Fellows

Maximilian Spiegelberg

explores and facilitates intersectional, postgrowth and emancipated food futures, as well as more-than-human geographies across boundaries of disciplines, cultures, skills, ecosystems and governance. He will contribute as a fellow of the tdAcademy with his rich experiences with participatory methods and broad knowledge sets.

“As a tdAcademy fellow I will contribute to exploring the potential of Quiet Sustainability, Low Tech and the Pluriverse in narratives and imaginations of transformations.”

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Cory Whitney

is a fellow from from September 2024 - March 2025 working on decision theory, agroecology, and transdisciplinary approaches. 

"During my time as a tdAcademy fellow, I am able to deepen my reflection on transdisciplinarity, particularly in relation to SDGs scenarios, while engaging with a diverse, interdisciplinary group. This experience allows me to integrate different perspectives and expand on the practical application of transdisciplinary methods in my work.”

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Maysoun Mustafa

is affiliated with the tdAcademy fellow group of Denise Matias, Maximilian Spiegelberg and Cory Whitney who are co-developing mental models and scenario modeling research on SDG interactions.

“As a tdAcademy Fellow, I am delighted to be part of this community, and contribute collectively with my group in exploring broader questions around scenario and mental model research to achieve transdisciplinary goals.”

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Denise Margaret S. Matias

is a fellow from September 2024 - March 2025 working on SDGs, scenarios, and mental models with their tdAcademy sequential group.

"Being a tdAcademy fellow enables me to dedicate time towards reflecting on transdisciplinarity within the framework of global processes such as the SDGs while cooperating with an interdisciplinary group."

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Dr. Stephanie Moser

is researching the different impacts of transdisciplinary research as a fellow at the Center for Technology and Society at TU Berlin in August 2024.

'I'm looking forward to deepening and broadening our shared understanding of social impacts of transdisciplinary research, as well as to enlarge our knowledge on corresponding  pathways to impacts and their many challenges for science and practice.'

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Amanda Jiménez Aceituno

She attended the workshop of the fellow group celebrated at the Senckenberg Institute Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (BIK-F) (Frankfurt) from November 20th to 23rd.

“During our days in Frankfurt, we discussed what a good transformation is and who gets to define it using the lenses of critical social sciences. I believe these questions are of key relevance for transdisciplinary scholars in the td-Academy”

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Dr. Elisabeth Berger

She visited ISOE in November 2023 to discuss normative aspects of transformation research.

“I am excited that the tdAcademy offered me the opportunity to reflect together with other researchers upon the questions: ’How to define a GOOD transformation in transdisciplinary research processes? And how might methods from the critical social sciences support this aim?’”

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Jasmin Jossin

is at the tdAcademy in November 2023, where she is working with other fellows and guests from the ISOE Institute on the question of what a good transformation is.

'Everyone in our group researches and works in the field of transdisciplinarity and transformation. However, we all have different understandings and focuses. I am very much looking forward to the exchange and, as a psychologist, I will contribute in particular the perspective on inner transformation processes and transformative learning.'

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Lisa Bossenbroek

is a guest at ISOE in November 2023, where she explores what are ‘good’ transformations and who gets to shape them.

'I’m excited to discuss questions related to 'good transformation' in sustainability science with other researchers. Who gets to define this, which voices are heard, which are not, and how can we (researchers engaging with such questions) perhaps develop an understanding of “good transformation” that is socially inclusive and locally sound? For me, the tdAcademy offers a space to discuss those issues critically.'

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Franziska Ehnert

Franziska Ehnert is a guest at ISOE in November 2023, where she explores what are ‘good’ transformations and who gets to shape them.

"As a research follow, I want to encourage dialogue and reflection on the ambiguities and paradoxes of sustainability transformations, exploring the disconnects and tensions between just and unjust or empowering and disempowering transformations."

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Sierra Deutsch

Sierra Deutsch focuses on how to put critical social theory into practice in transformative change initiatives to facilitate more just transformations. 

'In the td Fellow Group ‘Improving critical social science skills in transdisciplinary transformative change initiatives,’ she will co-develop a sample training tool to provide critical social theory skills to participants in transdisciplinary projects.'

