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I. Hemmer and A.-K. Lindau
topic of sustainability was included in the development plan and later on also in
the KU’s guiding principles. The university management supports the process by
providing staff resources: In 2012, a part-time position for campus management was
established. In 2016, the university created a full-time position for the assistance of
the sustainable development coordinator, who was already granted a teaching load
reduction of 1 h in 2015. Furthermore, the sustainability initiatives are supported
financially in order to enable implementation of measures from the different action
areas. Currently, a ‘Green Office’ is being established following the proposal of
students in order to support student involvement and increase the visibility of the
sustainability topic on campus.
3.2.2 Action Area ‘Research’
In the relevant literature, the action area of research is divided into three
categories (LeNa 2014; Leuphana Universität Lüneburg and Ludwig-MaximiliansUniversität München 2018):
(1) Research as a social responsibility
Research that reflects its social and ecological impact with regard to its
conceptualization, implementation and results.
(2) Research for sustainable development
Research that can contribute to sustainable development.
(3) Sustainability research
Research that is oriented towards sustainability issues with regard to its choice
of topics, conceptualization, implementation and expected outcomes and that
explicitly seeks to contribute to solving sustainability problems.
At the KU, research category (1), which makes the research process itself the
subject of ethical and sustainable criteria in order to make these processes more
environmentally friendly and socially acceptable, is to date only rarely represented. Research categories (2) and (3) are predominant. There are quite a few
projects, including some large-scale third-party funded projects, in category (2)
that for example deal with climate and climate impact research, river restoration
and dynamization of floodplains as well as with migration issues and justice and
thus contribute to the field of sustainable development. Furthermore, there are also
projects that address sustainability issues directly, such as, for example, research
on sustainable financial systems, sustainable land management, sustainable tourism,
sustainable entrepreneurship, sustainable lifestyles and ESD. A number of these
projects have an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary orientation with project partners from different fields, such as municipalities, water resources authorities, nature
conservation authorities, tourism enterprises and schools. The majority of research
projects on sustainability at the KU is carried out by geographers. However, there
I. Hemmer and A.-K. Lindau
topic of sustainability was included in the development plan and later on also in
the KU’s guiding principles. The university management supports the process by
providing staff resources: In 2012, a part-time position for campus management was
established. In 2016, the university created a full-time position for the assistance of
the sustainable development coordinator, who was already granted a teaching load
reduction of 1 h in 2015. Furthermore, the sustainability initiatives are supported
financially in order to enable implementation of measures from the different action
areas. Currently, a ‘Green Office’ is being established following the proposal of
students in order to support student involvement and increase the visibility of the
sustainability topic on campus.
3.2.2 Action Area ‘Research’
In the relevant literature, the action area of research is divided into three
categories (LeNa 2014; Leuphana Universität Lüneburg and Ludwig-MaximiliansUniversität München 2018):
(1) Research as a social responsibility
Research that reflects its social and ecological impact with regard to its
conceptualization, implementation and results.
(2) Research for sustainable development
Research that can contribute to sustainable development.
(3) Sustainability research
Research that is oriented towards sustainability issues with regard to its choice
of topics, conceptualization, implementation and expected outcomes and that
explicitly seeks to contribute to solving sustainability problems.
At the KU, research category (1), which makes the research process itself the
subject of ethical and sustainable criteria in order to make these processes more
environmentally friendly and socially acceptable, is to date only rarely represented. Research categories (2) and (3) are predominant. There are quite a few
projects, including some large-scale third-party funded projects, in category (2)
that for example deal with climate and climate impact research, river restoration
and dynamization of floodplains as well as with migration issues and justice and
thus contribute to the field of sustainable development. Furthermore, there are also
projects that address sustainability issues directly, such as, for example, research
on sustainable financial systems, sustainable land management, sustainable tourism,
sustainable entrepreneurship, sustainable lifestyles and ESD. A number of these
projects have an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary orientation with project partners from different fields, such as municipalities, water resources authorities, nature
conservation authorities, tourism enterprises and schools. The majority of research
projects on sustainability at the KU is carried out by geographers. However, there