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Carolin Janssen
School of Business Administration and Economics
Environmental Economics
Barbarastr. 12
49076 Osnabrück
Raum: 66/E21
Tel: +49 541 969 3426
Fax: +49 541 969 2599
carolin.janssen@uni-osnabrueck.de
Climate change, famines, poverty, social inequality – humanity is facing tremendous challenges that can only be overcome by collective effort.
Yet, how can people be motivated to build and engage in collaborative relationships working towards the good of the larger whole, despite the plurality of their individual values, interests, and goals?
How can people’s perspective and awareness be transformed, shifting from an exclusive focus on the self to a more inclusive mindset taking the well-being and desires of others and the global ecosystem into consideration as well?
As a research associate at the IUSF, I explore the inner skills, abilities, and qualities people need to actively participate in resolving the complex societal issues of our time and the creation of a sustainable global society. In this context, I am particularly interested in how those skills and qualities can be developed, nourished, and strengthened.
Prior to my current work, I completed a bachelor’s degree in international business engineering as well as a master’s degree in environmental systems and resource management. During that time, I have already started to deepen my knowledge and investigate global value chains and production networks, especially focusing on food supply systems. Exploring the plurality of visions and ideas of a sustainable and socially equitable future people with different cultural and disciplinary backgrounds hold has always been lying at the heart of my work.
Research Interests
- Inner Development Goals and the linkage between transformation on the individual, collective, and system level
- Social Learning
- Sustainable supply systems
- Participatory vision modeling in intercultural and interdisciplinary contexts using system thinking methods
- Human-nature relationships
Methods
- Participatory approaches
- Vision modeling
- Causal Loop Diagrams
- Stakeholder interviews
Current Research Projects
As part of an interdisciplinary research team, within the project ‘Value Chains and Consumer Decisions – Remote Effects of Governance and Product Biographies Using Cocoa as an Example’ I am examining how sustainable cocoa production and chocolate consumption can be supported and promoted.
Using Ghana’s cocoa sector as an example, our team investigates how global value chains can be transformed towards social and ecological sustainability. Thus, we aim to provide the various stakeholder groups within the production network with a clear idea of their respective leeway and opportunities for action and change. Within the team, my role is in addressing the question of how various value chain architectures may impact consumers’ perception and understanding of the social and ecological consequences of their consumption decisions.
