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Welcome to the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW)

The IÖW is a leading scientific institute in the field of practice-oriented sustainability research. It devises strategies and approaches for viable, long-term economic activity – for an economy which enables a good life and preserves natural resources.

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News

In October 2024, the international community will come together at the Convention on Biodiversity (COP 16) in Colombia to agree on further measures to protect global biodiversity. A healthy, plant-based diet is key to halting the loss of biodiversity. Measures for a biodiversity-friendly food system are therefore recommended by the Institute for Ecological Economy Research together with authors from other sustainability organizations in a recent policy brief. more

 

Thousands of citizens are committed to the energy transition locally. They are part of energy communities and invest in locally generated renewable energy. In a recent policy paper, researchers from the Institute for Ecological Economy Research, Leuphana University Lüneburg and the Ecolog Institute demonstrate the high relevance of the energy transition from the bottom up and point out that the potential is much greater than has been exploited to date. more

 

The steering group and board of the Sustainability Transitions Research Network (STRN) has elected Dr. Florian Kern as the network’s new chair. Dr. Kern will take over from Dr. Jochen Markard as of 20th of June. Today, the change was announced to the STRN community at the 15th International Sustainability Transitions Conference. Dr. Florian Kern has been a member of the STRN steering group since 2016. He is head of the research field “Ecological Economics and Environmental Policy” at the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW) in Berlin. more

 
Group photo with 9 women and 6 men from different countries in the IÖW conference room

Increasing weather extremes are putting cities and countries under pressure worldwide. Adaptation is a comparatively new and complex field of activity that benefits from exchange and mutual learning. The Federal Foreign Office and the Goethe-Institut have invited leading experts from fifteen countries on a trip to provide insights into climate change impacts and adaptation measures in Germany. On May 13, 2024, the delegation visited the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW). Professor Jesko Hirschfeld and Johannes Rupp discussed climate adaptation strategies and the costs of the climate crisis with the visitors. more

 

Since January 2024, the political scientist Jonas Pentzien is head of the research field “Business, value chains and consumption” at the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IÖW) in Berlin. He heads the field together with the sustainable business researcher Dr. Christian Lautermann. more

 

Since December 2023, the agricultural scientist and environmental economist Dr. Alexandra Dehnhardt is head of the research field ‘Ecological Economics and Environmental Policy’ at the Institute for Ecological Economic Research (IÖW) in Berlin. She jointly leads the research field together with the sustainability and transformation scientist Dr. Florian Kern. more

 

Who can take responsibility for steering problematic developments in AI back in the right direction? This is the question addressed in the third and final issue of the SustAIn magazine. Before the EU starts the final negotiations on the AI regulation on 6 December 2023, AlgorithmWatch, the IÖW and the DAI Lab at TU Berlin provide an up-to-date overview of the sustainability impacts of AI – from AI resource consumption through online marketing to the water footprint of AI systems. The project was funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment. more

 

Our Responsibility

The IÖW endeavours to make its own work as sustainable as possible. And at the same time we try to consider the social concerns of our employees. Read more here.

IÖW – Partner in Ecornet

The IÖW is a partner in Ecornet, the network of leading non-university institutes of sustainability research in Germany.

www.ecornet.de/en