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Urban food systems consist of many stakeholders with different perspectives, different interests and different governance tools. This study aimed at developing potential future scenarios for the food system of Cologne by analysing the system with a Delphi approach. In our research-design, the suitability of the Delphi-method was evaluated not only as a tool for future modelling and scenario design, but also as a communication tool among the group of participants on a multi-stakeholder-platform. As a case study, the Food Policy Council of Cologne, Germany was used. Cologne can be seen as a forerunner among German cities in the development of a new urban food policy. Some of the successful steps to re-envisioning food as an urban system include joining the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact, the decision of the City Council to become an edible city and the establishment of a Food Policy Council. For the study it was important to capture participants’ visions of a common goal regarding the governance of the urban food system and also to identify mental ‘silos’. It was obvious that the municipality of Cologne together with the Food Policy Council made great efforts towards participatory processes to build a vision for a sustainable and regional food supply. However, many stakeholder-groups in the process still work exclusively among themselves and do not actively practice the confrontation with the viewpoints of other relevant groups. This supports the maintenance of ‘silos’ and leaves little room for face-to-face discussions. Therefore, the primary aim of this study is to explore key components of food provisioning in the future for Cologne while confronting all stakeholders (municipal administration and politicians, farmers and food activists) with the perspectives of all group members. We used a multi-stakeholder Delphi approach with 19 panellists to find out essential components of the municipal regional food provisioning system in Cologne. Unique in this Delphi study is the bringing together of municipal administration, regional urban farmers and food activists. The research is still on-going, but preliminary results show that more communication among all relevant actors, especially horizontally among different city departments, in the urban food system is needed.
Agricultural activities within city boundaries have a long history in both developed and developing countries. In this paper, a broad approach to Urban AgriCulture (UAC) is used, one that includes the production of crops in urban and peri-urban areas and ranges in developed countries from allotment gardens over community gardens to semi-entrepreneurial self-harvest farms and fully commercialized agriculture. With an empirical case study on UAC Initiatives in the Bonn/Rhein-Sieg region this work fills a gap since the lack of comprehensive and comparative studies on urban agriculture (UA) currently makes it difficult for researchers to identify the benefits of UA activities.
In January 2015, German retail and industry jointly started a sector-wide initiative ("Initiative Tierwohl" - ITW) to improve animal welfare standards. The principle of the ITW is communicated mostly via the websites of ITW and its participating companies. However, uncertainty remained whether or not these websites provide the necessary information consumers need on the ITW products. Based on Schwartz's basic human values, different types of consumers were identified by a cluster analysis (ward-method, k-means). The results showed that depending on expressed meta‐values (Self-Transcendence/Openness to Change Self-Enhancement or Conservation), respondents had different specific information sources and needs. Online sources were rarely mentioned, the majority of consumers referred to brochures, flyers and interpersonal contacts.
Agricultural activities within the city boundaries have a long history in both developed and developing countries. Especially in developing countries these activities contribute to food security and the mitigation of malnutrition (food grown for home consumption). They generate additional income and contribute to recreation, environmental health as well as social interaction. In this paper, a broad approach of Urban AgriCulture is used, which includes the production of crops in urban and peri-urban areas and ranges in developed countries from allotment gardens (Schrebergarten) over community gardens (Urban Gardening) to semi-entrepreneurial self-harvest farms and fully commercialized agriculture (Urban Farming). Citizens seek to make a shift from traditional to new (sustainable) forms of food supply. From this evolves a demand for urban spaces that can be used agriculturally. The way how these citizens’ initiatives can be supported and their contribution to a resilient and sustainable urban food system increasingly attracts attention. This paper presents an empirical case study on Urban AgriCulture initiatives in the Bonn-Rhein-Sieg region (Germany). Urban AgriCulture is still a niche movement with the potential to contribute more significantly to urban development and constitute a pillar of urban quality of life.
