A change towards a more sustainable society is also necessary in Germany. This is the opinion of the organisers of the student sustainability event NachDenkstatt. An interview with Mela Determann and Achim Hagen from the organising team.
QUESTION: The motto of the event is "research, connect, shape". What does this mean?
We want to "research" together in workshops, i.e. find ideas, generate solutions and discover new things. The joint research is transdisciplinary - we "connect" different scientific disciplines and involve practitioners in analysing and solving problems. A lot of creativity, different views and knowledge should help to "shape" the future sustainably.
QUESTION: How are the workshops organised?
There are four workshops on different topics: "Sustainability in research and teaching", "Sustainability in popular sport", "Local actors of transformation" and "Environmental management of educationally disadvantaged milieus". Students and experts work together to define possible solutions. This is characterised by a joint problem analysis and definition of objectives, whereby research questions, stakeholder analyses and project ideas are developed.
QUESTION: Which areas do the experts come from?
In order to combine theory with practice, we have invited a wide range of experts from the fields of science, business and politics - including the honorary chairwoman of BUND, Prof. Dr Angelika Zahrnt. Dr Angelika Zahrnt, Prof. Dr Ulli Vilsmaier and Prof. Dr Daniel J. Lang from transdisciplinary research, the head of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) department of the Bundesliga football club Werder Bremen and Susanne Menge from Bündnis 90/Die Grünen Oldenburg.
QUESTION: What results do you expect?
We anticipate a broad spectrum of results: these could be concrete project ideas, the establishment of working groups, but also approaches for publications. There are no limits to the ideas participants can come up with this weekend. We are excited to see what can be developed and hope to establish the NachDenkstatt on an annual basis in the long term.
QUESTION: Who can take part in the NachDenkstatt?
The workshops are aimed at students and doctoral candidates. Registration is still possible until 11 November via the website www.nachdenkstatt.de.
