Announcements
A broad range of initiatives to foster socio-ecological research
More than 220 academics have called for a strengthening of socio-ecological research in Germany . The position they have taken highlights the advantages of an interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary research method for the study of complex sustainability problems and the development of practice-oriented solutions. The researchers believe that, in this respect, Germany boasts a scientific landscape whose extraordinary diversity and efficiency surpasses international standards. The signatories view the following aspects as primary development goals: improved cooperation between universities and non-university affiliated research institutions, ensuring the quality of research projects, training the next generation of researchers and conducting internationally-oriented socio-ecological research.
Read the complete statement of position (in German): Perspektiven der sozial-ökologischen Forschung und ihrer Förderung (pdf, 80 kB)
- Contact: Thomas Jahn, ISOE, jahn@isoe.de (for the socio-ecological research action group)
Current events
CAIWA 2007 - International conference on Adaptive & Integrated Water Management, 12th of November, Basel
PreConference Workshop "Integrated strategy formulation for adaptive water management. Concepts for coping with complexity and uncertainty to manage transition"
Many changes are currently taking place in water management vital to the development of cities and regions. The most important changes are in the structure and level of demand, in political conditions, in property relations, and in the available system alternatives. Moreover, technological innovation, more stringent environmental regulations, and empty public coffers have contributed to far-reaching change, particularly at the local level. The decreasing population, a central development in many European Countries, created new problems: the functional limits of water supply systems were reached because their usual working capacity could no longer be maintained.
In order to adapt and develop infrastructure systems to meet changed conditions, spatially and temporally more differentiated solutions have to be found. The extent to which societal control patterns are able to cope with increasingly complex requirements must be examined. The same is true for technical network regulation, forms of market regulation, and resource conservation. The long-term effect on how local government sees its role and on its control capacity also needs to be investigated.
Topics of interest
- Strategic long term planning and decision making approaches in the field of water infrastructure management (water supply and waste water)
- Concepts and methods to understand and deal with uncertainty on long-term developments of framing conditions of water management
- Concepts and methods to understand and deal with innovative technological and organizational solutions (thinking beyond business as usual alternatives)
- Transfer of new planning approaches into practice
- Concepts for local decision making and a deeper understanding of sustainable transition management.
Further information:
22 February 2008 - 23 February 2008 | Location: Berlin
International SÖF Conference 2008
The first cross-project International Conference of Social-ecological Research will be held from 22-23 February 2008 in Berlin as part of Berlin Conferences on the Human Dimensions on Global Environmental Change. In 2008 the conference will be titled Long-Term Policies: Governing Social-ecological Change. The conference aims to provide a platform for international discourse and key findings, experiences and ideas in the field of socio-ecological research. Interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary contributions are, therefore, particularly welcome. Call for Papers deadline is 15 September 2007 .
Further information:
- http://www.sozial-oekologische-forschung.org/de/1062.php
- http://web.fu-berlin.de/ffu/akumwelt/bc2008