Dies Oecologicus
On 3 June 2014 students organized Dies Oecologicus, a sustainability action day for the entire University. Issues such as the role of sustainability in academic study, the meaning of “sustainability,” and how to reduce the University’s ecological footprint were discussed as part of seven workshops that attracted over seventy participants. The concept of a “studium oekologicum” was formulated at one of the workshops and new methods of learning were noted and further developed. In addition, an initiative market was organized to bring initiatives and people together and to provide information about funding opportunities. Dies Oecologicus gave rise to new projects and cooperative partnerships between initiatives as well as the founding of the Arbeitsgruppe Bildung für Nachhaltige Entwicklung (AG BNE—sustainable development working group).
The AG BNE aims to integrate ecological sustainability into studies and teaching at Universität Hamburg and to actively and ecologically shape the future. Project members develop problem-oriented and project-based seminars on sustainability. These may be either specific to a certain discipline or interdisciplinary in nature and are open to all students. The objective is to create an interdisciplinary sustainability curriculum that offers students a certificate upon completion.