In January 2015, German trade and industry announced to support the national animal welfare initiative "Initiative Tierwohl" (ITW) which stands for a more sustainable and animal-friendly meat production. A web content analysis shows that the ITW initiative has been widely picked up and discussed by online media and that user comments are quite heterogeneous. The current study identifies different types of consumers through factor and cluster analysis and is based on an online survey as well as face-to-face interviews. According to our results, the identified consumer groups demonstrate a rather passive comment behaviour on the internet. In fact, the internet was hardly mentioned as an information source for meat production; consumers more frequently referred to brochures, leaflets and personal contacts with sales personnel.
Contract-based nature protection schemes are a voluntary mechanism, with a limited contract duration, that aim to raise the acceptance of biodiversity conservation practices in agriculture among farmers and other land users. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the institutional settings of contract-based nature protection based on the– “Institutions of Sustainability” (IoS) framework in the German Rhine-Sieg district, and to outline the way in which policy measures should be designed to encourage farmers to participate in contract-based nature protection programmes. This was achieved by answering research questions to identify the challenges, potentials and obstacles of a contract-based nature protection scheme in different “sub-arenas” as defined in the IoS framework. Qualitative research methods were used as the methodology. The analysis shows that main constraints for sufficient implementation of contract-based nature protection schemes are the limited consideration of the impact of climate change during the contract period, the limited consideration of regional conditions as regards the measures taken on the ground and an inflexible contract duration.
Als weltweit anspruchsvollstes Umweltmanagementsystem trägt EMAS auf Unternehmensebene als Baustein zur Nachhaltigen Entwicklung bei. EMAS ist ein Instrument der Europäischen Union, an dem Organisationen, unabhängig von ihrer Größe und Branche, weltweit auf freiwilliger Basis teilnehmen können. Die geplante EMAS-Validierung der UN-Klimakonferenz (COP 23) in Bonn (06. – 17.11.2017), hat das Interesse der Projektkoordination von „Sustainable Bonn – Konferenzort der Nachhaltigkeit“ geweckt, die EMAS-Einführung bei deren Projektteilnehmern untersuchen zu lassen. Daher liegt der Branchenfokus auf dem Gastgewerbe, aus denen die derzeitigen Teilnehmer des Bonner Projekts überwiegend stammen. Um Branchenspezifika bei EMAS besser zu berücksichtigen hat die Europäische Kommission im April 2016 hat ein Referenzdokument über bewährte Umweltmanagementpraktiken zur Steigerung der Öko-Effektivität mit einschlägigen Indikatoren zur Messung der Umweltleistung mit Richtwerten für die Tourismusbranche veröffentlicht, die im Rahmen einer EMAS-Einführung unter anderem von Gastgewerbebetrieben berücksichtigt werden müssen.
Der verantwortungsvolle Konsument – Einstellungen von Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaftlern
(2015)
An den wirtschaftswissenschaftlichen Fakultäten der Technischen Hochschule Köln (TH Köln) und der Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg (HBRS) sind im Verlauf des Jahres 2013 Befragungen zu nachhaltigen, zertifizierten Lebensmitteln durchgeführt worden. Ziel war es, die Bedeutung von Fairtrade und Bio auf der Basis von Konsumenteneinschätzungen zu analysieren. Dazu wurden Wahrnehmung, Bekanntheitsgrad und Vertrauen, Kaufverhalten, Zahlungsbereitschaft sowie Glaubwürdigkeit in Bezug auf Fairtrade- und Bio-Produkte abgefragt. Der Kreis der Befragten umfasste die Gruppe der Studierenden, Mitarbeiter/innen und Professor(inn)en. Darüber hinaus konnten Differenzierungen nach Geschlecht, Einkommen und Alter vorgenommen werden. Die Ergebnisse sind in der Reihe „Forum NIL“ veröffentlicht worden. In der vorliegenden Studie sollte untersucht werden, ob Sozialwissenschaftler ein verantwortungsvolleres Konsumentenverhalten aufweisen als Wirtschaftswissenschaftler. Aus diesem Grunde, wurde die gleiche Befragung an der Fakultät für Sozialwissenschaften der TH Köln durchgeführt. Ein Vergleich der Befragungsergebnisse zeigte einerseits, dass Studierende, Mitarbeiter/innen und Professor(inn)en in den Sozialwissenschaften ein teilweise höheres Verantwortungsbewusstsein aufweisen. Dies gilt insbesondere in Bezug auf das bewusste Achten auf nachhaltige Produkte, die Zahlungsbereitschaft und den tatsächlichen Kauf von Fairtrade- und Bio-Produkten. Allerdings war auch bei den Befragten der Fakultät für Wirtschaftswissenschaften ein durchaus verantwortungsvolles Konsumentenverhalten erkennbar. Darüber hinaus konnte der generelle Vorwurf, dass sich eine Ökonomieausbildung negativ auf die Einstellung zu einem verantwortungsvollen Handeln auswirkt, anhand der Studienergebnisse nicht bestätigt werden. Vielmehr zeigte sich, dass nahezu keine Unterschiede zwischen den Antworten der Studienanfänger und Studierender höherer Semester an der Fakultät für Wirtschaftswissenschaften feststellbar waren.
