Completed research projects

BIOBRAS

The BIOBRAS project dealt with the negative impacts of global change on biodiversity and ecosystem services in Brazil. In cooperation with the Universities of Vicosa (UFV) and Minas Gerais (UFMG) in Brazil, the project aimed to contribute to achieving the goals of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). For this purpose, concrete strategies and management rules for the protection of forest-free ecosystems needed to be developed. At the same time, the project aimed at raising public awareness and a dialogue between science and politics.

BIOCIVIS

The project "BIOCIVIS - Participation to secure sustainability benefits and societal participation (in) the bioeconomy" investigated in interdisciplinary cooperation with the Institute of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology of the WWU Münster, which deliberative participation formats are useful for the societal discussion of the complex topic of the bioeconomy and at the same time enable a strengthening of democratic participation and the securing of sustainability benefits.

Carbon Governance Arrangements and the Nation-State

Many new governance arrangements have emerged in recent years, some of them in areas or related to activities that contribute significantly to global carbon emissions. The research project Carbon Governance investigated whether and to what extent different globally operating governance arrangements cause changes in the distribution of state power in nation states.

ENGAGE

A central goal of social and political action is to promote and to protect the common good. At the same time, aspects and principles of sustainable development (in ecological, social and economic terms) are critical elements of the common good and unverlying conditions in the process of defining the common good. Such a 'sustainable common good' can be significantly supported by different forms of civic involvement and participation. Many newer forms of civic involvement and participation, however, are accused of only representing certain groups of citizens. In result, these forms of civic involvement and participation are said to promote only certain personal interests instead of the common good, which would lead to even more entrenched social inequalities.

Form your future

Already in 1987, the so-called Brundtland Report stated that we should also give future generations the opportunity to fulfill their needs. Today - more than 30 years later - we are still living at the expense of future generations. Our active action is more in demand than ever! The UNESCO World Cultural Programme: Education for Sustainable Development has set itself the goal of "changing the way everyone thinks and acts".
The World Culture Programme is also being implemented in Germany. Young people and proximity to the local play an important role in this.

Research Cooperation Jülich

The Research Center Jülich, the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster and the University of Siegen take up a central social issue in the context of the discussion about the future of energy - namely its fundamental research, its provision and its use - from a social, cultural, engineering and natural science perspective.

F2F (From Fungal Biomass to Fine Chemicals)

The F2F research project investigated the conversion of fungal fermentation waste into fine chemicals. The aim of the research was to develop strategies and processes to reuse biomass generated during such fermentation processes and to develop it into high-quality chemicals. Thus, the project was not only relevant with regard to sustainability aspects, but also offered great potential for practical application in industry.

GreeTS

The project "Green Transformation in the global South (GreeTS): opening the blackbox of a pro-active state and the management of sustainability trade-offs in Costa Rica and Vietnam" analyzed different aspects of sustainability changes in Vietnam and Costa Rica in the fields of energy and land use.

ComMA-P

The interdisciplinary research project "KomMA-P | Strengthening Acceptance of the Energy System Transformation" examined the conditions under which people are prepared to accept the energy system transformation. The initial idea was that they must be offered adequate opportunities to participate. The aim of KomMA-P was to find out how non-investment and low-threshold participation offerings in the energy system transformation can also be developed. To this end, the project explored how technical solutions and participation opportunities are interdependent.

How do young farmers look to the new CAP funding period - and beyond to their future? - A case study along the implementation of agroforestry

Under the guiding question "How do young farmers see their future?", the project investigated which visions guide young farmers in the face of the multiple crises of our time and a dramatic worsening of the situation for many farms, and whether and to what extent the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), with its increased focus on overall solutions, is perceived as a support for a sustainable transformation of the agri-food system.

Light and glass: Legal issues of the endangerment of species by light and glass

The project dealt with the legal requirements de lege lata and the legal and sub-legal regulation possibilities to avoid and minimize the dangers of light and glass for wildlife species. The project was to point out deficits and gaps, mainly in the field of nature conservation (species protection), immission control and building law and to make proposals for further development.

Literary Modelling and Energy Transition

"Literary Modelling and Energy Transition" was a joint project between the WWU Münster and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. It aimed at developing a transdisciplinary model theory in the experimental framework of the Karlsruhe energy transition project "Energiesystem 2050". The focus was on a close-up of the grand narrative that the energy transition discourse creates at the precarious interface of crisis and conflict scenarios, advanced high technologies and striking promises for the future. However, the narratives that determined the energy transition discourse and of which it consisted were based on models that were not narratives themselves: on technical and mathematical models, on conventions of description, imaging procedures and standardised practices, on procedures of statistical prognostics, on routines of research transfer.

LITRES

The LITRES project explored how energy system transformation can be implemented with the help of local initiatives and how governance structures can be changed through the use of alternative energy sources. The project focused on the hitherto little researched cases in which cities, municipalities and regions experiment with new forms of alternative energy supply at the local level.

