Reflections on the symposium "Future of Sustainability and Social Science in honor of Prof. Paul Burger"

The symposium was held in honor of Prof. Paul Burger, who has made outstanding contributions to sustainability and social science research, ranging from theoretical contributions on the concept of sustainability and the governance of sustainability-oriented transformation processes to empirical research, in particular in relation to sustainable energy transitions. In spring 2023, Paul Burger will leave active university life behind and start his well-deserved retirement.

How does Switzerland achieve the energy transition and a secure power supply? (in German)

For a long time, Switzerland could rely on other countries to provide enough electricity in winter. That is now in question. Christoph Eisenring and Gerald Hosp asked energy experts from Swiss universities what needs to be done for the next winter and in the longer term. With statements by Hannes Weigt.

July 16, 2022

Field notes from Antarctica

The Earth's polar regions are hitting the headlines due to record temperatures and melting ice. But there is another reason for researchers to go to these places: the increasing plastic pollution of the oceans. Our new blog is dedicated to this issue.
Available in English, French, German and Italian.

April 24, 2022

If Europe does not want to do without Russian natural gas in the short term: Would a targeted import tax be a smart alternative?

A group of about twenty economists is proposing a special tax on Russian natural gas. According to the economists, this would lower Russia's revenues and generate additional income for victim assistance in the West.
NZZ article with quote from Hannes Weigt.

March 24, 2022

Radical, non-ideological, non-violent

The first study on the Swiss climate strikers shows that they think of the climate crisis as a social issue. It also shows that the climate movement is continuing - and becoming more radical.

Exciting article about the study by our network member Prof. Dr. Oliver Nachtwey.

March 17, 2022

Where to put all that money: Baschi Dürr proposes new tax model

The canton of Basel-Stadt takes too much in taxes.
The ideas competition has been launched. A new approach comes from a former government councilor, of all people.
With a quote from Beat Hintermann

What the Ukraine war means for Switzerland's energy policy

The war in Ukraine and consequent threat of energy insecurity is forcing many countries to reconsider their existing policies. The ripple effect has also reached Switzerland, which is already reassessing its gas supply for the coming winter.
with citations of Aya Kachi and Hannes Weigt

The Research Network Sustainable Future

The "Sustainable Future" research network brings researchers at the University of Basel who are working on sustainability issues into dialogue and supports them in trans- and interdisciplinary projects. It also coordinates "living labs" in which sustainability researchers work closely with public authorities, the private sector and the general public.

05.07.2022

Unveiling temporal and spatial patterns of microplastic burial in freshwaters through a reservoir as a stepping stone

New project led by Dr. Gabriel Erni Cassola and Dr. Colin Courtney-Mustaphi from our network. The main objective of the project is to determine the flux and pool of microplastics in the largest water reservoir of the Lange Erlen groundwater system (Basel Stadt). The study will test whether an increase in microplastic pollution can be observed after the start of large-scale plastic production.

Ten years of the Sustainability Office

Sustainability is now firmly established at the University of Basel. This is also thanks to the Sustainability Office, which began its work ten years ago. From vegi lunches to climate neutrality, the team in the General Secretariat initiates various initiatives. An article on their work can now be found in Uni News and on the university's website (in German)

Results of an expert survey in cantonal offices.

Implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Swiss cantons.

The UN 2030 Agenda with its 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is a key framework that provides orientation for sustainability policy at the global as well as at the national level in Switzerland. Due to their competencies in many policy areas relevant to the SDGs, the cantons play a central role in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs in Switzerland.

The new publication by PD Dr. Basil Bornemann, Dr. Marius Christen and Prof. Dr. Aya Kachi examines the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Swiss cantons.

Call for new National Research Programs on sustainable development

Thematic proposals for new NPRs to be submitted until March 23, 2022.The State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) is currently seeking thematic proposals for new National Research Programmes (NRPs). The call is based on the Priority Themes for Swiss Sustainability Research proposed by the Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences. The closing date for submission of thematic proposals for new NRPs is 23 March 2022.

An end to eternal growth?!

Environmental economist Frank Krysiak and environmental ethicist Andreas Brenner agree: our economic system must become more sustainable. Should we throw the growth paradigm overboard? Three arguments for and three against a post-growth economy.

25.11.21

Waste water should help Swiss agriculture

An Aargau wastewater treatment plant is moving forward with the federally mandated phosphorus recycling, because time is running out.

An exciting contribution from the Regionaljournal Aargau Solothurn with Prof. Dr. Christine Alewell.

