Malte Rodl

Malte Rodl is an Honorary Research Fellow at The University of Manchester's Sustainable Consumption Institute, working with Prof Frank Boons. His research focuses on sustainability challenges related to plastics, interdisciplinary research project design, and policy evaluations of IT investments in the UK. Previously, he conducted a PhD on the social construction of meat alternatives, analyzing print advertisements and manufacturer interviews. He holds an MSc in Industrial Ecology from an Erasmus Mundus program and a BEng in Mechanical Engineering with part-time industry experience.

Education

• PhD in Social Sciences, The University of Manchester (2019)
• MSc Industrial Ecology, Erasmus Mundus Programme (Leiden University, TU Delft, Waseda University, Chalmers University)
• BEng Mechanical Engineering, DHBW Lörrach, Germany (with 3 years part-time industry work)

Research Interests

Rodl's work bridges Science and Technology Studies, Sociology, and Innovation Studies. He examines how technology interacts with societal change, particularly in sustainability contexts. Key areas include:

• Plastic sustainability and interdisciplinary project design
• Meat alternatives' cultural and marketing dynamics
• Grassroots innovation networks
• Historical analysis of technological transitions

Public Engagement: He contributed expert commentary on veganism, carbon footprints, and sustainable diets to The Conversation, The Independent, and Wired.