systematic review

    Schaltegger, S., Christ, K. L., Wenzig, J. & Burritt, R., 01.10.2022, In: International Journal of Management Reviews. 24, 4, p. 480-500 21 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  5. Published

    Green and Sustainable Extraction of Proteins from Agro-industrial Waste: An Overview and a Closer Look to Latin America

    Segatto, M. L., Stahl, A. M., Zanotti, K. & Zuin, V. G., 01.10.2022, In: Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry. 37, 100661.

    Research output: Journal contributionsScientific review articlesResearch

  6. Published

    Improving the end-of-life management of solar panels in Germany

    El-Khawad, L., Bartkowiak, D. & Kümmerer, K., 01.10.2022, In: Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 168, 112678.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearch

  7. Published

    Leveraging Governance Performance to Enhance Climate Resilience

    Rölfer, L., Abson, D. J., Costa, M. M., Rosendo, S., Smith, T. F. & Celliers, L., 01.10.2022, In: Earth's Future. 10, 10, 15 p., e2022EF003012.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  8. Published

    Making transdisciplinarity happen: Phase 0, or before the beginning

    Horcea-Milcu, A. I., Leventon, J. & Lang, D. J., 01.10.2022, In: Environmental Science and Policy. 136, p. 187-197 11 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  9. Published

    The lipid composition of the in situ pellicle

    Reich, M., Hannig, C., Hannig, M., Kümmerer, K. & Kensche, A., 01.10.2022, In: Archives of Oral Biology. 142, 105493.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  10. Published

    ‘You can't be green if you're in the red’: Local discourses on the production-biodiversity intersection in a mixed farming area in south-eastern Australia

    Schaal, T., Jacobs, A., Leventon, J., Scheele, B. C., Lindenmayer, D. & Hanspach, J., 01.10.2022, In: Land Use Policy. 121, 106306.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  11. Published

    Naturaleza en lienzo: narraciones sobre relaciones humanos-naturaleza usando métodos basados en arte en La Paz, Bolivia

    Benavides-Frias, C., Ortiz-Przychodzka, S. & Schaal, T., 30.09.2022, In: Letras Verdes. 32, 32, p. 67-87 21 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  12. Published

    Transformationsnarrative: Kurzgutachten

    Hartmann, E. & Heinrichs, H., 28.09.2022, Institut für Nachhaltigkeitssteuerung (INSUGO), 10 p. (Schriftenreihe Nachhaltigkeit, Politik, Gesellschaft; no. 1).

    Research output: Working paperExpert opinions

  13. Published

    Transformation verstehen lernen: Nachhaltigkeitsbildung und Data Literacy Education in der Studieneingangsphase

    Weiser, A., van Deest, J. & Barth, M., 26.09.2022, Digitale Bildung für nachhaltige Entwicklung: Herausforderungen und Perspektiven für die Hochschulbildung. Weselek, J., Kohler, F. & Siegmund, A. (eds.). Springer, p. 53-65 13 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksChapter

  14. Published

    Who can nudge for sustainable development? How nudge source renders dynamic norms (in-)effective in eliciting sustainable behavior

    Boenke, L., Panning, M., Thurow, A., Hörisch, J. & Loschelder, D. D., 25.09.2022, In: Journal of Cleaner Production. 368, 11 p., 133246.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  15. Published

    Socio-Environmental Vulnerability of Agriculture Communities to Climate Change in Western Himalaya: A Household-Level Review

    Chauhan, N., von Wehrden, H. & Joshi, P. K., 24.09.2022, Challenges of Disasters in Asia: Vulnerability, Adaptation and Resilience. Sajjad, H., Siddiqui, L., Rahman, A., Tahir, M. & Ahsan Siddiqui, M. (eds.). Springer, p. 123-145 23 p.

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

  16. Published

    Digitale Interventionen in der betrieblichen Gesundheitsförderung

    Hoppe, A., Roswag, M. & Lehr, D., 23.09.2022, Handbuch Gesundheitsförderung bei der Arbeit: Interventionen für Individuen, Teams und Organisationen. Michel, A. & Hoppe, A. (eds.). Wiesbaden: Springer, p. 351-369 19 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksChapter

  17. Published

    Sustainability Competencies in Higher Education

    Michel, J. O., Brundiers, K., Barth, M., Fischer, D., Mochizuki, Y., Redman, A. & Zint, M., 22.09.2022, The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Urban and Regional Futures. Brears, R. (ed.). Palgrave Macmillan, p. 1-6 6 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticles for encyclopediaResearch

  18. Published

    The Potential of Modular Product Design on Repair Behavior and User Experience - Evidence from the Smartphone Industry

    Amend, C., Revellio, F., Tenner, I. & Schaltegger, S., 20.09.2022, In: Journal of Cleaner Production. 367, 14 p., 132770.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  19. Published

    Four Methods to Distinguish between Fractal Dimensions in Time Series through Recurrence Quantification Analysis

    Tomashin, A., Leonardi, G. & Wallot, S., 19.09.2022, In: Entropy. 24, 9, 14 p., 1314.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  20. Published

    Ionic liquids vs. ethanol as extraction media of algicidal compounds from mango processing waste

    Segatto, M. L., Schnarr, L., Olsson, O., Kümmerer, K. & Zuin, V. G., 16.09.2022, In: Frontiers in Chemistry. 10, 13 p., 986987.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  21. Published

    GREENER Pharmaceuticals for More Sustainable Healthcare

    Moermond, C. T. A., Puhlmann, N., Brown, A. R., Owen, S. F., Ryan, J., Snape, J., Venhuis, B. J. & Kümmerer, K., 13.09.2022, In: Environmental Science and Technology Letters. 9, 9, p. 699-705 7 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsScientific review articlesResearch