The world's largest test in Switzerland - what is Mobility Pricing really like?

How do you commute if you have to pay for every metre of road or rail yourself? 3700 Swiss citizens tracked their movements for two months. The results are explosive.

Exciting newspaper articles on the study on mobility by Prof. Dr. Hintermann et al.

"Phosphorus - from the cycle to recycling".

Interesting article by Prof. Dr. Christine Alewell in the SRF science magazine on the subject of phosphorus.

20.08.2021

An environmental disaster is brewing off Sri Lanka (in German)

An explosion followed by a fire has occurred on a container ship loaded with 300 tonnes of oil near Sri Lanka. The Singapore-flagged X-Press Pearl sank in early June, a month after it caught fire, raising concerns about a possible environmental disaster.
An article from the magazine "Tauchen" with quotes from Prof Dr Patricia Holm

08.07.21

Prof. Dr. Sabine Huebner promoted to Full Professor

Prof. Dr. Sabine Huebner will be promoted to Full Professor of Ancient History at the Department of Ancient Studies of the University of Basel with effect from the spring semester 2022.
She has succeeded in establishing Basel's Ancient History as a worldwide centre for the social history of Greco-Roman Egypt and papyrology, where currently much-discussed research perspectives (climate history, digital humanities) are being pursued.

Tracking down microplastics in the Antarctic

Microplastics are everywhere, even in the most remote places where hardly any people live. Where do these tiny pieces of plastic come from? Prof. Dr. Patricia Holm and PhD student Clara Leistenschneider from the Department of Environmental Sciences at the University of Basel together with researchers from the Alfred Wegener Institute have shown that it takes precise analysis to answer this question.

Submission by Dr. Rony Emmenegger asone of the winning projects selected by the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences

"How do we deal with monuments that we find disturbing?"
28 people gave a personal answer to this question in the Ideas Competition of the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences (SAGW). Now the jury and the public have chosen four winning projects - including, in third place, the entry "The miner and the neonfish" by political geographers Rony Emmenegger and Stephan Hochleithner.

An ironclad future

Solar energy plays an important role in the fight against climate change as a substitute for fossil fuels. Dye-sensitized solar cells promise to be a low-cost supplement to the photovoltaic systems we know today. Their key feature is the dye sensitizers attached to their surface. Researchers at the University of Basel continue to improve the performance with sensitizers using iron – a commonly available and environmentally friendly metal.

Original publication:
The influence of alkyl chains on the performance of DSCs employing iron(II) N-heterocyclic carbene sensitizers
Dalton Transactions (2021), doi: 10.1039/d1dt03252f

A model to feed the world

The world's population is growing, and with it the hunger for food. In order to be able to satisfy this hunger in the future, Ruth Delzeit and her team are modelling how best to use the soil for this purpose.
An article about Prof. Dr. Ruth Delzeit's research.

09.11.2021

Prof. Dr. Volker Roth promoted to Full Professor

After a successful evaluation, the University Council has now promoted Prof. Dr. Volker Roth to Full Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, effective spring semester 2022. His expertise includes in particular the theory and applications of machine learning.

Transport-pricing under test (in German)

The external costs of transport are not borne by the transport users but by society as a whole. These costs are therefore not included in individual decision-making processes and a market failure occurs. In the MOBIS project, the effect of personalized pricing of external costs in transport was investigated.

20.10.2021

Transport pricing in practice

In the largest worldwide pricing experiment to date, researchers from the University of Basel, ETH Zurich and ZHAW have demonstrated that road users change their behavior when they must pay for the social and environmental effects of their transportation. The study took place in urban agglomerations in French- and German-speaking Switzerland.

04.10.2021

Participants wanted: Study on health effects and CO2 reduction of cold showers

The Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy of the Faculty of Psychology under the direction of Prof. Dr. Jens Gaab is looking for participants for an online study on the health effects and CO2 reduction of cold showers.

09.07.2021

Prof. Dr. Catherine Roux promoted to Associate Professor

Professor Catherine Roux has been appointed Associate Professor of Industrial Organization in the Faculty of Business and Economics, commencing in the fall semester 2021.

15.06.2021

New publication in the journal Science of The Total Environment

"Soil erosion modelling: a global review and statistical analysis" - New publication by Prof. Dr. Christine Alewell in the journal Science of The Total Environment.

10.06.2021

CO2 law – how valid are the arguments against it? (in German)

On June 13, Switzerland will vote on the revision of the CO2 law. The law intends to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% (compared to 1990) until 2030.

