Lecture Series "Sustainability Now!"

In cooperation with the Right Livelihood Center Zurich, the Sustainability Hub conducts the public, interdisciplinary lecture series "Sustainability now!" every spring semester. on the topic of sustainable development. In the lectures, winners of the Alternative Nobel Prize report on their involvement in various areas of sustainable development. In subsequent panels, the experiences are reflected from the perspective of research, politics and civil society. Students receive ECTS credits by moderating or creating a podcast as well as through reports.
Right Livelihood Center Zurich

The focus topic of the Spring Semester 2026 is: "Feminist Pathways to Environmental Justice". The following public events with Right Livelihood Laureates and actors from the sustainability discourse will take place each starting 18:45 Uhr at RAA, Rämistrasse 59, 8001 Zurich; Room: G 15:

• 26.03.2026: Opening Panel Discussion mit Camilla Argentieri (Women Laureates Hub), Dr. rer. pol. Jeannette Behringer (Sustainability Hub, UZH), Lic.iur. Zita Küng (Feminist Legal Studies & Advocacy, FRI)

• 16.04.2026: Women Workers, Economic Power and Environmental Justice in India with Reema Nanavaty (Self-Employed Women’s Association) and Prof. Dr. Hanna Hilbrandt (Social Geography and Urban Studies, UZH)

• 23.04.2026: Nonviolence, Democracy, and Climate Justice in Croatia: Feminist Strategies for Change with Katarina Kruhonja (Right Livelihood Laureate 1998), Prof. Dr. Elham Manea (Middle East and Gulf Studies, UZH) and Virginia Köpfli (SP Women, President of Frieda)

• 07.05.2026: Violence, Law, and Climate Justice in Cameroon: Protecting Those Most Affected with Marthe Wandou (Right Livelihood Laureate 2021) and Johannes Wendland (Legal Advisor Climate Justice, HEKS/EPER)

• 21.05.2026: From Colonial Extraction to Collective Rights in Nicaragua: Indigenous Feminist Visions of Justice with Anexa Alfred Cunningham (repräsentiert Lottie Cunningham Wren, 2020 Rightlivelihood Laureate), Dr. Esther Leemann (Social and Cultural Anthropology, UZH), and Julia Büsser (Program Director Amazonas, Voices)

The offer can be booked through the School for Transdisciplinary Studies (STS), which was founded in 2021. It acts as a hub between the faculties and transdisciplinary initiatives, especially for offerings on cross-sectional topics and competencies in the areas of sustainability, digital transformation, didactics, ethics and entrepreneurship.
STS in general

Jeannette Behringer
behringer(at)sustainability.uzh.ch
Tel. +41 44 635 43 57

The focus topic of the spring semester 2025 was: "Sufficiency as a strategy for sustainability and economic justice ". The following public events with Right Livelihood Laureates and actors from the sustainability discourse are part of the lecture series:

• «Suffizienz als Strategie für nachhaltige und wirtschaftliche Gerechtigkeit» with Prof. Dr. Reinhard Loske (University Witten/ Herdecke), Dr. Jeannette Behringer (Sustainability Hub, University of Zurich), Ole von Uexküll (Right Livelihood)
• «People, Land and Culture: Indigenous Perspectives on Sufficiency» with Joan Carling (Right Livelihood Laureate 2024, Philippines), Dr. Esther Leeman (University of Zurich), Anna Leissing (Society of Threatened Peoples Switzerland)
• «Sustainable Food Production and Consumption» with Seikatsu Club Consumers’ Cooperative (Right Livelihood Laureate 1989, Japan), Prof. Dr. Johanna Jacobi (ETH Zurich), Tex Tschurtschenthaler (Coordination Office for Community Supported Agriculture)
• «Commoning for Sufficiency» with Cecosesola (Richt Livelihood Laureate 2022, Venezuela), Xavier Balaguer Rasillo (University of Zurich), Gemeinwohlökonomie Schweiz

The podcast can be listened to on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Podcast on Spotify