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Benjamin Hofmann

Benjamin Hofmann is member of the fellow group on good transformation, which meets with ISOE in Frankfurt in November 2023.

'As a member of the fellow group on good transformation, I want to critically reflect on the role of science in relation to other societal actors in defining what sustainable transformations should look like in policy and practice.'

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Marco Teixeira

Marco Teixeira is a member of the fellowship group 'ICSSS in TTCIs' and researches the role of social movements in transforming food politics.

'As a tdAcademy fellow, I am excited to participate in debates surrounding socio-ecological transformation. I bring my experience working on the role of social movements for a good transformation from a sociological perspective and look forward to learning from other fellows and the ISOE team.'

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Sara Maestre Andrés

Sara Maestre Andrés is a researcher at ICTA-UAB contributing to the tdAcademy fellow group on good transformation by exploring the potential of transformative nature-based solutions to just and resilient cities.

'As a member of the tdAcademy fellow group on good transformation, I want to critically reflect on the role of transdisciplinary governance structures and knowledge production processes in defining and building just transformations.'

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Hanna Ahlström

Hanna Ahlström is a member of the tdAcademy fellow group on good transformation and will contribute to the project and the affiliated publications.

'As a member of the group on good transformation, I am excited to continue collaborating with stellar colleagues and I will contribute with insights on resilience, transdisciplinarity, law and governance.'

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Alexandra Polido

Alexandra Polido is visiting ISOE in November 2023 to revise transformation concepts for transdisciplinarity.

'As a fellow, I support the td-Academy by critically revising fundamental transformation concepts and frameworks., particularly concerning the involvement of agency and power in shaping the definition of a positive transformation and understanding the need to reformulate these frameworks.'

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André Mascarenhas

André Mascarenhas is a tdAcademy fellow visiting ISOE to work on the topic of transformative change.

'As a tdAcademy fellow at ISOE, I aim at contributing to the question ‘What is a good transformation’ with critical insights from the perspective of human-nature relations, with a focus on urban planning'.

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Leila Niamir

Leila Niamir is member of tdAcademy fellow group on improving critical social science skills in transdisciplinary transformative change initiatives, which meets with ISOE in Frankfurt in November 2023.

'In my role as a tdAcademy fellow, my central emphasis is on the role of grassroots movements, equity, and justice in shaping the concept of transformation. Within our team, we concentrate on bridging and enhancing social science skills in transdisciplinary transformative change initiatives.'

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Isabella M. Radhuber

Isabella M. Radhuber is at ITAS in Karlsruhe from October 2023 to January 2024 and is researching the effects of climate change on our health from a transdisciplinary perspective.

“As a tdAcademy fellow, I will explore the challenges arising from the interactions between climate and health through a situation analysis ("translating" between different actors/actants).”

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Jana Semrau

works on the sustainable implementation and scaling-up of population-based health promotion measures in municipalities with a focus on health equity. She is part of the fellow group “Transdisciplinary research and its scientific impact“.

“As a tdAcademy fellow, I will focus on the bridging between transdiciplinary health research and sustainability research in terms of theories and collaborative approaches"

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Alfred Rütten

focuses on interactive knowledge-to-action approaches and their societal and scientific impact. He is part of the fellow group “Transdisciplinary research and its scientific impact“.

'Given my background in theory and practice of collaborative approaches towards social change, I will support our fellow group’s work on the impact of transdisciplinarity on the structural development of the scientific system.'

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Evelyne de Leeuw

connects cities, health and politics. She is part of the fellow group “Transdisciplinary research and its scientific impact“.

“As a tdAcademy fellow, I will explore the scholarly and thought benefits and synergies of work at the interstitial spaces in and between cities, health and wellbeing, and policy/politics. Our Fellow Group will formulate propositions for the role of Living Labs in advancing transdisciplinarity.”

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Guido Caniglia

works on the interconnected epistemological, ethical, and political foundations of transdisciplinary sustainability science. He is part of the fellow group “Transdisciplinary research and its scientific impact“.

'In the fellow group, I will contribute to strengthening how we think about and assess the scientific impact of transdisciplinary and participatory research at the health-environment intersection.'

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Richard Beecroft

is a sustainability scientist with a special interest in the interplay of futures thinking, transformative learning and sustainability transitions – using Real-world Labs as an environment for transdisciplinarity.

