The Emile Durkheim Research Centre at the University of Bonn and the German Institute for Development and Sustainability (IDOS) organised an interdisciplinary conference on 12 and 13 June entitled “Climate Change as a Crisis of Nature?”. The timing of the event was deliberately chosen, as consultations are currently underway once again in Bonn to prepare for the UN Climate Change Conference. The conference addressed the question of the extent to which climate change can be understood not only as an ecological challenge, but as a comprehensive social, cultural, economic, political and legal crisis. The aim was to bring together different academic perspectives and to critically reflect on diverse interpretations and regulatory approaches to dealing with the profound changes in nature.

AIA Fellows Anthony Acuqah, Aliru Abiodun Adiatu, Zarina Burkadze, Filipe Mendonca, Debora Prado and Ramya Vijaya attended the event accompanied by Manuel Becker from the Academy. It was a wonderful opportunity to discuss the pressing issues affecting us all and to build networks within Bonn’s academic community. The discussions centred on the realisation that climate change goes far beyond a mere environmental change. The participants examined how different knowledge systems, governance structures, economic mechanisms and normative concepts shape the perception and regulation of natural transformation processes. It became clear that the question of the relationship between humans and nature is closely linked to social power relations, cultural patterns of interpretation and political decision-making processes. Overall, the event highlighted that tackling climate change requires more than just technical or scientific solutions. Rather, it demands a comprehensive examination of the social, cultural and normative foundations of our understanding of nature, responsibility and global cooperation.