The focus topic of the lecture series in the spring semester 2024 was: "Inequalities as an obstacle to achieving sustainable development". The following public events were part of the lecture series:

• "Political repression as an obstacle to achieve equality" with Natallia Satsunkevich from Viasna (Right Livelihood Award 2020)
• "The importance of gender equality for sustainable development" with Sima Samar (Right Livelihood Award 2012)
• "Environmental (in)justice in the business sector" with Nnimmo Bassey (Right Livelihood Award 2010)
• "Global migration in the Mediterranean Sea" with Caroline Abu Sa’da from SOS MEDITERRANEE (Right Livelihood Award 2023)
• "Can we prevent war and achieve sustainable peace through common security and international law" with Alyn Ware (Right Livelihood Award 2009)

The podcast can be listened to on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Podcast on Spotify

The focus topic of the lecture series in the spring semester 2023 was: "Analysing Empowerment for Change". The following public events were part of the lecture series:

• "Reintegrating Former Child Soldiers into Society" with Ilwad Elman (Right Livelihood Award 2022)
• "Feminist Perspectives on Empowerment" with Mozn Hassan (Right Livelihood Award 2016)
• "Protecting Landscapes from the Commercial Development of Oil Production" with Diana Nabiruma (AFIEGO) (Right Livelihood Award 2022)
• "Establishing and Protecting Human Rights for Women and Girls at Risk" with Marthe Wandou (Right Livelihood Award 2021)
• "Collective Empowerment in the Field of Agroecology" with Tony Rinaudo (Right Livelihood Award 2018)
• "Change Processes through Education" with Neshan Gunasekera (Right Livelihood Award 2007)
• "Empowerment of Change – The Role of the University and Civil Society" Panel Discussion with Kai Niebert (Institute of Education), Rex Romero (Senior Project Leader International Projects, myClimate) and Franziska Zoller (Head of Innovation & Socio-Economic Change, WWF)

The focus topic of the lecture series in the spring semester 2022 was: "Transformative Education for Social Change". The following public events were part of the lecture series:

• "Co-Creation: Successful Solutions for Reforestation with the People, for the People" with Tony Rinaudo (Right Livelihood Award 2018)
• "Female Empowerment for a Just Society in Afghanistan" with Sima Samar (Right Livelihood Award 2012)
• "Indigenous Peoples as Guardians of Biodiversity" with Linda Poppe, Survival International (Right Livelihood Award 1989)
• "Shrinking Spaces: The Harassment of Civil Society in the Russian Autocracy" with Anna Dobrovolskaya, Memorial (Right Livelihood Award 2004)
• "A Culture of Remembrance as a Prerequisite for Reconciliation" with Vesna Teršelič (Right Livelihood Award 1998)
• "The Role of Peace Education for a Safe Environmental Space" with Alyn Ware (Right Livelihood Award 2009)
• "Responsible Science: Transformation for the Future" with David Suzuki (Right Livelihood Award 2009)
• "Education for Transformation? A Critical Review" with Vandana Shiva (Right Livelihood Award 1993)

The following public events were part of the first lecture series "Sustainability Now!" in the spring semester 2021

• "Every drop counts – the human right to clean water" with Maude Barlow (Right Livelihood Award 2005)
• "How we feed the world" with Hans Herren (Right Livelihood Award 2013)
• "The responsibility of media in fighting for human rights" with Amy Goodman (Right Livelihood Award 2008)
• "Africa’s way in the 21st century" with Nnimmo Bassey (Right Livelihood Award 2010)
• "The powerful voice of the untouchables" with Dr. Ruth Manorama (Right Livelihood Award 2013)
• "No pardon for chemical weapons" with Paul Walker (Right Livelihood Award 2013)
• "I am from a developing country, I am a lawyer and I am blind – I have a disability and 99 opportunities" with Yetnerbersh Nigussie (Right Livelihood Award 2017)
• "Changing the World Using the Law" with Colin Gonsalves (Right Livelihood Award 2017)