Upcoming events

4. September 2026 – 25. Oktober 2026, Kornhausforum Bern

Wer darf Kinder haben und unter welchen Bedingungen? Wer wird dabei unterstützt, Kinder zu bekommen, und wer wird daran gehindert? Was haben Grenzen und Geopolitik mit den intimsten Entscheidungen unseres Lebens zu tun?

Mehr Infos hier

Content The workshop prepares early-career researchers for a constructive and impactful exchange with policymakers. Participants will gain essential skills in understanding political institutions and policy processes and learn how to contribute effectively to policymaking. They will learn about the distinct roles of researchers and policymakers in shaping public decisions and develop practical skills for navigating political institutions and policy debates, with a focus on effective communication of scientific knowledge to political audiences. The workshop combines theoretical input with practical exercises. Participants will immediately apply the newly gained knowledge on political processes and institutions in a case study. The afternoon will include a simulation of an expert hearing in a parliamentary commission, where participants will experience the challenges that politicians face when negotiating political solutions to recognize what factors play a role in political decision-making in addition to scientific evidence. Moreover, participants will learn how to present complex information in a precise, condensed and impactful manner tailored to policymakers. The workshop will work with cases from within the Swiss political system as a reference example for developing transferable skills also applicable in other contexts.

Learn more here

Planning for Impact: Theory of Change for Transdisciplinary Research

You know what your project is meant to do. But do you also know why these particular steps should lead to the change you want to see?

A Theory of Change helps you answer that question honestly. It makes explicit the assumptions behind a project and shows how your activities are expected to lead to the intended impact, via concrete results (outputs) and changes among those involved (outcomes). It also reveals where the logic still has gaps.

This is especially important in transdisciplinary research. Anyone working with partners from practice, public administration or civil society wants to generate new knowledge and, at the same time, make a difference. Impact orientation is therefore considered a hallmark of good transdisciplinary research. That doesn't make it easy: impact often only becomes visible after a project ends and can rarely be attributed to a single project. In this workshop, you will develop your own Theory of Change step by step and leave with a first draft.

In the workshop, you will

• learn what impact orientation means in transdisciplinary research and which challenges you are likely to encounter.
• get to know the Theory of Change as a transdisciplinary method and find out how to develop it together with your partners.
• apply what you have learned directly to your own research and work out a first draft of your Theory of Change, for an ongoing project or a proposal in preparation.
• exchange ideas with other researchers facing similar questions.

Who it's for: Researchers who are planning or running a transdisciplinary project, or writing a proposal for one.

Tip: Bring your own project idea or a draft proposal. It will form the basis of your Theory of Change in the workshop, so you can keep working with it straight away.

Sign-up! Workshop in German.

Engaged UniBE and Institute of Geography are pleased to support the following talk:

Rethinking Governance Perspectives – From Mission to Practice

We are thrilled to welcome Prof. Rob Raven (Monash University, Melbourne/Australia) to Bern!

Rob will be visiting us for a special stop-off straight after the International Sustainability Transitions Conference (IST) in Zurich – and we couldn’t be more delighted. Rob is Director of the Sustainability Transitions Lab at Monash Business School, a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, and one of the world's most influential researchers on sustainability transitions (Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher, top 2% globally). With over 160 publications, his work has shaped how we think about the role of institutions in driving change toward a more sustainable future.

In this talk, Rob takes us through mission-oriented innovation, university living labs, and sustainability transitions research to tackle a bold question: can universities move beyond observing change to actively driving it? Drawing on over 50 expert interviews and cross-country comparisons, he offers a compelling, multi-level view of how universities can move from strategic missions to institutional governance to everyday research practice.

A must-attend talk for anyone passionate about the future of higher education, governance, and societal transformation!
 

Thursday, 3 September 2026 | 16:00–17:30
Hörsaal 2, Institute of Geography, Hallerstrasse 12, 3012 Bern

Agenda items:

• Welcome by Vice-Rector Heike Mayer
• Presentation by Rob Raven
• Q&A and moderated discussion
• Apéro

Join us afterward for an apéro – connect, discuss, and toast with us!

Hosted by Engaged UniBE and the Unit Economic Geography at the Institute of Geography, University of Bern.

Everyone is warmly welcome – see you there! 🎉 Please register here

More infos about the topic and Rob Raven here.

Are you studying at a higher education in Bern and interested in networking with other students around the topic of sustainable development? Then come to our cross-university networking event organised by Students4Sustainability!

We will start with a delicious vegan aperitif, where you can get to know new people in a relaxed atmosphere. Then it's time for some fun: we will play a game of Stadt-Land-Fluss in groups, specifically on the topic of sustainable development. There are great prizes to be won. You'll also get to know Students4Sustainability, exchange ideas with committed students and maybe even find members for your cross-university project.

The event is open to all students and staff at Bern's higher education institutions, and anyone interested in sustainable development.

Join the Networks4Sustainability Event!

When? Thursday, 5 March 2026, from 6:15 p.m. to approx. 8:30 p.m.

Where? Plenary room (1st floor) PH NMS, Nägeligasse 7, 3011 Bern

Come along and become part of a community that makes a difference! Register at this link.

The first "Wissenschaftsapéro", a co-production of Engaged UniBE and the “Altes Pfarrhaus” meeting place in Muri, took place on March 12. Professor Dr. Dr. Claus Beisbart from the Institute of Philosophy spoke on the topic of “Thinking AI. A future technology from a philosophical perspective” and entered in a discussion with the audience. We would like to thank all participants for the interesting evening and look forward to the next Wissenschaftsapéro on May 21.

The first "Wissenschaftsapéro", a co-production of Engaged UniBE and the “Altes Pfarrhaus” meeting place in Muri, took place on March 12. Professor Dr. Dr. Claus Beisbart from the Institute of Philosophy spoke on the topic of “Thinking AI. A future technology from a philosophical perspective” and entered in a discussion with the audience. We would like to thank all participants for the interesting evening and look forward to the next Wissenschaftsapéro on May 21.

On January 20, 2025, the exciting cross-university project “RealTransform: Real-world laboratories as transformation spaces for sustainable development in universities and society” was launched. In the coming months, we will set the course for real-world experiments that could mark the start of real-world laboratories.

Dr. Lilian Julia Trechsel, Jonas Niederberger and Dr. Claudia Saalfrank are looking forward to working with Dr. rer. pol. Jeannette Behringer, Linde Warland from the University of Zurich, Dr. Sarah-Jane Conrad, Dr. Moritz Gubler and Nina Simonett from the Bern University of Teacher Education, Dr. Clemens Mader, Prof. Dr. Mark Krieger and Dr. Christoph Küffer from the Ostschweizer Fachhochschule, Dr. Stefan Müller from the Network for Transdisciplinary Research and Leonie Barnsteiner from the University of Zurich Student Sustainability Commission and the resulting opportunities for sustainable development. 🚀

At the beginning of December, representatives from the Länggasse, the municipality of Köniz, the Diemtigtal Nature Park and the University of Bern met to discuss projects and key points of transdisciplinary collaboration.

The workshop took place ‘at the gateway to the Diemtigtal’ on the premises of the Diemtigtal Nature Park in Oey.

On October 24, Hugues Abriel (Vice-Rector Research and Innovation), Elmar Anhalt (Dean of the Faculty of Humanities) and Sébastien Hug (Head of the Innovation Office) opened the University of Bern's Ideas Lab.

The Ideas Lab on Fabrikstrasse is an open project and creative space that is available free of charge to all students, researchers and employees of UniBE.

An inspiring place for #EngagedUniBE!