'As a fellow of TdAcademy, I will contribute my experience in Real-world Lab research to our exchange, to jointly learn about the patterns of participation, transformation and research at the healt-city-sustainability nexus.'

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Alicia Jiménez

is a guest at the Leuphana University from April to May 2023, where she will explore the concept of whole institution approach for sustainability as a td approach, in the area of ESD.

'As a guest at Leuphana University, my intention is to further explore the transdisciplinarity of the whole institution approach for sustainability applied in education institutions (primary, secondary and higher education), and how this perspective can serve to further education’s mission to be transformative as to contribute to finding solutions for the sustainability issues we are facing.'

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Charles Hopkins

is a guest at the Leuphana University to explore td perspectives on sustainability and quality education with a focus on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in the community.

'As a guest at Leuphana University, I intend to initiate a td community dialogue with stakeholders in the Lüneburg region to localize the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), to determine relevant sustainability issues, and to create suggestions for education responses to be embedded in teacher education institutions with ESD at the core.'

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María D. López Rodríguez

is a guest at the SESI (Social-Ecological Systems Institute) at Leuphana University from April to May 2023, where she is doing research on innovative art-based td-research methods to engage multiple actors and support their mobilization for collective action in sustainable governance.

'During my stay at Leuphana University, I want to explore how td processes can be improved by using art-based research. The insights will shed light on how coupling conventional cognitive tools with art-based techniques can help expand conventional epistemologies towards practical, embodied and emotional domains in td research'.

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Jillian Student

focuses on TD research and education in the context of environmental change. She is part of the fellow group 'Transdisciplinary Learning Towards Collective Transformation'.

'As a tdAcademy fellow, I aim to contribute to knowledge on td research and education from the Dutch context and learn from the tdAcademy network. During visits to tdAcademy institutes, my group and I will explore collaborative opportunities on transdisciplinary practices and learning as we develop a Cost Action proposal.'

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Karoline Augenstein

is part of the fellow group on narratives for inclusive transformations in science and society. She studies the role of narratives in transformation processes and is particularly interested in narratives of change as enablers of collective action in real-world laboratories.

'As a tdAcademy fellow, I look forward to bringing disciplinary knowledge from research together with practical knowledge in order to jointly develop narratives for sustainability transformations.'

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Meike Levin-Keitel

is part of the fellow group on narratives for inclusive transformations in science and society. She explores narratives of transformation towards sustainability from a spatial planning perspective.

'As a tdAcademy fellow, I look forward to bringing disciplinary knowledge from research together with practical knowledge in order to jointly develop narratives for sustainability transformations.'

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Paula Bögel

is part of the fellow group on narratives for inclusive transformations in science and society. She is doing research on individual and collective action from a psychological perspective.

'As a tdAcademy fellow, I look forward to bringing disciplinary knowledge from research together with practical knowledge in order to jointly develop narratives for sustainability transformations'.

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Ulrike Zeshan

is a linguist who also specialises in Serious Games. She is part of the fellow group 'Transdisciplinary Learning towards Collective Transformation'.

'As a tdAcademy fellow I aim to contribute my expertise in developing and researching Serious Games for learning and collaboration. I am interested in how cross-sectoral groups communicate and work together.'

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Bin Bin Pearce

is part of the fellow group 'Transdisciplinary Learning Towards Collective Transformation' and does research on problem framing and policy design for the energy transition.

'As a fellow group member, we aim to bring together existing knowledge and practice on transdisciplinary learning. These ideas will be brought together in the development of a Cost Action proposal.'

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David Manuel-Navarrete

is co-designing bioeconomic models to generate local income, disincentivize deforestation, support Indigenous biocultures, and encourage a reconnection with the Amazon rainforest.

"I am excited to work with the fellow group on 'Context' to understand how to create reciprocal and regenerative relationships amongst researchers,  the local people as well as non-humans and places they interact with.'

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Zainal Abidin Sanusi

as a member of the tdAcademy fellow group 'Context: Building relations across contexts in transdisciplinary research' he is developing content and context for a Capacity Building Program for TD.

