Lukas Sattlegger and Luca Raschewski
Translation from the German version originally published in Blog Postwachstum.
5 February 2019
From zero waste lifestyle to a garbage-free society? – The limits of waste avoidance in a growth-based society
Transdisciplinary collaboration with societal actors is a major trend in sustainability research. However, looking at the concrete practice regarding scientific conferences and publications, …
19 July 2018
Plastics of the future? The impact of biodegradable polymers on the environment and on society
Our latest review on biodegradable polymers. Biodegradable polymers like poly(lactic acid) are seen as a suitable alternative to commodity plastics in order to minimize the impact of plastics on the environment after disposal.
In his recent Viewpoint in Environmental Science and Technology, G. Allen Burton asks why “fellow scientists continue to focus on superficial microplastics risks” as “low exposure concentrations dictate there could be no risk”.
Johanna and Carolin have published an article in the special issue “Seas and Oceans” of Aus Politik- und Zeitgeschichte (APuZ) discussing how science has discovered the phenomenon of garbage patches in the oceans and how microplastics are negotiated at the interface of science and society.
The diagnosis that we are living in a world-risk society formulated by Ulrich Beck twenty years ago (Beck 1996) has lost nothing of its power, especially against the background of the Anthropocene debate. “Global risks” have been identified which are caused by human activities, technology and modernization processes. Microplastics are a byproduct of exactly these modernization processes, being distributed globally by physical processes like ocean currents, and causing effects far from their place of origin.
in Globalized Food Supply Systems – Social Dimension (4). In the last two weeks I spoke about the spatial and temporal differentiation of modern food supply systems. Now I will turn to the social consequence of this differentiation.
in Globalized Food Supply Systems – Temporal Dimension (3). In 21st century food markets, the differentiation of production and consumption practices is not only spatial but also temporal.
in Globalized Food Supply Systems – Spatial Dimension (2). Industrial food supply is characterized by globalized markets and increasing food miles. Modern supermarkets provide foods from all over the world, all year long. As these foods need to be transported, increasing physical distance generates need for technical solutions to ensure safe transportation of fragile goods. Packaging is central to many of these transportation practices.
in Globalized Food Supply Systems – An Overview (1). Is packaging the central connecting device in globalized food networks? This four-part essay will discuss how packaging based practices construct spatial, temporal and social bridges in differentiated food chains.
Carolin Völker, PlastX co-leader, in the interview with Technology Review about microplastics.
What role does sociology play in research about social-ecological transformations? The 13th convention of the junior group “Environmental Sociology” (NGU) took place in Münster this year and PlastX featured a two-hour workshop.
As every year, at the beginning of September, it was time for the annual meeting of the SETAC GLB (Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry).
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