Konsumentenbefragungen zum Thema "Fair Trade" und "Bio" an Hochschulen in Nordrhein-Westfalen
(2015)
Im Rahmen des 2013 gegründeten "Regionalen Forums für verantwortungsvolles Wirtschaften im Bereich Lebensmittel" wurde an der Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg und der Fachhochschule Köln eine Befragung zum Bekanntheitsgrad und zur Glaubwürdigkeit der Labels für "Fair Trade" und "Bio" durchgeführt. Zudem wurde die generelle Einstellung zu sowie die Kaufbereitschaft für fair gehandelte Produkte erfragt. Die Resultate konnten unter verschiedenen Aspekten (Stellung im Beruf und Einkommenshöhe, Alterskategorien, Geschlecht) differenziert analysiert werden. Im vorliegenden Beitrag werden ausgewählte Ergebnisse der Befragung vorgestellt.
An den wirtschaftswissenschaftlichen Fakultäten der Technischen Hochschule Köln (TH Köln) und der Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg (HBRS) sind im Verlauf des Jahres 2013 Befragungen zu nachhaltigen, zertifizierten Lebensmitteln durchgeführt worden. Ziel war es, die Bedeutung von Fairtrade und Bio auf der Basis von Konsumenteneinschätzungen zu analysieren. Dazu wurden Wahrnehmung, Bekanntheitsgrad und Vertrauen, Kaufverhalten, Zahlungsbereitschaft sowie Glaubwürdigkeit gegenüber Fairtrade- und Bio-Produkten abgefragt.
Handlungsspielräume zur Gestaltung nachhaltiger Mobilität werden unzulänglich genutzt. Wissenschaftliche Erkenntnisse aus Gesundheit, Umwelt und Verkehr finden zögerlich Eingang in Verkehrspolitik. Konkurrenz der Ministerien für Wirtschaft, Verkehr, Umwelt und Gesundheit hindert an der Wahrnehmung der Wertschöpfung nachhaltiger Mobilität. Bemühungen um eine Entlastung der Innenstädte sind von effizienter Prävention weit entfernt, externe Kosten werden ignoriert. Biokraftstoffpflanzungen (mit Raubbau an Regenwäldern) erhöhen die Emissionen der industrialisierten Landwirtschaft und ruinieren Wasserressourcen. Diese Verschiebung in andere klimagasrelevante Produktionsbereiche verschlimmert die globalen CO2-Bilanzen. Wenige Einzelfälle sind verkehrs-ökologisch am Verursacherprinzip orientiert (z. B. in Österreich). Die WHO stellt Wissen bereit, unerwünschte Effekte vermeidbar zu machen. Über vermeidbare Gesundheitsfolgekosten (Atemwegserkrankungen, Übergewicht) liegt zwar genügend Material vor. Transdisziplinäre Betrachtungen der Wertschöpfung werden aber als nicht umsetzbar abqualifiziert.
Im gemeinsamen Verbundprojekt analysierte das IZNE die Wahrnehmung gesundheitlicher und finanzieller Wertschöpfungsaspekte des betrieblichen Mobilitätsmanagements (BMM). Hierzu wurden 178 Betriebe schriftlich und 22 Betriebsleiter in persönlichen Interviews zu Maßnahmen der betrieblichen Gesundheitsförderung (BGF) sowie 1.341 Arbeitnehmer aus 14 Unternehmen im Raum Bonn zu ihrem Mobilitätsverhalten befragt. Die Einschätzung der tatsächlichen Existenz und des gesundheitlichen und wirtschaftlichen Nutzens des BMM sollte Bedarf und Optimierungspotentiale erkennbar machen.
