Newsletter Mai 2025

Dear Students, Dear Readers,

In our May newsletter, we’re taking another quick look at the program of our “S³ – Sustainability Semester Series.” Furthermore, the preparations for the “Ersti-Akademie zukunftsfähig” have begun, the registration for the big STADTRADELN campaign is officially open, the deadline for the Trinational Summer School in Strasbourg has been extended, we tell you more about a Wandercoach Training, and as usual, we provide a preview of various upcoming events.

We hope you enjoy reading!

1. News from the Student Sustainability Office

Upcoming Events of the Sustainability Semester Series “S³”!

There are still four S³ events left this summer semester—feel free to join us!
On June 3, the EUCOR Race will take place in the morning: a competition between three teams using three different modes of transport—bike, public transport, and hitchhiking—from Freiburg to Colmar.
On June 17 (KGI, Room 1098, 6:00 PM), we’ll continue with inspiring keynote talks on sustainable perspectives in local transportation and the social dimensions of mobility.
On July 1 (KGI, Room 1098, 6:00 PM), we’re hosting a panel discussion on the challenges of reconciling global exchange and climate action.
The final event on July 15 (Platz der Alten Synagoge, 6:00 PM) will be an interactive bike tour, testing how bike-friendly Freiburg really is.

You can find the full program on our website.

Preparations for the First-Year Academy “BaWü zukunftsfähig” are starting

We’re about to begin planning the content for this year’s First-Year Academy “BaWü zukunftsfähig”— project days for new students focused on sustainability. If you’d like to jump in and still support the preparation of the 2025 Academy (no prior experience needed), come to our open meeting on Tuesday, May 27, 2025 at 6:00 PM at our office (Hebelstr. 10, 2nd floor). The team is excited to welcome both new and familiar faces!

2. News around the University

STADTRADELN 2025: Together for Sustainable Mobility

The University of Freiburg warmly invites all students and staff to take part in this year’s STADTRADELN campaign, which will take place from June 28 to July 18, 2025. The goal is to collectively cycle as many kilometers as possible to promote sustainable mobility and environmental protection, while strengthening the sense of community within the university. Subgroups can be formed within the university team, so that students, faculty student bodies, or faculties can participate both for the university and within their peer groups.

The university will raffle off bicycle water bottles among all participants. Participation is voluntary, disclosing your real name is optional, and using the STADTRADELN app is also optional, but helpful to easily record the kilometers cycled.

Further information is available on the website, as well as online registration for the University of Freiburg team.

Trinational Summer School “Urban micropollutants – diagnoses, challenges and solutions for the city of the 21st century” (application deadline extended)

From July 7 to July 10, 2025, the University of Strasbourg will be hosting a Summer School on the theme of urban micropollutants.

The Summer School is open to doctoral candidates and postdoctoral researchers from all disciplines who have an interest in the topic and in transdisciplinary research. No prior knowledge is required. English will be the primary language of communication. The application deadline has been extended to May 31, 2025. Additional information regarding the application process can be found on the website.

3. External Offer

Wandercoach Training: Exchange and Empowerment for Sustainable Transformation in Higher Education

Wandercoaching isn’t about hiking! It is a peer-to-peer empowerment program that trains students to become change agents who support transformation processes at universities. The training focuses on sustainability, democratic education, anti-discrimination, and cross-status group collaboration. The Wandercoaching program is part of the collaborative project EmpowerESD: Education and Sustainability Coaching for University Transformation, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), and jointly implemented by the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK) and netzwerk n since June 2024. Students can apply until the end of May to take part in a one-year, practice-oriented training in systemic university transformation. Participants learn how to actively shape sustainable development, participatory structures, and democratic processes.

Apply online at netzwerk n by May 31, 2025. The training is free of charge. Travel and accommodation costs, including vegan meals, are covered. After completing the training, participants receive an honorarium for conducting Wandercoaching weekends.

4. Events

Saturday University: Literary Biodiversity. How to Tell the Story of Life’s Diversity – and Why It’s So Important

When? Saturday, May 31, 2025, 11:15 AM

Where? Kollegiengebäude I, Room 1010 (Ground Floor), Platz der Universität 3, Freiburg

Organized by: Studium generale of the University of Freiburg

What? How can diversity be told? As part of the Saturday University series Biological Diversity – Preserving What Sustains Us, Prof. Dr. Roland Borgards (Chair of Modern German Literature, Goethe University Frankfurt) will explore this question using examples from contemporary literature (e.g., Judith Schalansky and Richard Powers): What unique qualities do literary texts develop in their representations of biodiversity? Where can they complement science and politics? Why are literary biodiversities not only enjoyable for us as readers but also important for our knowledge and our actions?

Language: German

More information can be found here.

S3 Race: Ready, set, go! EUCOR-Race

When? Tuesday, June 3, 2025, Start: 10:00 a.m.

Where? Platz der Alten Synagoge, Freiburg

Organized by: Student Sustainability Office

What? Nine participants, three modes of travel, one goal: Who will get from Freiburg to Colmar the fastest? In a race by bicycle, public transport, and hitchhiking, we will highlight the opportunities and challenges of sustainable, cross-border mobility.

Language: German/English

Registration deadline: May 6, 2025 by Form

More information can be found here.

Research Colloquium: Coal in Modern Britain. A Social and Cultural History, 1830–1940

When? Thursday, June 5, 2025, 6:15 PM

Where? FRIAS, Old Lecture Hall, Albertstraße 19, Freiburg

Organized by: Research Colloquium of the Chair of Economic, Social and Environmental History

What? Lecture by Prof. Dr. Charles-François Mathis (Contemporary History at the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne). The event is organized in cooperation with the Chair of Sustainability and Transformation Research, the Chair of Transformation to Sustainable Energy Systems, and the Innovationscampus Nachhaltigkeit (ICN).

