RESEARCH Team
Prof. Dr. Alexa Weik von Mossner
Project Director
University of Freiburg
Alexa Weik von Mossner is Associate Professor of American Studies at the University of Klagenfurt. As an internationally recognised expert on films with sustainability themes, she works in interdisciplinary reception research. As director of the Visions of Sustainability project at the University of Freiburg, she also curated the film series and organized the accompanying programme together with the Volkshochschule Freiburg and other partners.
Project Director
KIT
Annette Leßmöllmann is Professor of Science Communication with a focus on linguistics at the Institute for Technology Futures (ITZ), Department of Science Communication at KIT. With an interdisciplinary team of communication and linguists and in cooperation with evaluation research at the National Institute for Science Communication (NaWik), she analyses public discourses on science in various projects and links these with numerous transfer activities for professional practice and science communication with citizens.
Project Co-Developer
University of Freiburg
Melanie Arndt is Professor of Economic, Social and Environmental History at the Department of History at the University of Freiburg. She has been part-time Vice-Rector for Internationalisation and Sustainability since April 2024. As part of her research, in particular on (nuclear) disasters, the history of health and energy history, she has worked nationally and internationally in an interdisciplinary manner and implemented numerous outreach formats, such as public discussions with actors from science, politics, business and society, policy advice, readings, projects with artists and film screenings.
Thomas Heintz, M.A.
Research Associate KIT
Thomas Heintz is a research associate at the Chair of Science Communication with a focus on linguistics (Prof. Dr Leßmöllmann) at KIT. He conducts interdisciplinary research on topics of science communication. As a media scholar and didactician, he is particularly interested in how scientific knowledge can be communicated in a low-threshold and vivid way. He sees great potential in sustainability films, which he is evaluating in the project.
Laura Hofmann, B.A.
Research Assistant University of Freiburg
In her Master’s thesis, Laura is researching global impact management strategies in the field of international sustainability film. In the Visions of Sustainability project, she supported Alexa Weik von Mossner in the curation of the film series, in the development and organization of the accompanying programme and in project communication.
Robert Meysen
Student Assistant University of Freiburg
Robert Meysen is a student assistant at the Institute for Media Culture Studies at the University of Freiburg. He is nearing the end of his studies in media culture studies and computer science. In the Visions of Sustainability project, he helped with creating website and social media posts, evaluating questionnaires, and the events themselves. In addition to the diverse documentary films shown in the project, he particularly appreciated the transdisciplinary aspects and the exchange after the films and workshops.
Anna-Maria Plannerer, B.A.
Research Assistant University of Freiburg
Anna-Maria Plannerer is a research assistant at the University of Freiburg. She is studying for a master’s degree in sociology and is researching the long-term effects of the project on the lives of participants who have attended several events. In the Visions of Sustainability project, she assisted with the implementation of the events and the evaluation of the collected data. For her, the sustainability films are a low-threshold and accessible method of conveying the urgency of the topic to society in a different, hopefully successful, way.
National and International Collaborators
Communications scholar at Trent University, photographer and filmmaker
Neil Osborne is a Canadian photographer, filmmaker and public scholar. His interdisciplinary projects are a testament to the complex relationship between people and planet. Osborne is an Explorer with the National Geographic Society, a contributing photographer to Smithsonian Magazine and an Assistant Professor at Trent University School of the Environment. He is also a long-time Fellow of the International League of Conservation Photographers, the Explorer’s Club and the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. We would like to thank Neil for generously allowing us to use his impressive photo of a river landscape on our homepage!
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Scientific Director of the National Institute for Science Communication (NaWik)
Philipp Niemann is a member of the Executive Board and Scientific Director of NaWik. He holds a doctorate in media studies and worked as a junior research group leader in the Science Communication department at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and previously as a research assistant at the University of Trier. His research focus in the field of science communication is qualitative reception research.
Assistant Professor of Communication Sciences Utrecht University
Karin Fikkers is Assistant Professor at the Department of Languages, Literature and Communication at Utrecht University. Her aim is to understand how stories can contribute to positive behavioral change in people – with a particular interest in sustainable behavior.