Hamburg Sustainability Week at the University of Hamburg
Sustainability Week 2.0 will once again take place at the UHH in conjunction with the Hamburg Sustainability Conference from June 2 to 6, 2025.
Program
Sustainability Days 2025
Program for June 2
10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
- Live stream of the Hamburg Sustainability Conference (HSC), Opening Panel
(this event will be in English)
10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
- UHH Teilt AG: Rental Bar and Prize Wheel
Get to know the UHH Teilt Student Group, borrow something from our Rental Bar, and win a Mate!
Together, let’s build a sharing community for the UHH! (https://uhh.fainin.com/)
1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.
- Streaming Hamburg Sustainability Conference (HSC), Navigating Sustainability and International Cooperation in a Multipolar World
(this event will be in English)
10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
- Art exhibition on the topic of sustainability at the Tiny House, VMP Campus
2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
- TheWeek@Campus (Episode 1)
The Week @Campus is a group experience designed for faculty and student teachers. It creates spaces for courageous conversations about the climate emergency and mobilizes people to take transformative action. The Week takes participants on an emotional “U”-shaped journey that ends with a conscious decision and concrete next steps toward sustainable living and design. Here’s how The Week works: Over the course of one week (hence “The Week”), participants meet three times, watch a documentary each time, and then discuss it afterward. The Week @Campus is a version designed specifically for colleges and universities. The next sessions are on June 3 and 4, from 2:30 to 4:00 p.m. for episodes 2 and 3, and on June 11, from 2:30 to 4:00 p.m., for a reflection session.
2:00–3:00 p.m.
- Workshop: Upgrading Old Laptops and Making Them Usable Again
Is Windows acting up, or is your old laptop getting slower and slower until it’s barely usable? Often, older laptops can be made usable for many more years with just a few simple steps—by replacing the RAM and hard drives and installing the Ubuntu operating system. This workshop will show you how easy it can be. No prior knowledge required; feel free to bring an old laptop.
6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
- Science Slam: Acting Sustainably, Shaping Society, Connecting Digitally
Location: Schrødingers HamburgCaptivating, vivid, and funny—at the Science Slam, young scientists present their latest research projects, bringing a fresh perspective to the topics of sustainability and digitalization. Whether it’s innovative digital solutions for a greener future or socially sustainable approaches in the digital age—here, science is brought to life on stage in an exciting and accessible way.
The Science Slam brings research out of the ivory tower and straight into the hearts of the audience. In a relaxed and interactive setting, the slammers have 10 minutes to present their project and captivate the audience.
Digitalization and sustainability—two of the most pressing issues of our time—are the focus of this exciting evening. The presenters will demonstrate how digital technologies can help us live more sustainably and how social responsibility must not be neglected in a digitalized world. A program for anyone curious about the future and how science and research are shaping it.
Whether you’re a student, someone interested in science, or just curious—the Science Slam offers a stage for anyone who wants to be inspired by the slammers’ enthusiasm.
Schedule:
6:00–6:30 p.m.: Arrival
6:30–8:30 p.m.: Slam
8:30–9:00 p.m.: Wrap-up
7:00–10:00 p.m. St. Katharinen Church, Katharinenkirchhof 1, 20457 Hamburg
- Hamburg Sustainability Week: St. Katharinen “Planetary Talks” with Earth system scientist Prof. Dr. Dirk Notz from the UHH Institute of Oceanography, focusing on polar regions, sea ice, and ice sheets, in conversation with former Federal Minister for the Environment Steffi Lemke. Moderator: Christiane Grefe
(Please check the HSW program for any changes)
Program for June 3
All day
- World Bicycle Day on the VMP campus with various activities
10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
- UHH Teilt AG: Bike Rental and Prize Wheel
Get to know the UHH Teilt Student Group, rent something from our Rental Bar, and win a Mate!
Together, let’s build a sharing community for the UHH! (https://uhh.fainin.com/)
10:00 a.m. to 12:50 p.m.
Workshop: Speculative Design and Natural Spaces: A Vision for the Future of Our Campus
The Sustainability Office, in collaboration with the Draussen Project, is offering a workshop in which we will use critical design methods to collaboratively develop a vision for the UHH campus. Inspired by the “Futures Cone,” we will work interactively and with practical design options to explore various possibilities—such as “possible,” “plausible,” “probable,” and “preferable.” In doing so, we’ll consider both our own desires, values, and ideas, as well as current societal trends and issues such as urbanization, demographic change, insect decline, and technological transformation. The results are not aimed exclusively at concrete solutions, but rather at raising nuanced questions—through design.
