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Prof. Dr. Andreas Pyka is a Professor of Innovation Economics at the University of Hohenheim. His research focuses on modern innovation theory, complexity economics, and the bioeconomy, emphasizing sustainability transitions and policy design. He holds a PhD and habilitation from the University of Augsburg, with postdoctoral and visiting professorships at institutions in Grenoble, Vienna, and Bremen before joining Hohenheim in 2009. Education: Studied economics at the University of Augsburg (PhD), followed by postdoctoral research at INRA/SERD in Grenoble. Visiting professorships included the Austrian Research Centers in Vienna (2004) and a role at the University of Bremen (2006–2009). Research Interests: Pyka explores the interplay between digital and green transitions, innovation networks, and policy frameworks for sustainable development. His work addresses challenges in bioeconomy, circular economy, and the role of artificial intelligence in stakeholder capitalism models. Recent Article Trends: Focus on sustainability transitions (e.g., bioeconomy governance, food security post-Paris Agreement), digital transformation in industries (automotive, platforms), and agent-based modeling of innovation diffusion. His contributions bridge theoretical frameworks (e.g., Schumpeterian economics) with policy-relevant analysis. Awards: None explicitly listed in the provided texts. Advising & Grants: Supervised numerous dissertations and leads the Department of Innovation Economics, fostering collaborative research with visiting scholars and external doctoral teams. His work emphasizes policy laboratories and systemic interventions in regional innovation systems. Labs/Teams: Coordinates the Chair's research activities, including doctoral seminars and interdisciplinary projects on sustainability and innovation systems.

• Modern Innovation Theory
• Industrial Economics
• Complexity Economics
• +9 more

Prof. Peter Stephan is a Full Professor of Technical Thermodynamics and Director of the Institute for Technical Thermodynamics at Technische Universität Darmstadt. He holds leadership roles in multiple research initiatives, including the Cluster of Excellence 259 (Smart Interfaces), Collaborative Research Centre 1194 (Transport and Wetting Processes), and the Research Field Energy and Environment. Stephan's expertise spans heat and mass transfer, energy conversion, and interfacial transport phenomena. Education: He earned his Dipl.-Ing. in Mechanical Engineering (1988) from TU München and his Dr.-Ing. from Universität Stuttgart (1992). His professional experience includes roles at Daimler-Benz and the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre before joining TU Darmstadt in 1997. Research focuses on energy systems, boiling/evaporation dynamics, and thermal storage. He leads experimental and numerical studies on nucleate boiling, drop impingement, and interfacial phenomena. His work also addresses sustainable energy solutions, such as hydrogen and iron-based energy carriers. Editorial roles include Editor-in-Chief of the VDI Heat Atlas and editorial board memberships at journals like Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer . He chairs multiple national and international committees, including the VDI-GVC working group on Heat and Mass Transfer. His research emphasizes bridging microscale phenomena (e.g., microlayer formation) with macroscale applications (e.g., thermal energy storage systems). Recent studies explore exergy optimization in ironmaking and nanofiber-coated surfaces for condensation.

• Thermodynamics
• Heat and Mass Transfer
• Energy Conversion
• +4 more

Ronny Ehlen is a Researcher at the Chair of Sociology, University of Hohenheim, serving as coordinator of the UHOH research focus on 'Work, Digitalization and Sustainability' since 2020. His academic background includes roles at the University of Trier and ongoing doctoral research (Dr. rer. soc., 2024) on triadic work relationships between freelancers, firms, and agencies in medicine and IT. His research interests span economic sociology, organizational paradoxes, sustainability, and food waste management in retail. Education: He is completing his doctorate at the University of Hohenheim, building on prior research at the University of Trier. His theoretical focus includes the sociology of valuation, psychological contracts, and organizational dynamics. Research Projects: Leads the UHOH research network (2020-2026) and contributed to the DFG-funded 'Between Cooperation and Competition' project (2018-2023), examining external workers in knowledge-based fields. Current work explores twin transformation, digitalization's role in green behaviors, and food waste reduction strategies. Teaching: Integrates research into courses like 'New Employment Relationships' and 'Work, Digitalization, and Sustainability.' Key Themes: His work bridges organizational sociology with practical challenges in labor markets, emphasizing sustainability transitions and digital work dynamics.

