Sociologist Andreas Bischof has summarised his view on the challenges of successful transdisciplinarity for our thematic focus ‘Transdisciplinary research’.

Environmental scientist Susanne Benz wants to harvest the heat being emitted from large cities in huge quantities every day. This heat recycling could help to reduce energy consumption – an unusual idea that she will be researching in more detail in the coming years with the support of the Freigeist programme.

The call addresses task forces in which researchers from the humanities, cultural studies and social sciences work with partners from (civil) society on a clearly defined issue relating to acute challenges to democracy in Germany or at EU level. Deadline: October 29, 2024. Online Q&A on August 6 and September 23, 2024

Is it such a good idea for researchers to collaborate with stakeholders from outside the academic community? A discussion on the risks and opportunities of transdisciplinary research that took place between Berlin-based mobility researcher Sophia Becker and Henrike Hartmann, Deputy Secretary General of the Volkswagen Foundation, moderated by science journalist Christine Prußky.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of latex mattresses end up in the bulky waste in Germany. They are incinerated because there is no recycling process for them. The REFOAM research project aims to change this.

Election victories for authoritarian parties, demonstrations against the right, Fridays for Future and increasing populism: democracies in Europe are coming under pressure. The "ProDem" project has analysed the impact of protest movements on the development of democracy in six European countries.