The number of participants is limited; please send a brief expression of interest to sustainability-certificate"AT"uni-hamburg.de
10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Art exhibition on the theme of sustainability at the Tiny House, VMP Campus
1:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- Awareness training for anyone interested (via Zoom if the room is full)
The University of Hamburg regularly deploys awareness teams at events to ensure a respectful and supportive atmosphere and to provide support to people who experience boundary-crossing situations. This training prepares staff for such assignments but is intentionally open to anyone who wants to learn more about the topic.
2:30 to 4:00 p.m.
- TheWeek@Campus (Episode 2)
Here’s how The Week works: Over the course of one week (hence “The Week”), participants meet three times, watch a documentary each time, and then discuss it afterward. The Week @Campus is a version designed specifically for colleges and universities. The next session is on June 4 from 2:30 to 4:00 p.m. for Episode 3, and on June 11 from 2:30 to 4:00 p.m. for a reflection session.
5:00 p.m.
- Film screening at Café Hübris (Phil-Turm): “Das Kolonialinstitut” by Daniel Kulle, about the university’s colonial past
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
VMP6 – Lecture Hall F (Phil Tower)
- "Film Screening: Breakin L.A. (Bicycle Film)"
A group of bicycle aficionados from Hamburg’s St. Pauli neighborhood set out on a journey to Los Angeles. There, for 12 days, they crisscrossed the city in every direction. They cruised through the barrios of East L.A., to the beaches of Venice Beach, climbed the Hollywood Hills, and discovered an almost forgotten velodrome in Encino. They volunteered at the Midnight Mission on Skid Row, where 15,000 homeless people live, and, as a counterpoint, confronted the use of lethal weapons at the L.A. Gun Club in downtown.
The film not only shows Los Angeles from unfamiliar perspectives but also asks how people can navigate this ecological and cultural wasteland. The group is not alone on its journey, for a remarkable and multifaceted bike scene has developed in L.A. that faces the pressures of modern life—overcoming distances and surviving in traffic—on a daily basis.
Along the palm-lined boulevards that wind through both the affluent neighborhoods of the wealthy and the gang-ridden areas of the poor, the bicycle becomes a vehicle for discovery, challenge, and encounter.
Program for June 4
10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
- UHH Teilt AG Rental Stand and Prize Wheel
Get to know the UHH Teilt AG, rent something from our rental bar, and win a mate!
Together, let’s build a sharing community for the UHH! (https://uhh.fainin.com/)
10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
- The Furniture Rescue Working Group has something special for you! Tiny House, VMP Campus
2:30–5:30 p.m.: Workshop
- "Crocheting, Knitting, and Mending"
In this workshop, we’ll practice designing clothing according to our own ideas and repairing slightly damaged clothes ourselves so they can be used longer. We’ll also show you the basics of knitting and crocheting. No prior experience required. Knitting and crochet needles, yarn, wool, and a sewing machine will be provided.
1:00 PM to 4:00 PM: Driving the Food Transition!
- Current dietary patterns are having increasingly negative impacts on the climate and our individual health. Without decisive action, the world runs the risk of failing to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement. The EAT-Lancet Commission has developed a global dietary strategy that can protect both human health and the planet: the Planetary Health Diet. Sustainable Food AG cordially invites you to learn more about the Planetary Health Diet and how you can help promote it on campus. From 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Tiny House—come on by!
2:30–4:00 p.m.
- TheWeek@Campus (Episode 3)
Here’s how The Week works: Over the course of one week (hence “The Week”), participants meet three times, watch a documentary each time, and then discuss it afterward. The Week @Campus is a version designed specifically for colleges and universities. The next session is on June 11 from 2:30 to 4:00 p.m. for a reflection meeting.
Schedule for June 5
10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
- Open Plenary Session 6.0 in the StaBi atrium; Program and Registration Participation in the open plenary session is free of charge, even online and counts as work time for UHH employees.
10:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
- UHH Teilt Working Group: Rental Bar and Prize Wheel
Get to know the UHH Teilt Working Group, borrow something from our rental bar, and win a mate!
Together, let’s build a sharing community for the UHH! (https://uhh.fainin.com/)
1:30–4:00 p.m.
- UHH Teilt Working Group Networking Event
Come by and network! Together, we’re building a sharing community for the UHH!
https://uhh.fainin.com/
3:30–5:30 p.m.
- Meet-Up: UHHengagiert - Would you like to volunteer? Learn about local opportunities at Tiny House (Von Melle-Park Campus)
3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
- “The Smallholder Dilemma: Balancing Nature and Livelihoods,” followed by networking
Hanns R. Neumann Foundation, Sandtorpark 4 in Hamburg
This event explores how smallholder farming families in coffee-growing regions can thrive by combining biodiversity with economic growth. Through expert insights and practical examples from Tanzania and Honduras, we will discuss innovative approaches that enable farming families to improve their livelihoods while protecting ecosystems. Join us to help shape a vision for the coffee sector that supports both the environment and the families who depend on it.
