Research

Currently, large parts of the global population lack access to the basic services for a dignified life (Kikstra et al. 2021, Rammelt et al. 2021). At the same time, global resource use surges, driving climate change and biodiversity loss (UNEP 2019, 2024). This overuse is primarily driven by high-income nations which surpass their fair ecological share (Fanning et al. 2022) by importing resources from and pollution to low-income countries (Dorninger et al. 2021; Bruckner et al. 2023). The applicants have a strong track record in addressing these interconnected issues and, despite different approaches, share common goal: tackling global inequalities to enable dignified lives for all within planetary limits. We aim for the following objectives: 1. Exchange knowledge on concepts, data, and methods for describing access to the services for a dignified life and link it to transgression of planetary resource limits. 2. Conceptualize and operationalize the connections between access to services, planetary limits, and unequal resource trade. 3. Share insights through seminars for students in relevant master's programs. 4. Strengthen cooperation with internal and external partners.

COIN 2.0 plans to comprehensively update and expand the analysis of costs of inaction in the climate crisis, which were systematically recorded for Austria for the first time in COIN 1.0 in 2014. An additional focus will be on the social costs and their distribution among different groups of people, as well as on linking these costs to the national strategy for adaptation to climate change. The analyses of the impacts on human health and the healthcare system, natural hazards and disaster management, water supply, agriculture and food security, forestry and the protective function of forests will be carried out under the leadership of five BOKU institutes.

This research project examines emerging geographies of decarbonization beyond traditional North-South distinctions through a comparative analysis of lithium mining and green hydrogen production in Chile and Spain. As the transition to a low-carbon future intensifies the demand for critical raw materials and clean energy carriers, new socio-spatial configurations are emerging that challenge conventional understanding of global relations. The project investigates how the climate crisis and geopolitical tensions have accelerated both extractive activities in the Global South and onshoring initiatives in Europe, creating complex interdependencies. By analyzing territorial conflicts surrounding decarbonization efforts, the research aims to conceptualize these emerging geographies and reassess North-South relations in the context of green energy transitions. Drawing on an interdisciplinary theoretical framework that integrates global production network (GPN) approaches with concepts of territoriality, the study addresses three key questions: (1) What socio-spatial dimensions characterize decarbonization geographies in Chile and Spain? (2) How can these emerging geographies be conceptualized? (3) How does the green energy transition transform our understanding of North-South relations? The methodology combines field research in capital cities and extraction territories with stakeholder interviews, ethnographic observation, and Q-Methodology to examine actors, narratives, institutions, and conflicts. The project is embedded in an international network of collaborating partners and includes writing retreats and a workshop to develop findings. DecarboGraphies contributes to ongoing debates on green extractivism and colonialism by moving beyond binary perspectives and developing new analytical frameworks for understanding the territorial dynamics of global decarbonization. Results will be published in high-ranking journals, presented at international conferences, and disseminated through a policy brief and short film to enhance public accessibility and visibility.