News at the Center for Interdisciplinary Sustainability Research

The current issue of the Journal for Christian Social Ethics has been published in November 2015. Amongst others it also comprises several articles written by members of the ZIN.

The Yearbook is available online.

[Picture: Aschendorff Verlag Münster]

Right on time for the United Nations Climate Change Conference (taking place in Paris from November 30 to December 11) the first ZIN-Discussion Paper is published.

The Discussion Paper is available here.

Professor Markus Vogt (chair of Christian Social Ethics at the Ludwig-Maximilian-University, Munich) will deliver a public lecture on November 05th at 6pm in Room S9 at Münster Castle.

What strengthens in times of radical change? The resilience research provides fascinating answers to this question originating from different disciplines: psychological, ecological, social theoretical. What the analyses have in common is their paradigmatic change from deficit- to resource-orientation. At the moment resilience is the most innovative concept to develop sustainability theories further. From time to time even negative phenomena are highly resilient, thus prompting ethics to draw distinctions.

[Picture: Private]

2015 is an exciting year for international climate policy. Just in time for the Climate Summit in Paris (COP-21), the interdisciplinary distance study course program for environmental sicences (infernum) at the University of Hagen in cooperation with the Swedish University of Lund produced an open online course on ‘Climate change: a question of justice?”. The project is funded by the Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF).

Selected international experts, including members of the ZIN Prof. Doris Fuchs and Prof. Markus Lederer, give lectures on the most important topics related to international climate negotiations and central question on climate justice. Between the 28th of September and the 23. Of November 2015 there will be weekly lectures that can be discussed online. All participant can test their knowledge and gain a certificate.

Participation is free and not bound to any obligations. Anyone who wants to participate can register here. A trailer is available here.

[Picture: viajante/Photocase.com | WWU Münster]

The Research Project KomMA-P, funded by the BMBF, published a short movie on the project that member of the center Prof. Doris Fuchs takes part in. The movie can be accessed here with the password 'energiewende'.

[Picture: KomMA-P]

For extended endurance and life span of products, legal instruments, among others, are necessary. How could successful legal means look like? And what are the reasons for costumers to pruchase products with longer life spans? A research project by the Umweltbundesamt and Prof'in Dr. Sabine Schlacke (Member of ZIN), Ass. iur. Marina Alt, Prof. Dr. Klaus Tonner, Prof. Dr. Erik Gawel und Dipl.-Vw. Wolfgang Bretschneider tried to find answers to these questions. The report is available here.

[Picture: giftgruen / Photocase.com | WWU Münster]

Prof. Dr. Michael Reder (University of Munich) will offer a public lecture on "Ethics in a Non-ideal World: What are Philosophy's Contributions to Transdisciplinary Discourse on Sustainability? on July 2nd, at 6pm in KTh I at the buidling of the catholic-theological faculty (Johannisstr. 8-10). More information are available here. The lecture will be in German.

[Picture: Private]

Professor Thomas Princen (University of Michigan and guest lecturer at the Institute of Political Science Muenster) will offer a public lecture on “Ending the Fossil Fuel Era: The Politics, The Ethics, The Strategies” on June 15th at 6pm in Room SCH 2 at the Institute of Political Science (Scharnhorststr. 100).

[Picture: Private]