Seit Sokrates bildet die Frage „Was macht ein glückliches Leben aus?“ den Ausgangspunkt der Entwicklung einer Vielfalt von Wohlbefindenstheorien. Den Kern dieses Aufsatzes bildet die Erörterung der Fragen, inwieweit das Konzept der empirischen Lebenszufriedenheit und die dadurch gewonnenen Korrelate einen Beitrag zur Beantwortung dieser Frage leisten und ob diese Antworten eine Wohlbefindenstheorie begründen können, welche die philosophische Theorie mit empirischen Ergebnissen verknüpft.
Im Zentrum dieses Aufsatzes steht eine Diskussion der wichtigsten Wohlbefindenstheorien, ihrer Qualitäten, Gemeinsamkeiten und Unterschiede. Einen Schwerpunkt bildet die Theorie der subjektiven Lebenszufriedenheit. Ich diskutiere Stärken und Schwächen des Konzeptes und stelle die wichtigsten Ergebnisse der empirischen Lebenszufriedenheitsforschung in einem Überblick dar.
Im Ergebnis argumentiere ich, dass die Resultate der empirischen Forschung als Grundlage einer subjektiv-objektiven Wohlbefindenstheorie dienen können. Qualitativ hochwertige zwischenmenschliche Beziehungen, ein gesunder Lebensstil, eine ausgewogene Work-Life-Balance, der Einsatz für Andere, das Verfolgen von Lebenszielen und persönlichen Interessen bilden die Grundlage einer Wohlbefindenstheorie, die sich auf empirische Lebenszufriedenheitsforschung stützt.
The implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the conservation and protection of nature are among the greatest challenges facing urban regions. There are few approaches so far that link the SDGs to natural diversity and related ecosystem services at the local level and track them in terms of increasing sustainable development at the local level. We want to close this gap by developing a set of indicators that capture ecosystem services in the sense of the SDGs and which are based on data that are freely available throughout Germany and Europe. Based on 10 SDGs and 35 SDG indicators, we are developing an ecosystem service and biodiversity-related indicator set for the evaluation of sustainable development in urban areas. We further show that it is possible to close many of the data gaps between SDGs and locally collected data mentioned in the literature and to translate the universal SDGs to the local level. Our example develops this set of indicators for the Bonn/Rhein-Sieg metropolitan area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, which comprises both rural and densely populated settlements. This set of indicators can also help improve communication and plan sustainable development by increasing transparency in local sustainability, implementing a visible sustainability monitoring system, and strengthening the collaboration between local stakeholders.
Education for Sustainable Development (ESD, SDG 4) and human well-being (SDG 3) are among the central subjects of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this article, based on the Questionnaire for Eudaimonic Well-Being (QEWB), we investigate to what extent (a) there is a connection between EWB and practical commitment to the SDGs and whether (b) there is a deficit in EWB among young people in general. We also want to use the article to draw attention to the need for further research on the links between human well-being and commitment for sustainable development. A total of 114 students between the ages of 18 and 34, who are either engaged in (extra)curricular activities of sustainable development (28 students) or not (86 students), completed the QEWB. The students were interviewed twice: once regarding their current and their aspired EWB. Our results show that students who are actively engaged in activities for sustainable development report a higher EWB than non-active students. Furthermore, we show that students generally report deficits in EWB and wish for an improvement in their well-being. This especially applies to aspects of EWB related to self-discovery and the sense of meaning in life. Our study suggests that a practice-oriented ESD in particular can have a positive effect on the quality of life of young students and can support them in working on deficits in EWB.
