Young Talents
PhD Candidates
The promotion of young scientists is part of the philosophy of food4future. We support the safegurading of scientific excellence for future generations by training and qualifying doctoral students and early career scientists in the context of working on and answering both highly topical and socially relevant questions in close cooperation with the f4f project leaders.
Our renowned partner institutions offer state-of-the-art research infrastructure as well as comprehensive doctoral programmes, including a wide range of opportunities for scientists to acquire additional competences. This is complemented by offers within the research network or the funding line »Agricultural Systems of the Future« such as writing schools, participating in international conferences and research stays. For students in earlier phases of their education, food4future is also a contact point for internships, bachelor's and master's theses.
We are also pleased to announce that we took part in the student competition for political education. Participating school classes have the opportunity to create creative projects on social topics that change every year and submit them to the Federal Agency for Civic Education. Our supported school group successfully took part in this competition and won a prize. We will continue to inspire school groups with our future food.
Kontakt
Koordination food4future
Leibniz-Institut für Gemüse- und Zierpflanzenbau (IGZ)
Theodor-Echtermeyer-Weg 1
14979 Großbeeren
Susann Pophal is project manager for science communication at the Leibniz Institute for Vegetable and Ornamental Crops (IGZ). She studied process and quality management in agricultural and horticultural sciences at the Humboldt University of Berlin and is particularly interested in target group-oriented science communication. In food4future she focuses on public relations, especially the communication of project topics on social media.
Learn more about the promotion of young talent of the food4future partner institutions here:
Young Talents
Social Dialogue
Dialogue with all social actors is very important to us. Our information activities are characterised by participatory formats that also appeal to non-scientific young people. The future of food and nutrition and the transformation process towards a sustainable food system cannot be shaped without the new generations!
In different contexts, we have therefore also adapted the food4future topics for different age groups. On our YouTube channel you can watch, among other things, the short video series on the topic of "Future Foods" created in cooperation with FUTURIUM, the House of Futures. We supported the “BioKiK” project in creating exhibits, educational material and information videos on the topic of algae and insects. But also on site, be it in the context of the International Green Week or in the Berlin underground at "Mind the Lab", and virtually, e.g. as part of the Leibniz Association's "Book A Scientist" format, we repeatedly take questions from interested people.
Masterabsolventin: Pia Charlotte Erben
Master's thesis: "Sowing words, reaping knowledge - The symbiosis of literature and natural sciences in the vision of future nutrition and its application in interdisciplinary educational projects"
2024 | Master's graduate Pia Charlotte Erben
Pia Charlotte Erben's interdisciplinary master's thesis, written at the University of Potsdam, combines scientific future research with literary visions. Supported by Dr. Natalie Moser and Dr. Torsten Andreas analyzes the work of innovative approaches to the food supply of the future. Our food4future research project is a central starting point for comparing the extreme scenarios “No Land” and “No Trade” with literary representations in science fiction. Erben impressively shows how literature can address global future issues such as climate change and food security and provide food for thought for scientific solutions. Topics such as vertical farming, macroalgae and jellyfish as protein sources are at the center of the analysis - important research fields that food4future is also driving forward. A special aspect of the work is the connection to education: by integrating scenarios from science fiction into interdisciplinary project weeks, students are intended to be sensitized to the challenges of nutrition in the future. The work thus underlines the importance of a creative, interdisciplinary approach to global problems.
Masterabsolventin: Sophia Renner
Master-Thesis: "The Potential of Berlin for Indoor Vertical" Farming
2024 | Master's Graduate Sophia Renner
In her recently defended master's thesis, "The Potential of Berlin for Indoor Vertical Farming," Sophia Renner explored unused underground structures such as subway tunnels and brewery cellars. The cellar of the former Tempelhof airport building was also examined to calculate the available space for vertical indoor farms and assess the potential for food self-sufficiency for the city's growing population. Under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Jürgen P. Kropp from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), Prof. Dr. Harald Grethe from the Humboldt University of Berlin (HU), and Ferike Thom, and in collaboration with colleagues from the food4future consortium, Sophia Renner has made a significant contribution to the research field of food4future. Special attention was paid to the soilless technology of hydroponics to grow vegetables and fruits independently of the surrounding landscape and climate risks. The identification of unused structures shows that they provide space to cover 10% of Berlin's annual vegetable demand. The combination of old and new - the existing structure and agricultural innovation - aims to achieve the highest possible acceptance among stakeholders and consumers.
"What are we gonna eat tomorrow?"
Student competition for political education 2023 Farming
2023 | food4future supported a participating group of students from the European School in Munich on the topic “What will we eat tomorrow?”. The student project was selected from a total of more than 1,900 projects and won a prize of €150. It is the largest German-language competition in this area and has been announced annually since 1971 by the Federal Agency for Civic Education. Participating school classes can create creative projects on social topics that change every year and submit them to the Federal Agency for Civic Education.
Falling Walls Lab Facory on bioeconomy
Workshops
2021 | The Alumni Spring School on the subject of bioeconomy followed the path from producers to consumers, "From Farm To Fork", taking different perspectives. The food4future workshop on future sustainable food systems focused on the scenarios "No Land" and "No Trade" while discussing new ideas and solutions for the design of future food production in these extreme settings. The second workshop, led by the f4f partners at Freie Universität Berlin (FUB), revolved around the central question: 'Could the future be good?' and challenged participants to think about a positively designed future.
Literature seminar: Science | Fiction
In cooperation with the German Studies Institute of the University of Potsdam
2021/22 | How can we provide future generations with enough healthy food? Together, food4future, literary scholar Dr. Natalie Moser (University of Potsdam) and German language and literature students examine recent futuristic novels (2021/22) and other science fiction literature (2022) for concepts regarding nutrition and production of food. Based on the interdisciplinary exchange about (fictional) future scenarios and the future of literary representations of nutrition and supply, approaches for new and disruptive research ideas for the agrifood sector might emerge.
Summer School: Sustainable Development Academy
Workshop
2021 | food4future participated in the international Summer School 2021 of the University of Potsdam with the workshop "Food innovations for sustainable nutrition". The participants, international students (bachelor to doctoral level), used design thinking methods to develop ideas for innovative foods based on the organisms studied in food4future.