18.05.2021

Project Report - Mapping Sustainability in Swiss Nutritional Guidelines

The project "Mapping Sustainability in Swiss Nutritional Guidelines" was formed as a student initiative. The project duration was from June 2020 to March 2021.

11.05.2021

Publication from a course of the Master's Degree in Sustainable Development

A sustainable risk society? A contribution to the debate on nuclear energy and waste in Switzerland.

10.05.2021

Did climate doom the Roman Empire? (in German)

Researchers at the University of Basel are convinced that climate change and pandemics contributed to the fall of the Roman Empire. A large-scale research project is investigating the thesis.
Article of the "Badische Zeitung" with quotes from Prof. Dr. Sabine Huebner.

09.06.21

Compensation of CO2 emissions (in German)

Flights, hotel stays, driving, heating or consumer goods: whoever wants to, can offset their CO2 emissions. However, the point at which consumers can start to feel "clean" depends to a large extent on the method of calculation.
Article in the Neue Zürcher Zeitung from 08.06.2021 with arguments from Prof. Beat Hintermann.

08.06.2021

«We will live with today's decisions for 500 years» (in German)

Interview with Prof. Frank C. Kryisak on the economics of the Energy Transition.

11.05.2021

The consequences of Fukushima in Switzerland (in German)

Vor zehn Jahren kam es zur Katastrophe von Fukushima. Der Super-GAU hatte Auswirkungen auf die Schweizer Energiepolitik. Beitrag bei Telebasel mit Prof. Dr. Hannes Weigt.

11.03.2021

Emissions trading booming despite economic downturn (in German)

Der Preis für Verschmutzungsrechte ist stark gestiegen – ein Grund sind die neuen Klimaziele der EU. Artikel in der Neuen Zürcher Zeitung, Ausgabe vom 04.03.2021, mit Zitaten von Prof. Beat Hintermann.

04.03.2021

Edwin Constable: «Science is being critically observed» (in German)

The chairman of the Swiss Expert Group on Scientific Integrity explains why Swiss research is getting a new code of conduct this year.

04.03.2021

"Do you have any CO2 left?": When you get money from the employee with the SUV (in German)

Das Basler Justiz- und Sicherheitsdepartement veröffentlicht eine kontroverse Studie zu seinem Klimafussabdruck. Mit Zitaten von den im Forschungsnetzwerk eingebundenen Professoren Frank C. Krysiak und Beat Hintermann.

01.02.2021

Climate Change in the Breadbasket of the Roman Empire—Explaining the Decline of the Fayum Villages in the Third Century CE

A lack of monsoon rains in the headwaters of the Nile is the cause of emigration and the decline of entire settlements in the late Roman province of Egypt. Sabine Huebner has compared this population development with environmental data for the first time - and has discovered an early climate change and its consequences.

25.01.2021

SCCER CREST Final Annual Conference

On September 10, 2021 the Final Annual Conference of SCCER CREST will take place in Basel.

Further information on program and registration will follow soon.

13.04.2021

SCCER CREST 2014 - 2020 End Communication

We are pleased to announce the publication of the SCCER CREST End Communication! It summarizes the most important findings of seven years of research.

09.04.2021

SCCER CREST White Paper "Von Modellen zu Visionen: Ansätze zur Ergänzung von quantitativen Energieszenarien"

New SCCER CREST White Paper "Von Modellen zu Visionen: Ansätze zur Ergänzung von quantitativen Energieszenarien", with authors of our Research Network.

26.03.2021

New Publication in "Transport Policy"

New publication of Prof. Dr. Beat Hintermann in the journal Transport Policy: "Observed impacts of the Covid-19 first wave on travel behaviour in Switzerland based on a large GPS panel"

16.03.2021

Children`s University Basel online: Lecture on the topic of microplastics

Microplastics - are we surrounded by mini-garbage? Lecture (in German) by Prof. Dr. Patricia Holm on Tuesday, April 13, 2021.

10.03.2021

New Publication in "WIRES Climate Change"

New publication of Prof. Dr. Jens Köhrsen in the journal WIRES Climate Change: "Muslims and climate change: How Islam, Muslim organizations, and religious leaders influence climate change perceptions and mitigation activities"


03.03.2021

«Hast du noch CO2 übrig?»: Wenn man vom Mitarbeiter mit dem SUV Geld erhält

Das Basler Justiz- und Sicherheitsdepartement veröffentlicht eine kontroverse Studie zu seinem Klimafussabdruck. Mit Zitaten von den im Forschungsnetzwerk eingebundenen Professoren Frank C. Krysiak und Beat Hintermann.

01.02.2021