• Sociology of Work
• Sustainability and Twin Transformation
• Organizational Sociology
• +4 more

Grace Abena Akese is a geographer and discard studies scholar at the University of Bayreuth, affiliated with the African Cluster of Excellence. Her research focuses on the geographies of electronic waste (e-waste) and their intersections with political economies, emphasizing informal e-waste hubs like Agbogbloshie in Ghana. She investigates how knowledge about these sites shapes interventions and contentious politics. Her work employs a discard studies framework to analyze the social, cultural, economic, and political infrastructures surrounding waste. She explores e-waste as infrastructure that produces geographies and engages with circular economies through practices like ethical design, repair, reuse, and care. Her current project, RS Mobilities, examines planned obsolescence and ecological dimensions of electronic devices in a transdisciplinary perspective. Office: 'Zapf-Gebäude' 2 (Nürnberger Straße 38).

• Waste Geographies
• Political Economies
• Electronic Waste (E-Waste)
• +6 more

Prof. Dr. Anne Burkard is a full-time professor of Philosophy Didactics and Values/Norms at the University of Göttingen since 2019. Her career includes roles as a junior professor at the University of Cologne (2016–2019), teacher and educational researcher at institutions in Berlin and abroad, and research affiliations at universities in the UK and Argentina. Her research focuses on philosophy education, argumentation frameworks, ethics pedagogy, and diversifying philosophical canons. She leads projects such as the BMBF-funded Bildersturm initiative to promote women in philosophy and co-edits the LehrGut blog for philosophy education. Her work bridges interdisciplinary ethics, practical philosophy, and educational theory. Education: Studied Philosophy, English, and Education at Humboldt University Berlin (2001–2007), with teaching experience in the UK (2004–2005). Research Interests: Ethics education, argumentation theory, moral relativism, animal ethics, and inclusive pedagogy. Grants: Funded projects include Argumentieren und Schreiben für Philosophiestudierende (Lower Saxony) and Circular Economy (German Environmental Foundation). Publications: Over 50 peer-reviewed articles and books, focusing on ethics teaching, argumentation standards, and philosophical reform. Her teaching emphasizes critical reasoning, interdisciplinary approaches, and addressing skepticism in classrooms. She co-organized conferences on ethics education and contributes to policy discussions on values-based curricula.

• Philosophy Didactics
• Ethics Education
• Argumentation Theory
• +6 more

János Abonyi is a Professor at the Department of Process Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Pannonia, Hungary. With over 118 publications spanning from 2000 to 2024, he has established himself as a leading researcher in process systems engineering, machine learning applications, and Industry 4.0 technologies. His work bridges theoretical computational intelligence with practical industrial applications, particularly in process optimization, fault detection, and smart manufacturing systems. Abonyi's research interests focus on applying machine learning and data mining techniques to industrial process systems. His work spans several key areas including soft sensor development, fault detection and diagnosis, optimization algorithms for manufacturing, and Industry 4.0/5.0 applications. He has pioneered approaches combining sequence mining with deep learning for alarm management, reinforcement learning for disassembly line optimization, and explainable AI for industrial applications. His research demonstrates a consistent trajectory from fundamental computational intelligence methods to their practical implementation in real industrial settings. His recent publications (2020-2024) show a strong emphasis on Industry 4.0 and 5.0 applications, with particular focus on human-machine collaboration, real-time locating systems, digital twins, and explainable AI for industrial applications. The interdisciplinary nature of his work is evident through collaborations across computer science, electrical engineering, and chemical engineering domains. His research group has produced significant contributions in optimization algorithms, particularly in reinforcement learning applications for manufacturing and process systems. Abonyi has supervised numerous PhD students who have become active researchers in their own right, including Tamás Ruppert, Ágnes Vathy-Fogarassy, and Balazs Feil. His collaborative network extends internationally, with publications in top journals including IEEE Access, Sensors, and Computers & Chemical Engineering. His work demonstrates strong industry relevance with practical implementations in manufacturing, process control, and industrial automation contexts.

