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University of Vechta

The University of Vechta is located in Lower Saxony, Germany. Areas of research include education and discipline-specific pedagogies, social sciences, regional development/ rural areas, landscape ecology, social, political, cultural and economic change, business ethics, and Sustainable Development. Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) is a key element of the University of Vechta’s Knowledge Transfer Strategy. In 2012, the university has built up a Science Shop located in Cloppenburg, thus connecting the two counties (Cloppenburg and Vechta) of the Oldenburger Muensterland. The “Coordination Center for transformative research in areas of intensive agriculture” is located at the University of Vechta. It represents a network of universities and business associations that have an excellent expertise in the field of agriculture and food.

Barbara Grabkowsky

Dr. Barbara Grabkowsky is managing director of the “Coordination centre for transformation of regions with intensive agriculture” at the University of Vechta. She holds a PhD in livestock epidemiology and environmental sciences and has been director for key account management in Europe, Middle East and Africa as well as CSR programme director for several years in an international pharmaceutical company. At this position, Barbara led several projects related to sustainable food production. Due to her industry work, Barbara brings strong expertise in corporate social responsibility, strategic business development, ethical stewardship, transformational leadership as well as value added customer relation development through co-social projects.

Hannah Hoff

Hannah Hoff is the TeRRIFICA project coordinator at the University of Vechta and for the German pilot region “Oldenburger Muensterland”. She studied biomedicine and during the studies and an additional master programme in Higher Education, she developed a strong interest in science communication and project management. Working for a non-profit foundation, she gained extensive experiences in these fields, which lead her to the TeRRIFICA project. Hannah is now part of the Science Shop Vechta/Cloppenburg that belongs to the University of Vechta.

Katrin Hedemann

Katrin Hedemann is working in different projects on science communication and citizen science at Science Shop Vechta/Cloppenburg since December 2019. During this time, she has coordinated two Horizon 2020 proposals. She will support activities in the German pilot region “Oldenburger Münsterland” from February 2021 on. Her academic background is in media studies and social sciences. Moreover, she has a practical background from a vocational training at a newspaper publishing house.

Daniel Ludwig

Dr. Daniel Ludwig leads the Knowledge Transfer Office in the Unit for Research Development and Knowledge Transfer at the University of Vechta. He worked as a lecturer, researcher, and project manager in related fields, such as economics and economic policy, energy and environmental economics, regional development, and entrepreneurship. He has experience in establishing contact points for public engagement with science through Science Shops. In 2006, he was one of the founders of the Science Shop in Zittau (“Wissenschaftsladen Zittau”, WTT e.V.), which has also been involved in the PERARES project. Since November 2011, Daniel has worked at Vechta University and is, among other tasks, responsible for the Science Shop Vechta/ Cloppenburg and the development and management of science shop projects.

Marco Rieckmann

Dr. Marco Rieckmann, Professor of Higher Education Development at University of Vechta, doctoral degree in education, areas of expertise: (higher) education for sustainable development, sustainability in the university context, sustainability communication, higher education development. He works with UNESCO and UN Environment, and is president of the German-Speaking Network of Teacher Education for Sustainable Development, and member of the board of the Network Environmental and Sustainability Education Research of the European Education Research Association.