What does The Odyssey tell us about climate change?
August was the world’s hottest month on record, and Europe continues to experience historic drought. During this extreme summer, Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster film adaptation has brought the nearly 3,000-year-old epic The Odyssey into the zeitgeist. Some scholars argue that the ancient story could help humanity navigate our era of global warming caused by burning fuels. […]
Results from Down2Earth survey: Continuing backlash on climate change awareness in Germany
In 2023, the long-term survey series “Down2Earth” detected a significant backlash on climate protection. Recently published data shows that this trend has progressed and intensified. The recent findings also suggest a rising skepticism regarding the existence of anthropogenic climate change. In 2025, the questionnaire additionally measured public support of discourses of climate delay (based on […]
Billionaires in Orbit: An Imagined Climate Future
Today, we decided to take our bikes to meet our friends in the community garden “Rathausmarkt” right next to the Alster. Cycling past ongoing construction sides, replacing parking lots and sealed areas with local parks. Yes, you heard right. Hamburg in 2041 is now centered around nature and people. After the Hamburger Zukunftsentscheid in 2025 […]
Is ‘green capitalism’ possible?
The question of whether ‘green capitalism’ is possible has become increasingly urgent in the context of climate change. Should it prove impossible, addressing the climate crisis will require a new economic and social order, alongside different ways of thinking about knowledge. In this article, I engage with this question and its implications based on Cédric […]
What causes political backlash against climate action?
While public and media discourse currently shows crumbling support for ambitious climate measures in many places, the gap between set climate targets and actual policy action is widening once again. But what is driving this headwind, and how can effective climate communication address it constructively? This post is part of the series “Studies of the […]
Linking climate and extreme weather
The impacts of climate change are becoming more tangible, and extreme weather events are increasingly common. But do people who experience more storms, heatwaves, and flood disasters actually demand more climate action? Our article today shows that everything depends on making the connection between climate change and these weather events. This post is part of […]
Does Fact-Checking Really Work?
Fact-checking is often praised as an effective tool against misinformation and deep-seated misconceptions. Journalists and independent organizations verify statements to make public discourse more objective. But how effective is this practice really? Can a simple correction truly rectify ingrained false assumptions or even simple misinformation? This post is part of the series “Studies of the […]