• Machine Learning
• Process Systems Engineering
• Industry 4.0
• +5 more

Dr. Mar Fernández-Méndez is a marine biogeochemist and algal ecologist at the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI), leading the Helmholtz junior research group SiDe-EFFECT. Her work focuses on carbon sequestration via open-ocean aquafarming, algal ecology, and climate mitigation strategies. She specializes in studying the impacts of artificial upwelling and nutrient dynamics on marine ecosystems. Her research integrates biogeochemical processes, plankton community responses, and the potential of seaweed cultivation to remove CO₂. Key projects include optimizing carbon dioxide removal (CDR) methods, assessing scalability of algal aquaculture, and developing sustainable ocean-based solutions for climate change. Dr. Fernández-Méndez collaborates on initiatives like the MOSAiC expedition and leads efforts to model Sargassum mariculture in oceanic gyres. She emphasizes interdisciplinary approaches, combining field experiments, mesocosm studies, and policy analysis to address global carbon sequestration challenges. Her work bridges science and action, aiming to transform marine ecosystems into tools for decarbonization while ensuring environmental sustainability.

• Marine Biogeochemistry
• Algal Ecology
• Climate Change Mitigation
• +3 more

Prof. Dr. Alberto Bezama is a Professor of Bioeconomy Systems Analysis at the University of Rostock's Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and leads the Department of Bioenergy at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ). His research focuses on sustainability science, circular economy, and life cycle assessment (LCA), emphasizing systemic approaches for bioeconomic transitions. He has held leadership roles, including Head of the "System Analysis of the Bioeconomy" working group since 2015 and Deputy Head of Department at UFZ. His work integrates interdisciplinary methods to address environmental, economic, and social dimensions of sustainable development. Bezama's professional background includes academic roles at the University of Concepción (Chile), where he focused on environmental sciences, and postdoctoral research at UFZ. He holds a PhD in Sustainable Waste Management from Montanuniversität Leoben, Austria. His contributions span policy analysis, scenario modeling, and stakeholder engagement in bioeconomy monitoring. Key research areas include LCSA methodologies, resource recovery systems, and regional sustainability transitions. He has contributed to projects like SYMOBIO 2.0 and BRANCHES, exploring bioenergy integration and circular bioeconomy pathways. Awards include the 2024 UFZ Research Award for advancing biomass utilization strategies in Germany. Bezama collaborates with international teams on bioeconomic challenges, such as decentralized bioethanol production in Thailand and social-environmental impacts of biorefineries. He advocates for synergies between social and engineering sciences to enhance circular economy frameworks.

• Bioeconomy Systems Analysis
• Sustainability Science
• Circular Economy
• +3 more

Prof. Lauren Rickards is a Professor of Climate Change Adaptation at La Trobe University, leading the La Trobe Climate Change Adaptation Lab since March 2023. She holds a DPhil in Human Geography from the University of Oxford, where she was a Rhodes Scholar, and a BSc (Hons) in Ecology from the University of Melbourne. Her work focuses on climate adaptation’s societal impacts, resilience in rural regions, and systemic changes linked to the Anthropocene. Previously, she directed RMIT’s Urban Futures Enabling Impact Platform and contributed to the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report. Her research interests span environmental justice, organizational resilience, and the evolving role of universities in addressing climate challenges. She has secured over $4.3M in research funding, including projects like 'Understanding the resilience of lifelines in rural and remote regions' (2022–2023). Awards include the 2022 Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity and Wiley’s 2021 Best Journal Article Award. Recent funded projects include 'Building resourceful responses to disruption in primary production in Victoria' (2024–2025) and 'Labour and environment: a blended learning model' (2024–2025). She is also an editor of Dialogues in Human Geography and a member of the Earth System Governance Project. Her lab explores adaptation’s societal dimensions, including work dynamics and institutional responses. Collaborative projects and student supervision opportunities are available in climate change adaptation and resilience.

