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Research Unit

Sustainable Society

Resource-intensive consumption patterns cannot be sustained within planetary boundaries. But technological innovations alone are not enough to bring about the necessary changes. Social innovations that could reduce resource consumption are not yet being sufficiently utilized since these innovations require far-reaching changes in everyday practices, infrastructures and institutions.

In the Research Unit “Sustainable Society”, we analyze how changes in the areas of housing, transportation, recreation and nutrition are promoted or hindered. We investigate blockages caused by different needs, conflicts of interest and unequal power relations. We develop concepts and experimental spaces to identify unsustainable practices and to test new, sustainable approaches.

Our research focuses on three research strands:

Transformation of settlement areas for improved quality of life, climate adaptation and biodiversity

The challenges of urbanization, societal change, global warming and biodiversity loss are particularly evident in urban areas. In our research we investigate how cities can contribute to biodiversity and an improved quality of life through green infrastructures. We analyze how traffic and settlement areas can be converted into nature spaces and how conflicts of use can be constructively resolved. In addition, we investigate how cities can enable experiences of nature and implement nature-based solutions effectively and in a participatory manner.

Post-fossil mobility cultures

Motorized traffic causes significant environmental damage, global warming and health risks. The necessary “mobility transition” is faltering and leads to conflicts, for example over the use of road space. In our research, we investigate how environmentally friendly and climate-neutral means of transportation can be established to reduce the dependence on private cars and to promote the combination of different mobility options. Our focus here is on a just and participatory development and the broad implementation of such options.

Sufficiency in everyday life and in companies

Sufficiency of action makes it possible to satisfy needs with fewer natural resources being consumed, thus ensuring a good life within planetary boundaries. We develop concepts for resource-efficient living, consumption and nutrition and investigate how everyday practices and value chains can be shaped to be efficient and needs-oriented . In social learning processes, we test how institutional and political frameworks for sufficiency can be created and how the relevant skills can be acquired.

Contact

Team

Projects

  • CultCryo – Infrastructures, Politics and Futures of Artificial Cooling
    Transformation Climate Adaptation Sufficiency

    CultCryo – Infrastructures, Politics and Futures of Artificial Cooling

    Artificial cooling fundamentally shapes the world we live in. Cooling and freezing technologies have become indispensable for a wide range of everyday practices. The project explores the cultural foundations of global cooling infrastructure and its impacts.

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  • KWAPE – Municipal heat planning to activate private homeowners
    Luftaufnahme von Cheix-en-Retz
    Transformation Knowledge and Participation

    KWAPE – Municipal heat planning to activate private homeowners

    Homeowners are key players in the implementation of municipal heat planning. The project investigate sustainable heating solutions and exploring new participation formats.

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  • Repack-network: sustainable food packaging
    Chemical Risks

    Repack-network: sustainable food packaging

    The project accompanies, supports and evaluates fourteen research projects that deal with measures to reduce plastic in food packaging. Social impact potentials are explored in particular. 

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  • transform-R – Shaping the energy and mobility transition as a socio-ecological transformation in the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main region
    Sufficiency Mobility Transformation

    transform-R – Shaping the energy and mobility transition as a socio-ecological transformation in the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main region

    The mobility transition requires cooperation between political, civil society and economic players. Innovative measures and social innovations are being tested in real-world laboratories.

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  • SuPraStadt II – Quality of life, participation and resource conservation through social diffusion of sufficiency practices in urban neighbourhoods
    Sufficiency Transformation

    SuPraStadt II – Quality of life, participation and resource conservation through social diffusion of sufficiency practices in urban neighbourhoods

    In three real-world laboratories, SuPraStadt II is investigating how the needs of residents in the fields of housing, open space and mobility can be reconciled with the ecological requirements of sustainability.

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  • Social aspects of environmental policy
    Transformation

    Social aspects of environmental policy

    The project analyzes conflicting goals and synergies of socially just environmental policy and develops recommendations for sustainable and accepted measures.

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  • PlaNE – Planetary Health and Sustainable Nutrition
    Transformation

    PlaNE – Planetary Health and Sustainable Nutrition

    The PlaNE project is developing practical approaches for municipalities such as Frankfurt and Marburg to sustainably transform food systems according to planetary health criteria.

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  • Everyday life in the neighborhood 4.0
    Transformation

    Everyday life in the neighborhood 4.0

    The project develops points of reference for those involved in neighbourhood development in order to better consider the opportunities and risks of the increasing digitalization of everyday life in planning processes.

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  • ENGAGE – Commitment to sustainable public welfare
    Transformation

    ENGAGE – Commitment to sustainable public welfare

    The ENGAGE project investigates the conditions under which the participation and commitment of citizens to sustainability can lead to “sustainable public welfare”.

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  • Kommunikationskampagnen für nachhaltigen Konsum und gesellschaftliche Teilhabe
    Transformation Sufficiency

    Kommunikationskampagnen für nachhaltigen Konsum und gesellschaftliche Teilhabe

    In collaboration with students and lecturers from the Master's degree course in Communication Design at Mainz University of Applied Sciences, six communication campaigns were created to appeal to young people for sustainable consumption.

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  • Ecodesign – ecological design as purchase criterion
    Transformation

    Ecodesign – ecological design as purchase criterion

    The project investigates how consumers perceive sustainable product characteristics and how companies can better design and communicate products.

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  • Modernization of “Blue Angel”
    Transformation

    Modernization of “Blue Angel”

    On behalf of the UBA (Umweltbundesamt) the ISOE is developing a strategy to update the label with the aim to make the eco-label more modern and increase its attractiveness. The focus is on the renewal of the logo.
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  • KlimaAlltag – low carbon lifestyles in the zero emissions city
    Sufficiency

    KlimaAlltag – low carbon lifestyles in the zero emissions city

    The 'KlimaAlltag' project is investigating low carbon lifestyles in different social strata. The focus is on mobility, nutrition, home living and household energy consumption.
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  • Hertie-Studie FrankfurtRheinMain
    Mobility

    Hertie-Studie FrankfurtRheinMain

    The Hertie Study for FrankfurtRheinMain explored attitudes towards life in the region.
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  • Demand-driven Life Cycle Management
    Mobility

    Demand-driven Life Cycle Management

    The demand-driven scheme for life-cycle management was developed and tested for municipalities on the basis of a target group model and other analysis tools.
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  • Food Change

    Food Change

    In this project, ISOE developed a typology of nutritional habits. From this it was possible to ascertain the need for action with regard to a "Food Change".
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  • Gender Mainstreaming in the National Park Eifel

    Gender Mainstreaming in the National Park Eifel

    The team provided scientific support and advice to the forestry commission in the Eifel National Park with introducing gender mainstreaming into its work.
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  • Knowledge Transfer for Ecological Innovations

    Knowledge Transfer for Ecological Innovations

    During the two years of research, a consumption-related "innovation probe" was developed, with which to utilise consumers' demands for ecologically innovative products and services. The "knowledge transfer" between consumer and manufacturer so far has to pass between the bottleneck of market research. A broader approach is called for if ecological aspects of relevance to everyday life are to be identified alongside purchase behaviour and market preferences.
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Publications

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