The event kicked off with an official welcome from Hochschule Geisenheim University Vice-President Professor Mirjam Hey, as well as an introduction to the work of the nRNA and the concept of Education for Sustainable Development. The morning was then dedicated to mutual inspiration, with speakers from the different universities presenting their teaching projects.
Yasmin Peters (Hochschule Geisenheim University) presented her university’s competency model, which aims at visualizing interdisciplinary skills and integrating them into everyday teaching at Geisenheim in a transparent and step-by-step process. Professor Marianne Darbi (Hochschule Geisenheim University) discussed her module ‘Debating Current Planning Issues’, which uses debate as a method to equip students with the skills to analyze future challenges and engage in constructive dialog about how to tackle them.
Two representatives from EBS Universität, Dr Marcus Kreikebaum and Rolf Tilmes, then took turns presenting. Kreikebaum described his service learning program ‘SCI Do it & Educare’, which encourages students to reflect on assumed truths and value judgemnts through a change of perspective. Tilmes then introduced listeners to the sustainable finance advanced training program, which provides participants with in-depth knowledge on the transformation of the economy in the context of sustainable financing strategies.
Professor Cornelia Lorenz-Haas (Bingen UAS) then presented on her multi-disciplinary service learning workshop entitled ‘Minimize Your Footprint – Grow Your Handprint!’, where students develop their own sustainability projects and implement them together with external partners. Dr Thorsten Zellmann (Bingen UAS) then provided an excellent transition into the joint work scheduled for the afternoon with his call for the development of a new teaching concept for the sustainable transformation of agricultural and food systems. All of the presentations demonstrated the depth of knowledge and passion for sustainable teaching that exists at the three universities, as well as how it is being actively used to create future-oriented lectures, workshops, and seminars.
During the interactive World Café, participants had the opportunity to discuss their takeaways from the presentations. In addition, there was joint reflection on the areas that are still lacking at the respective universities and how these gaps can be closed through collaboration. These ideas were fleshed out further in the subsequent group work phase of the event, and participants had the chance to present the resulting cooperation projects and planned next steps.
In the event’s final discussion session, the importance of creating space for inspiration and mutual support in the future was emphasized once more. “The event today has demonstrated that, together, we can make a considerable impact. Sustainable teaching is built through exchange, interdisciplinary perspectives, and teamwork,” said one participant about their experience.
The first nRNA-TRILOG event on sustainable teaching impressively illustrated how the three universities stand to benefit from networking and the joint use of resources. This initial exchange of ideas made it clear that the expertise of the individual universities is particularly complementary and that there are plenty of opportunities to harness their collaborative potential to further develop sustainable teaching strategies.
The next nRNA-TRILOG event – this time on the topic of research – will take place on June 5, 2025, at Hochschule Geisenheim University. The nRNA-TRILOG events are all-day formats that strengthen interdisciplinary exchange and initiate new collaborative projects. They are dedicated to different sustainability topics in various spheres of activity across all divisions of the institution, including governance, operations, teaching, research, and outreach. In addition to cross-university collaboration, the nRNA aims to promote regional networking and strengthen sustainability awareness among the population, in cooperation with stakeholders from politics, business, and society.