• Climate Change Adaptation
• Environmental Justice
• Resilience Studies
• +3 more

Dr. Minmin Pan is a Scientist in the Department of Solar Materials at the Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research - UFZ in Leipzig, Germany, working within the Systems Biotechnology group. She has been in this role since August 2021. Education: PhD, Technical University of Denmark (DTU) and Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), 2017–2021 MSc in Geo-ecology, Karlsruhe Institute for Technology (KIT), Germany, 2012–2015 BSc in Ecological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing (USTB), China, 2008–2012 Her research focuses on environmental and microbial biotechnology, particularly in the areas of biohydrogen production, wastewater valorization, microalgae biotechnology, and sustainable bioprocesses. She employs systems biotechnology approaches to engineer microbial cocultures and optimize metabolic pathways for enhanced biofuel and biomaterial production. Her work bridges synthetic biology, metabolic engineering, and environmental technology to develop circular bioeconomy solutions. Dr. Pan’s recent publications demonstrate a strong trend in utilizing photoautotrophic and heterotrophic microbial systems for resource recovery from waste streams, including kitchen waste, industrial wastewater, and microalgae residues. Her research spans from fundamental metabolic engineering in cyanobacteria like Synechocystis to applied processes such as pyrolysis and membrane filtration for bioenergy and nutrient recovery. She has contributed to high-impact journals such as Environmental Science & Technology , Metabolic Engineering , Water Research , and Journal of Cleaner Production , reflecting the interdisciplinary and applied nature of her work. Dr. Pan collaborates with leading researchers in the field, including Prof. Jens Krömer and Dr. Peter Lindblad, and has been involved in projects related to sustainable wastewater treatment, antibiotic pollution mitigation, and integrated biorefineries. Her research has been supported by international collaborations between Denmark, Germany, and China. She is actively involved in the scientific community through her publications and research collaborations, contributing to advancements in sustainable environmental biotechnology and the development of innovative solutions for global environmental challenges.

• Environmental Biotechnology
• Microbial Cocultures
• Biohydrogen Production
• +7 more

Prof. J. Philipp Benz holds the position of Associate Professor at the TUM School of Life Sciences (Technische Universität München), leading the Professorship of Fungal Biotechnology in Wood Science. His academic journey includes a PhD from LMU Munich (2009), postdoctoral research at UC Berkeley’s Energy Biosciences Institute (2011-2012), and a successful tenure-track phase at TUM (2014-2020). His research focuses on fungal degradation mechanisms of plant biomass, particularly wood, with applications in biorefineries and bioeconomy. Key areas include molecular perception of plant cell walls by fungi, metabolic adaptation for biomass utilization, and genetic engineering of fungal strains for biotechnological applications. His work bridges fundamental biochemistry with applied biotechnology, addressing sustainability challenges in renewable resource utilization. Notable awards include the Feodor Lynen Research Fellowship (Alexander von Humboldt Foundation) and the Supervisory Award from TUM’s Graduate Center Weihenstephan. His lab’s contributions span enzyme engineering, microbial ecology, and industrial bioprocess design, with a focus on circular economy principles. Recent articles highlight advancements in fungal enzyme systems for biofuel production, plant-microbe interactions for drought resilience, and biocontrol strategies using Trichoderma species. His interdisciplinary approach integrates genomic, biochemical, and ecological methods to tackle global challenges in agriculture and renewable resources.

• Fungal Biotechnology
• Biomass Degradation
• Biorefinery
• +4 more

Prof. Dr. Livia Cabernard is an Assistant Professor in Sustainability Assessment of Food and Agricultural Systems at Technische Universität München (TUM), associated with both the TUM School of Management and TUM School of Life Sciences. She holds a PhD in sustainability assessment from ETH Zurich (2017–2021) and a postdoc position before joining TUM in 2023 as a Tenure-Track Assistant Professor. Her research focuses on environmental impacts of global agri-food supply chains, combining supply chain analysis, life-cycle assessment, earth observation, and integrated models to identify sustainability levers. Key areas include biodiversity loss mitigation, decarbonization of supply chains, and policy-driven sustainability transitions. Recent work highlights include analyzing greenhouse gas emissions in bioeconomy supply chains (2025), biodiversity impacts of land-use changes (2024), and plastic pollution linked to coal combustion (2022). Her 2024 SETAC award recognizes contributions to life-cycle assessment. She has advised no listed students but collaborates widely on global sustainability projects. Her research group develops tools for transparency in global value chains and supports policy frameworks for sustainable resource use.

