Social and environmental sustainability

Research in the area of social and environmental sustainability comprises research activities focusing on the concepts and practices of sustainability, contributing to a sustainable future, a resilient population, socio-ecological change and to climate justice. This research revolves around the common denominator of building more sustainable societies and environments. To this end, research examines how climate change, and related technological developments and political processes are shaped by different social groups and in different regions or how these are affected.

The corresponding research projects study, for instance, issues relating to current sustainability transformations in the areas of energy, mobility, infrastructure and demographic change; questions of generational conflict, social and political conflict and new forms of social mobilisation; as well as questions of global environmental regulations, relationships between nature and society or climate justice and solidarity economy in a global context. 

Research in this area has an impact on the development of scenarios for an integrative, safe, resilient and sustainable future and the implementation of multi-scale sustainable transformations.