MikroPlaTas

The spread of microplastics (i.e. plastic particles under 5 mm in size) is not only observed in the oceans, but also in freshwater ecosystems. Dams and reservoirs have so far largely been overlooked, although they might play an important role as sinks for microplastic.
The project MikroPlaTaS analyses the occurence of microplastic in dams and reservoirs, with a special focus on biofilm growth on plastic particles and the influence of biofouling on their sedimentation. Further, the researchers test the effects of micropastic exposure on different aquatic invertebrates.
Based on our results we can evaluate the risks of plastic pollution for the aquatic environment and support future measures.

MOVER

The project MOVER [(Mis)success Factors of Organised Consumer Participation] was a joint project in cooperation with the HHU Düsseldorf, the University of Siegen and the University of Cologne. Organised consumer participation (e.g. repair cafés, food sharing) can be found in both formal and non-formal, small and large, local and (inter)national forms of organisation. In practice, these organisations are often confronted with a wide range of challenges and sometimes threaten to fail because of them. MOVER investigated which factors hinder or promote the success of organised consumer participation in order to derive recommendations for action for the organisations themselves as well as for the consumer (education) policy framework.

NostaClimate

The goal of the research project NostaClimate was the explicit analysis of the role of non-state actors and their interactions with state and individual actors. Non-state actors include civil society groups (e.g. churches, non-governmental organizations), economic actors (e.g. firms, trade unions), and subnational and local actors (e.g. municipalities). The project was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) within the second phase of the funding priority “Economics of Climate Change”.
The project examined the research questions with a mix of complementary methods. The possible effects of different non-state actors were evaluated on the basis of theoretical, empirical, and experimental results. In close cooperation with the advisory board, strategies and recommendations for non-state actors were developed, especially with respect to influencing individual climate protection activities, but also for policymakers (state actors), for example, to strengthen the position of non-state actors in the monitoring of climate protection activities of other actors.

PEGASOS

The project aims at identifying economically efficient and economically viable policy options for a global coal phase-out taking into account the relevant political economy. The research framework is multidisciplinary and focuses on the integrated consideration of multiple societal goals such as climate protection, health protection and competitiveness. The project focusses on three major research questions.

Reflectories to promote system and evaluation competence

This research project of the Institute for Didactics of Geography at the WWU Münster is dedicated to the question of which method is used to promote the competencies of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), especially system and assessment competencies, in learners.

RESOLVE

The RESOLVE project (Reducing Returns in Online Retailing - Approaches to Shaping More Sustainable Consumer Behaviour) was a joint project in cooperation with the HHU Düsseldorf, the University of Siegen and the University of Cologne. Return shipping and processing of returned goods in online retailing pollute the climate and the environment, lead to considerable costs on the part of online retailers and indirectly increase market prices for consumers. The aim of the joint project was to derive design recommendations for the preventive reduction of returns at the individual consumer level as well as for political and legal framework conditions that promote sustainability.

SmartHubs - Smart Mobility Hubs as Game Changers in Transport

The European research project "SmartHus" investigates in five real-lab projects in Munich, Vienna, Brussels, Rotterdam/The Hague and Istanbul the role that intermodal mobility hubs can play in an integrated and sustainable mobility transition by investigating how different mobility services can be linked in a user-friendly way.

Key words: Mobility Hubs, sustainable moility, intermodal mobility, real-labs

ZIN-persons involved: Prof’in Dr. Antonia Graf, Julia Hansel

STRIVE

STRIVE was a research project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. It aimed at improving the knowledge base for the design of sustainable bioeconomy policies and regulatory frameworks at national and international level.
The project focused on the sustainability implications of transnational biomass trade, technological innovation, and innovation transfer in selected bioeconomy sectors with an emphasis on major biomass and knowledge producing countries and regions.

S2M (Sustainable Surfaces & Membranes)

The project, located in Interreg V Germany Nederland, dealt with antimicrobial surfaces and membrane technology. It was application-oriented and aimed at finding sustainable alternatives for conventional products such as heavy metal compounds. It should be possible to make coating materials, adhesives and components sustainable through antimicrobial application. Membranes for packaging or fuel cells were also developed.

Joint project ENavi: Energy system transformation navigation system for the recording, analysis and simulation of systemic networks

With the energy transition, Germany has set itself the goal of transforming the current energy system into a largely CO2-free system based on renewable energies. An economic, environmentally compatible, reliable and socially acceptable energy system requires a holistic approach at system level. ENavi therefore views energy system transformation as a process of transformation for society as a whole and links scientific analyses with political and social requirements.

2° Campus

There is widespread agreement among experts that climate change must be slowed down as quickly as possible. Many scientists and politicians see a warming of up to 2°Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels as just about tolerable climate change. A majority of all countries finally recognised the 2°C target at the UN Climate Change Conference in Cancún after a long struggle. To achieve this, Germany must reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 95% by 2050 compared to 1990.
How this can be achieved and what impact this will have on life in a low greenhouse society was the focus of the WWF's own research activities during the WWF Pupils Academy "2°Campus - Researching for the Future", which takes place annually during the Easter and summer holidays.