• Sustainability Assessment
• Supply Chain Analysis
• Environmental Science
• +3 more

Dr. Martin Möller is a Senior Researcher at the Öko-Institut e.V., Freiburg, and the Responsible Investigator in the Cluster of Excellence livMatS at the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg. His work focuses on sustainability assessment methodologies, life cycle analysis, and transition management. He leads research in the Sustainability Systems Assessment unit, developing frameworks like TAPAS for prospective technology evaluation. His expertise spans biomimetic materials, circular economy strategies, and socio-technical systems. He advises doctoral students including Harishankar Thekkepat and collaborates on EU-funded projects addressing sustainability transitions. Education: PhD in Sustainability Science (2022), TU Berlin diploma in Technical Environmental Protection (2001) Key Projects: TAPAS framework development, Digital GreenTech sustainability assessments, bioeconomy policy analysis Grants: German Research Foundation (DFG) Excellence Cluster funding, BMBF projects Research emphasizes integrating societal perspectives into sustainability metrics, leveraging biological principles for material innovation, and advancing transdisciplinary approaches to climate action.

• Sustainability Research
• Life Cycle Assessment
• Transition Management
• +3 more

Jonathan Larochelle is a Researcher and Academic Staff member at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Mechatronics, Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences, Germany, where he contributes to Prof. Laura Maria Comella's Lab for Intelligent Embedded Systems. He holds a M.Sc. in Microsystems Engineering from the University of Freiburg (2020–2023) and a B.Eng. in Engineering Physics from Université Laval, Canada (2015–2019). His research focuses on sustainable electronics within the circular economy, particularly IoT devices and embedded systems, with an emphasis on low-power machine learning and environmental sensing applications. Key projects include the Brain-MEP initiative for developing ultra-low-power neurostimulation devices through optimized ML algorithms and a novel optical sensor with adjustable field-of-view for environmental monitoring. His work integrates sustainability principles with technological innovation, collaborating with medical centers and agricultural partners like the Kompetenzzentrum Obstbau Bodensee. Recent publications highlight advancements in EEG seizure detection algorithms and energy-efficient sensor technologies. He maintains active engagement with interdisciplinary research and critical perspectives on technology's societal impacts, evident in his engagement with sustainability-focused media and open-source contributions. Larochelle is affiliated with the Laboratory for Intelligent Embedded Systems (HKA-IES) and has held roles as Scientific Staff and Teaching Assistant at the University of Freiburg's Microsystems Engineering department. His technical expertise spans embedded system design, signal processing, and low-power hardware optimization.

• Sustainable Electronics
• Internet of Things (IoT)
• Embedded Systems
• +4 more

Prof. Alexander Böker is Director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research (Fraunhofer IAP) and holds the Chair of Polymer Materials and Polymer Technology at the University of Potsdam. His academic career spans roles as Deputy Scientific Director at the DWI–Leibniz Institute (RWTH Aachen) and Lichtenberg Professor at the University of Bayreuth. He earned his PhD in Macromolecular Chemistry (2002) and habilitation at the University of Bayreuth (2007). His research focuses on polymer self-assembly, biomaterials, and nanotechnology, with notable contributions to functional nanoparticles and responsive materials. Education: Studied chemistry at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and Cornell University (1993–1998), followed by postdoctoral work at the University of Massachusetts Amherst (2002–2004). Research interests include colloidal engineering, biomineralization, and sustainable materials. His work bridges polymer science with biomedical applications, such as antibacterial nanoparticles and protein-polymer conjugates. Awards include the ERC Consolidator Grant (2015) and the Lichtenberg Professorship (2006). Awards: ERC Grant, Volkswagen Foundation Professorship, DFG Emmy Noether Group, and multiple scholarships. He serves on editorial boards of journals like Macromolecular Chemistry & Physics and Polymers . Leadership roles include managing the Fraunhofer Lighthouse Project Subi₂ma (2022–present) and advising the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research. His work emphasizes circular economy and bio-based materials through Fraunhofer initiatives like the Cluster of Excellence for Circular Plastics (CCPE).

• Polymer Science
• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• +5 more