Sustainability research in Oldenburg has a long-standing tradition and addresses key societal challenges at the interface of humans, nature, and technology. It makes diverse contributions to tackling current issues in the context of sustainable development, including climate change, resource scarcity, and socio-ecological transformation. The various research areas focus on specific questions and contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Global and regional challenges, as well as their interconnections, are explored in interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research projects, reflected upon with practice partners, and addressed through concrete solution approaches.

Sustainability research in Oldenburg comprises several key areas:

• Resilient Nature and Health: Ecosystem restoration and green and blue infrastructure – such as parks, small forests, and waterways – enhance biodiversity and human health, support climate adaptation, and create resilient habitats for both people and wildlife. 
• Green & Blue Transition: Energy transition, decarbonization, renewable energy, circular economy approaches, and sustainable water management form the foundation for a shift toward sustainable economic and societal systems. 
• Smart Society: Digital infrastructure, energy efficiency, smart grids, data-driven decision-making, and citizen participation provide solutions for a sustainability-oriented and inclusive society. 
• Transformative Society: Flexible planning, crisis management, social cohesion, local knowledge, science-based policy advice, and transformation competencies enable forward-looking responses to complex challenges. 
• Education for Sustainable Development: With the aim of empowering individuals to think and act sustainably, education for sustainable development enables people of all ages and backgrounds to understand the impacts of their actions and develop competencies for sustainable decision-making. 
• Transformative Markets and Organizations: The development of fair, inclusive, and socio-ecological frameworks for markets, businesses, and organizations supports the transition toward sustainable economic practices. 

This broad portfolio enables sustainability to be embedded as a cross-cutting theme across the entire university and continuously developed further. Research activities are funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG), the European Union (EU), the Volkswagen Foundation, as well as the German Federal Ministries (BMBF/BMFTR) and the Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture (MWK). They are closely linked to initiatives in teaching and knowledge transfer. In teaching, a Master Cluster has been established, offering nine collaborative master’s programmes. International cooperation – among others with strategic partners such as Nelson Mandela University (South Africa) and the University of Groningen (Netherlands) – is an essential component of many projects.

TRUST@UOL – Strategically Bundling Sustainability

With the establishment of the research center TRUST@UOL – Center for Transformations and Sustainable Futures, a new cross-faculty structure has been created to strategically bundle, connect, and further develop existing activities.

TRUST@UOL brings together researchers from different disciplines and strengthens collaboration with societal actors at the local, regional, national, and global levels. Its aim is to scientifically support and actively shape sustainability-oriented transformations. In doing so, TRUST@UOL acts as a connecting platform that makes existing strengths visible while generating new impulses for research, teaching, and knowledge transfer.