In addition to a keynote address by Martin Frick, Director of the WFP Global Office in Berlin, we’ll gain insights into the work being done in Tanzania, Guatemala, and Honduras. Following that, a panel of experts—including Pablo von Waldenfels, Director of Corporate Responsibility at Tchibo; Morgan Mkonyi, HRNS Co-Country Manager for Tanzania; and Olaf Tschimpke, former President of Naturschutzbund Deutschland (NABU)—will delve deeper into the topic and discuss potential solutions with the audience. During the networking session after the event, we’ll have further opportunities to explore the topic in greater depth.
This is an in-person event in English with limited seating. Registration is here available
6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
- Presentation at the Cafe Hübris: Wilder Wald - Wilhelmsburg on compensation areas
Program for June 6
12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.: Lecture
- "Outstanding Work Culture: What Is It, What Are We Doing to Foster It, and Where Are the Limits?"
Staff from the Sustainability Office will discuss the pros and cons of their department’s approach and are open to questions and feedback.
Sustainability Days 2024
On 7 and– 8 October 2024 the University of Hamburg held the Sustainability Days. The main event took place on the afternoon of the 8th of October in the Audimax. Additionally, there were several other program components, all of which were held on the Von-Melle-Park campus.
The University of Hamburg invited all students, researchers, and interested individuals to actively participate in the Sustainability Days.
With thanks and acknowledgement: the University of Hamburg Sustainability Days are a collaboration between Engagement Global and the UHH Sustainability Office, and are made possible with funding provided by Bertelsmann Stiftung and Hans Weisser Stiftung

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Programme 7 October
10:00 am–6:00 pm: Visit the Tiny House
- Location: University of Hamburg, Von-Melle-Park, Tiny House, 20146 Hamburg
- Speak to staff: learn more about sustainability at the University of Hamburg
- Enjoy streaming of the Hamburg Sustainability Conference (no registration required, but limited number of seats)
09.50 am–12:00 noon: Attend the streaming of the Hamburg Sustainability Conference (registration required)
- Welcome Address by Vicepresident for Learning & Teaching, Prof. Dr. Natalia Filatkina
- Location: University of Hamburg, Von-Melle-Park 5, 20146 Hamburg, WiWi B1
4:00 pm–6:00 pm: Event “Fostering Knowledge Equity” (invited guests only)
- Location: UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning
- 4:00–4:15 pm: Welcome (Dr. Isabell Kempf)
- 4:15–5:00 pm: Keynote Speech and Q&A (Prof. Dr. Xiaomeng Shen)
- 5:00–5:45 pm: Panel and Open Discussion
- Panelists:
- Prof. Dr. Xiaomeng Shen (Vice Rector of United Nations University and Director of UNU Institute for Environment and Human Security)
- Dr. Andrés López Rivera (Postdoc, CLICCS Synthese, University of Hamburg)
- Dr. Roxana Roos (Researcher, CEARC research centre of Université Paris-Saclay, UVSQ)
- Prof. Dr. Anke Grotlüschen (Professor of Lifelong Learning, University of Hamburg)
6:00 pm (open end): Closing Remarks, Refreshments & Networking
6:00 pm–8:00 pm: Panel Discussion Sustainable Development without Youth? A Recipe for Failure with Plan International (registration required)
- Location: University of Hamburg, Edmund-Siemers-Allee 1, 20146 Hamburg, Flügelbau West, ESA W 221.
