Sustainability at universities – New BMBF project launched at the IfK

(16.01.2024) On 1 January 2024, the BMBF-funded project "Sustainability governance, networks and practices at universities – a comparative analysis" was launched at the Department of Communication (IfK). The project is being implemented by Prof. Dr Sigrid Kannengießer and Monika Dzialas M.A. as research assistants. The aim of the project is to analyse current governance, networks and practices at universities that pursue the goal of sustainability.

The theoretical basis for the project is formed by approaches from sociological practice research and network theory, governance concepts for universities and sustainability models. Against the background of existing research on sustainability practices at universities, a qualitative empirical study will be conducted. In this study, the research question is pursued through the triangulation of qualitative interviews, non-participant observations and focus groups: Which governance processes, network structures and sustainability practices do university stakeholders want to use to make German universities more sustainable and what specific goals are they pursuing? A holistic institutional approach will be used to look at actors from different university status groups. Problems and ambivalences in practices and goals will also be reconstructed.

As part of the joint project "Bremen Goes Sustainable. A university region on the road to sustainability", the project focusses on Bremen's university landscape as an example, but also draws transferable findings from the results for other universities. The project runs until 31 October 2025 and is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) with around 120,000 euros.

Contact person public relations:
Dr. Stephan Völlmicke
Telefon: +49 251 83-23006
Telefax: +49 251 83-21310 (Geschäftszimmer IfK)