'As a tdAcademy fellow, I will be focusing on identifying major principles and practices needed to enable transdisciplinary learning environment with action-embedded framework. The expected outcomes are the contents and criteria of context required for a capacity building program for Transdisciplinarity'.

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Gemma O’Sullivan

is a member of the fellow group 'Transdisciplinary Learning towards Collective Transformation'.

'As a fellow at tdAcademy, I seek to draw on educational science to develop our understanding of transdisciplinary teaching and learning methodologies (including challenge-based learning). My goal is to build an evidence base to enable universities to effectively innovate their educational and research systems to facilitate collective action in the face of global challenges.' 

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Dr. Sabine Hoffmann

is a guest at ZTG in May 2022, exploring societal change processes towards sustainability.

"As a fellow at ZTG, I am happy to support the tdAcademy, bringing in my experiences and insights from developing ‘Theories of Change’ and integrating them at conceptual and empirical level."

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Sarah Burch

is working with the tdAcademy to explore the effect of socio-cultural and economic context on transdisciplinary research.

'As a tdAcademy fellow, I am very happy to support this community as we explore the dynamic relationships between transdisciplinary sustainability research and the governance of sustainability transitions in local spaces, including experimentation in the small business sector.'

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Janet Harris

conducts research exploring how involvement across different stakeholder groups contributes to the process and outcomes of research. She is part of a tdAcademy fellow group together with Rachel Claus and coordinated by ZTG.

'As a fellow group member, I am looking forward to working with the tdAcademy to explore approaches to monitoring research impact.'

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Rachel Claus

is doing research on methods for measuring research contributions to change processes. She is part of a tdAcademy fellow group together with Janet Harris, coordinated by ZTG.

'I am happy to support the tdAcademy by bringing experience from theory-based research outcome evaluation to improve methods for assessing transdisciplinary research.'

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Juliana Merçon

is affilated with the tdAcademy fellow group of Livia Fritz, Dena Fam and Ulli Vilsmaier to support their conceptual explorations from a Latin American research praxis.

'As a fellow group of the tdAcademy, we aim at digging deeper into Gramsci’s concept of hegemony to explore its potential in grasping dynamics and relationalities in transformations of universities towards inter- and transdisciplinarity.'

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Ulli Vilsmaier

is a guest at ZTG from October to December 2021, researching into Gramsci’s concept of hegemonies in relation to transdisciplinarity.

'As a fellow group of the tdAcademy, we aim at digging deeper into Gramsci’s concept of hegemony to explore its potential in grasping dynamics and relationalities in transformations of universities towards inter- and transdisciplinarity.'

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Dena Fam

is a guest at ZTG from October to December 2021, advancing her research on transformation of universities towards dynamic and relational inter- and transdisciplinary institutions.

'As a fellow group of the tdAcademy, we aim at digging deeper into Gramsci’s concept of hegemony to explore its potential in grasping dynamics and relationalities in transformations of universities towards inter- and transdisciplinarity.'

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Livia Fritz

is a guest at ZTG and Leuphana University from October to December 2021, exploring hegemonies in university transformations towards transdisciplinarity.

'As a fellow group of the tdAcademy, we aim at digging deeper into Gramsci’s concept of hegemony to explore its potential in grasping dynamics and relationalities in transformations of universities towards inter- and transdisciplinarity.'

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Gemma Tejedor Papell

is a guest at ZTG in July and September 2021, researching on transdisciplinary engineering education for sustainability.

'I’d like to support the tdAcademy by deepening into both transdisciplinary education for sustainability in engineering, and methods for monitoring the research (societal) effects in the field. A Summer School prototype on Transdisciplinarity and Sustainability in Education, focused on Technical Universities, will be advanced.'

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Regina Rhodius

is a fellow at Oeko-Institut e.V., contributing her Real-World-Lab expertise to research on innovative formats in the td context.

'As fellow of both tdAcademy und Oeko-Institut, I am looking forward to a joint reflection on the fast-developing landscape of new formats.'

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Peter Wehling

is a guest at ISOE from May to June 2021, where he is doing research on institutional resistances to transdisciplinarity.

'As a guest at ISOE, I would like to support the tdAcademy by critically examining both common biases and institutional structures in science which prevent transdisciplinarity from having a stronger scientific impact.'

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