- Moderation: Nora Teuma, Board Member of UN Women Germany
- Panellists:
- Hamira Kobusingye, Climate Activist and Founder of “Climate Justice Africa”, Uganda
- Audrey MacLean, Youth Delegate for Sustainable Development 2022-2024, Germany
- Anya Gass, Senior Youth Advocacy Advisor at Plan International, United Nations Office in Geneva
Programme 8 Oktober
“IMAGINE: Building a Sustainable Future”
- Location: University of Hamburg, Audimax, Von-Melle-Park 4, 20146 Hamburg
- Moderation: Nicola Bramkamp, Save the World
09:00 am–6:30 pm: Visit the Tiny House
- Location: University of Hamburg, Von-Melle-Park, Tiny House, 20146 Hamburg
- Speak to staff: learn more about sustainability at the University of Hamburg
- Enjoy streaming of the Hamburg Sustainability Conference (no registration required, but limited number of seats)
1.00pm–2.30 pm: Wheelchair Experience around the Tiny House
- Björn Schulz from Statttour will guide interested participants on a journey to a new perspective - you can experience what it is like to move around in a wheelchair, and experience firsthand the everyday barriers in space and mind
3:00 pm: Opening and Welcome
- Speaker: Prof. Dr. Hauke Heekeren, President of the University of Hamburg
- Digital Greetings from Luisa Neubauer, Fridays for Future
3:15 pm: Sustainability Research @UHH: Panel Discussion “Fundamental Knowledge for Fundamental Change”
- Panelists:
- Grischa Perino, UHH
- Ursula Schröder, UHH
- Stefan Aykut, UHH
- Johanna Baehr, UHH
3:45 pm: Imagine Hamburg: Panel Discussion
- Panelists:
- Lars Jessen (Film Producer)
- Kübra Gümüsay (Writer)
- Tatjana Kiel (CEO of Klitschko Ventures)
4:30 pm: Sustainable Futures in Hamburg
- Speaker:
- Jens Kerstan (Senator for Environment, Climate, Energy, and Agriculture)
- Priscilla Owosekun-Wilms (Head of Department for Sustainability at the Hamburg Ministry of Environment, Climate, Energy and Agriculture)
5:00 pm: Impact Allianz: Innovation for a Circular and Sustainable Economy
- Speaker:
- Christine Volkmann (BUW)
- Jelena Spanjol (LMU)
- Britta Gossel (HNEE)
- Ali Aslan Gümüsay (LMU)
- Cornelia Nyssing (Senior Project Manager at Bertelsmann Stiftung)
5:30 pm: Break
5.30 pm: Panel Discussion Green Office: "Sustainable debt policy or colonial continuity?"
- Location: Phiosophenturm, Von-Melle-Park 6, Hörsaal G
- Panelists:
- Nergis Zarifi (Politician)
- BiPoC for Future (Activists Group)
- Debt for Climate (Activists Group)
6:00 pm: Digitalization: Curse or Blessing for Sustainability?
- Speakers:
- Dr. Michael Müller-Wünsch (Executive board member Technology (CIO) & Logistics OTTO GmbH & Co KG)
- Corina Kurscheid (Global Associate VP at NIVEA Growth and Impact Office, Beiersdorf AG)
- Jan Recker, Fabian Barthel (Co-Founder of Vytal)
- Jascha Mähler (Co-Founder of Wild Plastic)
6:30 pm: Founders' Talk
- Speaker: Micha Fritz; Co-Founder of Viva con Agua
7:00 pm: Music
- Artist: Rolf Stahlhofen, Founder of “Water is Right” together with Metaphysics (Rapper and Music Producer from Zimbabwe), Lisa Müller (Keyboard)
8:00 pm: Zwischen Schatten und Licht – Ein Konzertvortrag über moderne Sklaverei und mutige Lösungen
- Artist: Nicholas Müller, Singer of Jupiter Jones, Human Rights Activist
Engagement Global hat gemeinsam mit IJM Deutschland e. V. und Künstler*innen ein sensibles, aufklärendes Bühnenformat entwickelt: den Konzertvortrag. Auf kreativ-künstlerische Art und Weise werden Herz und Verstand angesprochen: Spannende Informationen aus der Arbeit von IJM werden verbunden mit Liedern und Textbeiträgen von Nicholas Müller (Autor und Sänger von Jupiter Jones). Moderiert wird dieses Format von Lena Exner, Leiterin Community von IJM Deutschland e.V.
(Hintergrund: Geschätzt 50 Millionen Menschen leben aktuell weltweit in Moderner Sklaverei, wobei Krisen, Armut und fehlender Schutz häufig Auslöser für den Weg in die Zwangsarbeit sind. Moderne Sklaverei gibt es – von vielen unbemerkt – auch entlang zahlreicher Lieferketten. Viele unserer Alltagsprodukte werden unter menschenrechtlich schwierigen Bedingungen hergestellt. Deutschland ist Studien zufolge der drittgrößte Importeur von Risikoprodukten wie Reis, Handys, Schmuck oder Schokolade.Engagement Global führt diese Veranstaltung durch, womit sie Menschen zu einer kritischen Auseinandersetzung mit globalen Entwicklungen motivieren und zu eigenem Engagement für eine nachhaltige Entwicklung ermutigen. Engagement Global gGmbH – Service für Entwicklungsinitiativen arbeitet im Auftrag des Bundesministeriums für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung)
9:00 pm: Biodiversity Show
- Speaker:
- Dominik Eulberg (DJ and Music Producer)
- Myriam Rapior (Biodiversity Manager at the University of Hamburg)
In cooperation with:
