News

Growth - a term with many facets. While it is often seen as a criterion for success in business, environmental scientists warn of the ecological limits of our planet. What can sustainable growth look like? What alternatives are there? And what can we learn from different disciplines? | Read more

How can we make our diet more sustainable and fit for the future? This question was addressed by a national citizens' council, which was first launched by the German Bundestag in 2023. This has triggered extensive media coverage but has also gained traction in the scientific debate. | Read more

As part of the Innovation Hub on socio-ecological sustainability based at the ZIN, the various sustainability activities at the University of Münster are to be interlinked with each other and with other European universities in the Ulysseus network. The InnoHub team has now carried out a real-life experiment in which it tested the so-called TheWEEK format to explore how it can be used in teaching and in the context of Ulysseus. | Read more

On Thursday, 23 January 2025, the Münsteraner Klimagespräche will enter the next round. On the topic of ‘Will oil and gas become unaffordable? Emissions trading from 2027 and its social consequences’, a discussion with impulse speeches will take place, moderated by ZIN scientist Prof. Dr. Tillmann Buttschardt. The climate discussion starts at 7 pm in the vhs-Forum, Aegidiimarkt 2. Admission is free.
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On 27 December 2024, a new episode of the podcast ‘Focus on Peace’ was released with ZIN member Prof. Dr. Anne Käfer as a guest. The podcast episode is dedicated to the topic ‘Peace on a plate? Diet between ethics and ecology’. | Read more

As part of this year's award ceremony for the best doctoral thesis (graduating with ‘summa cum laude’) at the University of Münster, ZIN Managing Director and political scientist Dr Carolin Bohn received the doctoral thesis award 2024 for work submitted to the Department of Education and Social Sciences at the University of Münster. | Read more

How can we deal with the major crises of our time? ‘Humboldt N’, the sustainability initiative of universities in North Rhine-Westphalia, is organising a lecture series this winter semester on the topic of ‘Resilience & Active Hope: Dealing with the climate crisis’. The lecture series will end next Monday, 16 December 2024, at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Sustainability Research (ZIN) in Münster. | Read more

On 17.09.2024 from 6 to 8 pm, the LATERNE project is organizing an introductory workshop on the topic of “Slow Science”.

Academic work is increasingly dominated by pressure to accelerate, growth logic and a high density of tasks and requirements. This not only promotes conformism, competitive thinking and opportunism, but also affects the mental health of researchers and the quality of research.

In the workshop, we will look at the concept of “slow science” as a radical alternative and open up a safe space for researchers at the University of Münster to encourage an discussion on the current conditions of scientific work and possible alternatives. | Read more

On Friday, November 8, the University of Münster will host its 3rd Sustainability Day, featuring a variety of transfer events centered around the theme "On a way to a sustainable future with AI". From 1 pm to 8 pm, numerous activities will take place in the city centre, the Geological Museum, the Bible Museum and the Fürstenberghaus - many of which are organised by or involve ZIN scientists.

Enabling citizens to enjoy a good quality of life while reducing the use of resources - the European Union must also face up to this enormous challenge. A study in five EU countries with the participation of ZIN scientists Prof. Dr. Doris Fuchs and Dr. Pia Mamut comes to the central conclusion that the satisfaction of needs and not economic growth should serve as the guiding principle for a redesign of provisioning systems. | Read more

On Wednesday, May 20th at 5 pm, ZIN scholar and political scientist Benedikt Lennartz is going to give a lecture on AI and sustainability at the City Library in Münster.| Read more

On May 19, the podcast “hr-iNFO Himmel und Erde“ (produced by the German radio station Hessischer Rundfunk) focused on the “ambivalent relationship between humans and animals”. Theologian and ZIN member Professor Anne Käfer participated as a guest. | Read more

ZIN member Prof. Doris Fuchs, Director at the Research Institute for Sustainability - Helmholtz Zentrum Potsdam and Professor of Sustainable Development at the University of Münster, was a guest in the first episode of the RIFS podcast #WuPiG (Wissenschaft und Politik im Gespräch) together with Andreas Jung (climate and energy policy spokesperson for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag and deputy chairman of the CDU). | Read more

During the summer term 2024, the Center for Interdisciplinary Sustainability Research organises its annual public interdisciplinary lecture series. This year, it is dedicated to the overarching theme "Digging for Diversity", asking various scientific disciplines for their perspective on the role of diversity within socio-ecological transformations. The lecture series, formerly known as "ZIN-Brotzeitkolloquium", will be held in English this year as the "ZIN Brown Bag Lectures". As an "open class", it will also be possible for students from partner universities of the Ulysseus European University Alliance to attend virtually. | Continue

Communication scientist and ZIN member Prof Sigrid Kannengiesser takes part in the annual conference “Visions for a Better Life. Media and communication in the society of tomorrow” with a total of three lectures. The event will take place in Erfurt from March 13th to 15th, 2024.

All information about the conference can be found here.