Hydrogen is a versatile energy carrier. When produced with renewable energy by water splitting, it is a carbon neutral alternative to fossil fuels. The industrialization process of this technology is currently dominated by electrolyzers powered by solar or wind energy. For small scale applications, however, more integrated device designs for water splitting using solar energy might optimize hydrogen production due to lower balance of system costs and a smarter thermal management. Such devices offer the opportunity to thermally couple the solar cell and the electrochemical compartment. In this way, heat losses in the absorber can be turned into an efficiency boost for the device via simultaneously enhancing the catalytic performance of the water splitting reactions, cooling the absorber, and decreasing the ohmic losses.[1,2] However,integrated devices (sometimes also referred to as “artificial leaves”), currently suffer from a lower technology readiness level (TRL) than the completely decoupled approach.
Integrated solar water splitting devices that produce hydrogen without the use of power inverters operate outdoors and are hence exposed to varying weather conditions. As a result, they might sometimes work at non-optimal operation points below or above the maximum power point of the photovoltaic component, which would directly translate into efficiency losses. Up until now, however, no common parameter describing and quantifying this and other real-life operating related losses (e.g. spectral mismatch) exists in the community. Therefore, the annual-hydrogen-yield-climatic-response (AHYCR) ratio is introduced as a figure of merit to evaluate the outdoor performance of integrated solar water splitting devices. This value is defined as the ratio between the real annual hydrogen yield and the theoretical yield assuming the solar-to-hydrogen device efficiency at standard conditions. This parameter is derived for an exemplary system based on state-of-the-art AlGaAs//Si dual-junction solar cells and an anion exchange membrane electrolyzer using hourly resolved climate data from a location in southern California and from reanalysis data of Antarctica. This work will help to evaluate, compare and optimize the climatic response of solar water splitting devices in different climate zones.
The decline of insect abundance and richness has been documented for decades and has received increased attention in recent years. In 2017, a study by Hallmann and colleagues on insect biomasses in German nature protected areas received a great deal of attention and provided the impetus for the creation of the project Diversity of Insects in Nature protected Areas (DINA). The aim of DINA was to investigate possible causes for the decline of insects in nature protected areas throughout Germany and to develop strategies for managing the problem.
A major issue for the protection of insects is the lack of insect-specific regulations for nature protected areas and the lack of a risk assessment and verification of the measures applied. Most nature protected areas border on or enclose agricultural land and are structured in a mosaic, resulting in an abundance of small and narrow areas. This leads to fragmentation or even loss of endangered habitats and thus threaten biodiversity. In addition, the impact of agricultural practices, especially pesticides and fertilisers, leads to the degradation of biodiversity at the boundaries of nature protected areas, reducing their effective size. All affected stakeholders need to be involved in solving these threats by working on joint solutions. Furthermore, agriculture in and around nature protected areas must act to promote biodiversity and utilise and develop methods that reverse the current trend. This also requires subsidies from the state to ensure economic sustainability and promote biodiversity-promoting practices.
Improving insect conservation management through insect monitoring and stakeholder involvement
(2023)
In recent years, the decline of insect biodiversity and the imminent loss of provided ecosystem functions and services has received public attention and raised the demand for political action. The complex, multi-causal contributors to insect decline require a broad interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral approach that addresses ecological and social aspects to find sustainable solutions. The project Diversity of Insects in Nature protected Areas (DINA) assesses insect communities in 21 nature reserves in Germany, and considers interactions with plant diversity, pesticide exposure, spatial and climatic factors. The nature reserves border on agricultural land, to investigate impacts on insect diversity. Part of the project is to obtain scientific data from Malaise traps and their surroundings, while another part involves relevant stakeholders to identify opportunities and obstacles to insect diversity conservation. Our results indicate a positive association between insect richness and biomass. Insect richness was negatively related to the number of stationary pesticides (soil and vegetation), pesticides measured in ethanol, the amount of area in agricultural production, and precipitation. Our qualitative survey along with stakeholder interviews show that there is general support for insect conservation, while at the same time the stakeholders expressed the need for more information and data on insect biodiversity, as well as flexible policy options. We conclude that conservation management for insects in protected areas should consider a wider landscape. Local targets of conservation management will have to integrate different stakeholder perspectives. Scientifically informed stakeholder dialogues can mediate conflicts of interests, knowledge, and values to develop mutual conservation scenarios.