Language: English

More information can be found here.

S3 Keynotes: Rethinking Mobility: Perspectives on Social Public Transport

When? Tuesday, June 17, 2025, 5:00 p.m.

Where? Kollegiengebäude I, Room 1098 (Ground Floor), Platz der Universität 3, Freiburg

Von: Studentisches Nachhaltigkeitsbüro

What? How are social public transport and sustainability connected? In these keynote talks, we will explore the social dimensions of mobility and discuss how gender, socio-economic disadvantage, ecology, physical impairments, and migration influence and unequally shape access to public transport. After the talks, all interested participants are invited to join a short city walk, followed by an open discussion reflecting on perceptions of the city in light of the keynotes.

Language: German

More information can be found here.

Saturday University: The Role of Science in Conservation

When? Saturday, June 21, 2025, 11:15 a.m.

Where? Kollegiengebäude I, Room 1010 (Ground Floor), Platz der Universität 3, Freiburg

Organized by: Studium generale of the University of Freiburg

What? As part of the Saturday University series Biological Diversity – Preserving What Sustains Us, Prof. Dr. Anne-Christine Mupepele (Chair of Animal Ecology, Philipps University of Marburg) will discuss how scientific knowledge can lead to targeted measures that improve nature conservation. Given the growing challenges, it remains an ongoing goal to find efficient solutions that are not only effective but also socially accepted and feasible on-site.

Language: German

More information can be found here.

Film: Outgrow the System

When? Tuesday, June 24, 2025, 8:00 p.m.

Where? Harmonie Arthaus Kino, Grünwälderstraße 16-18, Freiburg

Organized by: Innovationscampus Nachhaltigkeit (ICN)

What? Our current economic system consumes our finite natural resources at an alarming rate. The documentary Outgrow the System (Sweden, 2023, 58 min.) by Cecilia Paulsson & Anders Nielsson explores how we can return to the essentials to design an economic system that manages our limited resources sustainably.

Language: Screening in original language with German subtitles and discussion in German

Registration: through VHS, admission is free.

More information can be found here.

Lecture: In the Grip of Fossil Reason

When? Thursday, June 26, 2025, 7:30 p.m.

Where? Katholische Akademie, Wintererstraße 1, Freiburg

Organized by: Catholic Academy of the Archdiocese of Freiburg in collaboration with the Günther Anders Research Center at the University of Freiburg, the Studium Generale of the University of Freiburg, and Theater Freiburg

What? As part of the series Surviving in the Anthropocene, Dr. Alexander Klose (European Center of Just Transition Research and Impact-Driven Transfer, Halle/Saale) and Dr. Benjamin Steininger (Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology, Jena) will speak. The expansive dynamism of industrialized societies has catapulted us into a new epoch. The Anthropocene confronts humanity with unprecedented global challenges: climate change, species extinction, environmental destruction, and new distributional conflicts.

Language: German

More information can be found here.

Saturday University: The Contribution of Policy Advice to Biodiversity Protection

When? Saturday, June 28, 2025, 11:15 a.m.

Where? Kollegiengebäude I, Lecture Hall 1010 (Ground Floor), Platz der Universität 3, Freiburg

Organized by: Studium generale of the University of Freiburg

What? As part of the Saturday University series Biological Diversity – Preserving What Sustains Us, the lecture by Prof. Dr. Josef Settele (Department of Conservation Biology, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Halle / Chair of Ecology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg) will draw on years of experience in international assessments to explore the different facets of international treaty negotiations and their consequences for biodiversity protection, from the global to the regional and local levels.

Language: German

More information can be found here.

S3 Panel Discussion: Sustainability Without Borders? Between Global Exchange and Climate Action

When? Tuesday, July 01, 2025, 6:00 p.m.

Where? Kollegiengebäude I, Room 1098 (Ground Floor), Platz der Universität 3, Freiburg

Organized by: Student Sustainability Office

What? This panel discussion explores the compatibility of international exchange and climate protection. It focuses on the importance of global connectivity for academia and education, and questions how such exchange can be justified in the face of the climate crisis. The discussion will also address structural barriers, institutional responsibility, and social inequalities: Who can afford mobility, and under what conditions?

Language: German

More information can be found here.

Trinational Summer School “Urban micropollutants – diagnoses, challenges and solutions for the city of the 21st century”

When? July 7 – 10, 2025

Where? University of Strasbourg

Organized by: EUCOR

What? This multi-day Summer School for doctoral candidates and postdoctoral researchers offers a transdisciplinary approach to the topic of “micropollutants in cities”.
Language: English
Application deadline: extended to May 31, 2025
More information can be found here.

S3 Bike Tour: How bike-friendly is Freiburg really?

When? Tuesday, July 15, 2025, 6:00 p.m.

Where? Platz der alten Synagoge, Freiburg

Organized by: Student Sustainability Office

What? Together with the “Fuß- und Radentscheid Freiburg” initiative, we’ll explore Freiburg’s existing cycling infrastructure and current construction sites by bike. We’ll discuss political decision-making processes and take a closer look: Where is progress being made, and where are the shortcomings?

Language: German

Registration: informal via email

More information can be found here.

Best regards,
Your Student Sustainability Office of the University of Freiburg

Contact:

Email: nachhaltigkeitsbuero@zv.uni-freiburg.de
Office hours: Wednesday, 2:00 – 4:00 p.m., Room 02 012 (2nd floor), Hebelstraße 10, Freiburg

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