The "Farbe der Forschung 2024" conference will take place in Berlin from 15-16 March 2024. ZIN spokesperson and landscape ecologist Prof Tillmann Buttschardt will give a lecture on the topic of "Diversity - Synergy - Resilience: What are the advantages of new approaches such as syntropic agriculture and agroforestry systems?". | Read more

On February 21, the University of Münster published the interview "Ways of decomposing chemicals may be developed in just a few decades of time" with the microbiologist and ZIN member Prof. Bodo Philipp. | Read more

The concept sufficiency is becoming increasingly important in societal discourse — for political actors, researchers and civil society actors alike. However, Dr. Pia Mamut shows that sufficiency has become mainstream in a way that weakens its transformative potential in her new book "Sufficiency - an Emerging Discourse? At the Crossroads of Mainstreaming and Transformation". Starting from this diagnosis she develops proposals to unleash its untapped transformative potential. I Read more 
 

The Centre of Interdisciplinary Sustainability Research (ZIN) is looking for two student assistants as soon as possible. Students of all subjects at the University of Münster can apply for both positions.

On 20 January 2024 at 8pm the third episode of the “BADDABÄM! Show for parapolitische Abendunterhaltung”, dedicated to the topic of “H20” will take place at SpecOps. | Read more

On 15 December, the Evangelische Zeitung published an interview by the Evangelischer Pressedienst (Katrin Nordwald) with ZIN researcher Carolin Bohn on the topic of "Sustainability and Christmas". The political scientist illustrates possible reasons why there are no transformative changes towards a truly “sustainable” Christmas.

Every year, the publisher Routledge presents the "Routledge Area Studies Awards" in the categories "Impact" and "Interdisciplinarity". This year, the research project "Transformation and Sustainability Governance in South American Bioeconomies", which political scientist and ZIN member Dr Karen Siegel is conducting with other researchers, has also made it onto the shortlist in the "Impact" category.

The current issue of the university newspaper “wissen/leben” (December 2023) recently published the profile of ZIN member Professor Asmaa El Maaroufi. The article entitled "Sustainability with God's blessing” illustrates the academic career of the theologian and philosopher Professor El Maaroufi.

On January 31st 2024, the Centre for Religion and Modernity, the Seminary for Reformed Theology and the ZIN invite you to a book launch on the occasion of the publication of the book "Gottes Werk und Fleisches Lust" by theologist and ZIN member Prof Anne Käfer. The event will take place from 18:15 in JO 101 (Johannisstr. 4, 48143 Münster).

On 18 and 19 January 2024, the Akademie Franz Hitze Haus (Münster) will host the symposium "Just Democracy? Socio-ecological transformation and resource distribution", which is being jointly organised by ZIN and the Academy.

You can register for the event by now.

At the end of November, ZIN member Prof. Anne Remke participated as a guest on the "Fokus Frieden" podcast. The episode focusing on "Electricity and security of supply - how do we prevent a blackout?" (own translation) is part of a collaboration between "Fokus Frieden" and the ZIN. It focuses on the challenges regarding critical infrastructure and ways to make it more resilient.

On 9 November 2023, an article titled „Vom groben Missverständnis christlicher Freiheit und der Liebe zum Tier“ by ZIN member Prof. Anne Käfer was published in the theological feuilleton feinschwarz.net.

As part of the joint project SUNRISE LAB, involving ZIN members Prof. Doris Fuchs and Dr. Rebecca Froese, a survey on sustainability at the University of Münster is currently being conducted among all university status groups.

Another event in the “Münsteraner Klimagespräche” series will take place on Thursday, November 23rd 2023, starting at 7 pm. The event at the vhs-Forum, Aegidiimarkt 2, will focus on the question of how effective levers for Münster's climate policy can be found. | Read more

 

On February 1 and 2 2024, the interdisciplinary and interactive conference "The Rights of Nature in the Basic Law. An opportunity to transform the anthropocentric worldview" (own translation) takes place at the Akademie Franz Hitze Haus, Münster. Registration is now open.

The teams from the SUNRISE LAB and LATERNE projects (both involving ZIN members) cordially invite you to the event "Craving for the Academic Donut". This event will be held on October 13 from 2 pm to 5:30 pm. It is part of the 2nd Sustainability Day at the University of Münster.

In 2015, Prof. Doris Fuchs, along with a few other researchers from the University of Münster, founded the ZIN. She has since served as its spokesperson. Doris Fuchs took up the position of Director at the Research Institute for Sustainability - Helmholtz Centre Potsdam (RIFS) on 1 October 2023. Alongside her new directorial duties, Doris Fuchs will continue as a Professor of Sustainable Development at the University of Münster and remain part of the ZIN Executive Board team. The position of ZIN spokesperson will be assumed by Prof. Dr. Tillmann Buttschardt.

On Friday, October 13, the University of Münster will host its 2nd Sustainability Day, featuring a variety of transfer events centered around the theme "Sustainability at the Intersection of Democracy and Social Justice". From 1 pm to 8 pm, numerous activities will take place in the city centre, the Fürstenberghaus, and the Geological Museum - many of which are organised by or involve ZIN members.