Prof. Dr. Stefanie Sievers-Glotzbach from the RightSeeds team, Hendrik Wolter (EGON) and Prof. Dr. Dirk Albach from the Institute of Biology were awarded the Teaching Prize in the category “Research-based Learning” for their course “Practical Project – What kind(s) of future varieties do we need?”During this seminar, students had the opportunity to practice interdisciplinary cooperation and develop their own small research project on crops in organic farming. Through the independent planning and implementation of the project they were able to gain knowledge about useful plants and could learn a lot about the scientific process as such.
The Teaching Prize is awarded at the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg each academic year for different categories. Courses are only nominated if they are suggested by students. A jury consisting of university lecturers, students from all faculties and external members then decides on the award.
Julia Tschersich and Nina Gmeiner from the RightSeeds team also received a prize in the category “Best Course Evaluation” for their seminar “Happiness without growth – discussion of well-being concepts as foundations for a degrowth society”. In this category the teachers apply with the results of their course evaluation. Once again, Julia Tschersich and Nina Gmeiner scored best with their course this year. The award ceremony took place on 28th Nov 2019 as a university public ceremony. The prize winners in each category received prize money for their teaching.
Author: Svenja Puls
Julia Tschersich is currently working as a visiting research scholar at the University of California, Santa Cruz in the Environmental Studies department from March to June 2019. The University has a reputation as being a center for Critical Food Studies, challenging power relations, racial issues and knowledge discourses in food and agriculture. Her sponsor, Julia Guthman, has published widely on this topic, including her co-edited book “The New Food Activism: Opposition, Cooperation, and Collective Action” with Alison Hope Alkon. Besides Critical Food Studies, many researchers focus on social movements, environmental governance and political change. The University hosts diverse insightful events and talks, for instance its weekly Environmental Studies lecture series. For instance, Maywa Montenegro de Wit, a Postdoctoral Fellow at UC Davis, presented her work on the Open Source Seed Initiative in the US and their struggles for seed freedom. The University also hosts a student-run Demeter Seed Library, which contributes to conserving plant genetic diversity by saving seeds, cataloguing them and distributing them to farmers and gardeners. The campus is beautifully located amongst the famous Californian Redwoods and offers a perfect location for engaging in environmental research.
Author: Svenja Puls
The course “Diving Deep – Conceptual and Empirical Perspectives on Social-Ecological Transformations” offered by RightSeeds team members Nina Gmeiner and Julia Tschersich was awarded the Teaching Prize (“Preis der Lehre”). The seminar gives students an insight into the scientific discourse on social-ecological transformation.
The Teaching Prize is awarded each academic year at the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg for different categories. In principle, courses only come into the running if they are suggested by students. A jury consisting of university lecturers, students from all faculties and external members then decides on the award. A further prize category is the category “course evaluation”. There, the lecturers apply themselves with the results of their course evaluation. Julia Tschersich and Nina Gmeiner scored best in this category with their offered seminar. The award ceremony took place on November 29th of 2018 as a university public ceremony, the prize winners in each category received earmarked prize money.
