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Teaching

We offer students in Environmental Science, Renewable Energy Planning and Management, Geography, Environmental Governance, and Sustainable Systems Engineering a high quality curriculum on the material and energy basis of modern society (metabolism of the anthroposphere). Our teaching covers the background and methods for sustainability assessment and transformation, energy and sustainability, analysis and assessment of sustainable development strategies (life cycle assessment, input-output analysis, and material flow analysis), and decoupling human activities from environmental impacts. Some of our course offerings are open to students in other majors. Our teaching covers the latest knowledge and scientific methods on human activities and basic needs, sustainable consumption, industrial restructuring, energy supply and material cycles, and includes a solid introduction to the methodological foundations of environmental systems analysis. In addition to topicality of content and methodological stringency, we value and focus on teamwork, independent thinking and a critical approach to problems.

Large parts of the teaching material used are available as industrial ecology open online course (IEooc) on our research portal.

Stefan Pauliuk is coordinator of the major „Sustainability Assessment and Transformation“ within the MSc Environmental Sciences

Bachelor and Master Theses

We offer all students who work with our group good and regular supervision and give them the opportunity to contribute to ongoing research. Students get the chance to use synergies with ongoing research and to exchange professional ideas with members of the team and other students. The topics of the bachelor and master theses fit into the research profile of the group both, regarding topics and methods.

An overview of possible topics is provided by the following list from 2023. Topics are announced every year in January, and the master thesis can be registered started in the period March to November.

Furthermore, there is the possibility to identify and subsequently work on a topic of one's own choice. This first requires the preparation of a research proposal.

If you are interested in a thesis in the Industrial Ecology group, please contact Prof. Stefan Pauliuk with an application that includes an overview of previous grades, a short (!) letter of motivation and, if applicable, a research sketch of 3-5 pages.

Please read our guidelines for good scientific practice and for thesis supervision (link!) before contacting us.

Courses

Our current teaching portfolio includes the following courses. More info and registration via HisInOne.

The module "Material and Energy Flow Analysis" (10 ECTS) includes an introduction to quantitative environmental systems analysis (industrial ecology). Based on case studies in the fields of transportation, bioenergy, consumption and housing, basic competences in the methods of material flow and energy flow analysis, life cycle assessment and input-output analysis are acquired. Furthermore, the course includes an introduction to programming with Python for systems analysis. This course is the introductory module to the profile line "Sustainability Assessment and Transformation" in the MSc Environmental Sciences. The module is taught by Prof. Stefan Pauliuk.

The module "Life Cycle Management" (5 ECTS) includes an in-depth introduction to life cycle assessment (LCA), one of the most important methods of quantitative environmental systems analysis. The course offers an introduction to the theoretical basics of LCA, the use of the LCA software openLCA, the process database ecoinvent, the presentation and discussion of numerous practical examples, and an extensive project work. This course is offered in the winter semester as an English-language elective module for students at the master's level. The module is taught by Dr. Johan Vélez.

The module "Supply Chain Management" (5 ECTS) includes an in-depth and detailed presentation of input-output analysis for modeling global supply chains of products and energy sources. Calculation routines in Python scripts are used to apply established global and multi-regional input-output models. The module is taught by Dr. Johan Vélez.

The module "Thesis Project in Industrial Ecology" (5 ECTS) includes in-depth lectures and exercises for the methods material flow analysis, life cycle assessment and input-output analysis as well as an extensive project work. It serves as preparation for the master thesis in our group and is reserved for interested students. The module is taught by Prof. Stefan Pauliuk.

The module "Environmental Physics" (5 ECTS) for students in the BSc Environmental Science offers an introduction to physical thinking and an application of basic physical principles of mechanics and thermodynamics to central phenomena of the environment. The module is taught by Prof. Stefan Pauliuk.

The module "Global supply chains: modeling and sustainability aspects" (5 ECTS) includes an introductory presentation of input-output analysis for modeling global supply chains of products and energy sources. Calculation routines in Python scripts are used to apply established global and multi-regional input-output models. The module is taught by Simon Schulte.

Previous courses

The module "Sustainable Energy and Material Flow Management" (5 ECTS) includes an introduction to quantitative environmental systems analysis (industrial ecology). Case studies in the fields of transportation, bioenergy, consumption and housing are used to acquire basic skills in the methods of material flow and energy flow analysis, life cycle assessment and input-output analysis. This course was offered as a German-language core module for 2nd semester Environmental Science students until the summer semester of 2023.

The module "Energy and Sustainability" (Energy and Sustainability, 5 ECTS) is the introductory module in the degree program 'Renewable Energy Engineering and Management'. It provides students with an overview of basic concepts of sustainable development (societal metabolism, sociometabolic transitions, industrial ecology), a brief history of human energy use, an introduction to quantitative systems analysis with numerous energy-related case studies, an introduction to environmental ethics, and a systematic review of the various strategies for decoupling human activities from environmental impacts. This course was offered as a required English language module for 1st semester students of the MSc "Renewable Energy Engineering and Management" until the winter semester 2022/23. This course was designed together with Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker (Honorary Professor Uni Freiburg) and Philipp Thapa (Uni Greifswald). 

From the winter semester 2023/24 onwards, these two courses will be merged and continued as "Material and Energy Flow Analysis" (10 ECTS).