Under the motto "Together we know more", the city of Wolfenbüttel's third Climate Forum will take place on 16 April - for the first time on the campus of Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences (Salzdahlumer Straße 46/48). All interested parties can look forward to a varied programme.
Short talks by Ostfalia researchers will be held in the auditorium from 2 pm. The programme will focus on sustainable consumption, innovative building technology and recycling as well as sustainable teaching in the age of artificial intelligence. The afternoon programme will be complemented by a campus rally, where sustainability can be experienced by all ages, as well as a market of opportunities. Local initiatives and extracurricular learning centres will present themselves there.
Ostfalia Vice-President Volker Küch is delighted to welcome the city's Climate Forum to the campus this year: "Our doors are wide open to anyone who is interested in climate protection and creative solutions - and ideally here, where the spirit of research and drive for action are at home. As a place of research and learning, it is our aim to make concrete contributions to climate protection and to see ourselves as a place of change. Our aim is to gradually make Ostfalia University more sustainable and therefore more fit for the future and to encourage our students to contribute their perspectives and ideas on this important topic for us all. The Climate Forum offers an excellent platform for combining scientific findings with practical initiatives."
Eckart von Hirschhausen to speak in the evening
The highlight of the day for many will be the guest lecture by Eckart von Hirschhausen. The doctor, bestselling author and science journalist launched his own foundation "Healthy Earth - Healthy People (external link, opens in a new window)" in 2020. For him, the climate crisis is no longer a purely ecological problem, but the greatest health threat of our time.
The Wolfenbüttel Future Prize will also be awarded for the first time at the Climate Forum. It was awarded for the first time in 2025 and honours projects that make an active contribution to sustainability in the district of Wolfenbüttel - for example in the areas of the environment, education, social cohesion, resource conservation or energy. The prize is jointly organised by the city and district of Wolfenbüttel, the Curt Mast Jägermeister Foundation, Ostfalia University and the Asse Future Fund.
Sustainability as a key task for everyone
Alongside digital transformation and mobility, sustainability is one of the key future topics in the Ostfalia University's strategy concept. The university sees overcoming the climate and biodiversity crisis and the transition to sustainable production, business and lifestyles that guarantee participation opportunities for all as the key task for the future of society worldwide.
This includes reviewing the content of study programmes with regard to the consideration of the concept of sustainability during each (re-)accreditation and increasingly acquiring research and transfer projects on sustainability topics. Ostfalia conducts research in many ways on climate and environmentally relevant topics, for example in the areas of water storage, energy efficiency, environmental sensor technology and emissions reduction. Most recently, Nha Trang University awarded Ostfalia professors Max Ehleben, Thomas Potempa and Harald Rau an honorary doctorate. The scientists had jointly developed a recycling system for fishing nets in Vietnam as part of the REVFIN research project.
With the "Sustainable Ostfalia (NachOs)" project, a contact point was created at the university to take up and bring together all the threads surrounding the topic. Ostfalia promotes interdisciplinary dialogue on sustainability topics through established flagship projects such as the Sustainability Forum of the Faculty of Law/Brunswick European Law School in cooperation with the district of Wolfenbüttel or newer formats such as the Sustainability Lecture Series or an edition of the Startup Lunch at WissensOrt Wolfenbüttel (WOW) focusing on sustainable start-up ideas.
The complete programme of the Wolfenbüttel Climate Forum:
www.wolfenbuettel.de/klimaforum (external link, opens in a new window)
Wolfenbüttel Climate Forum
When?
Thursday, 16 April 2026
Green table from 1 pm (registration until 2 April)
Programme for everyone from 2 pm (without registration)
There will be a ticket system for the evening programme. Tickets are free of charge and can be collected on 16 April from 2 pm in the Ostfalia foyer.
Where?
Ostfalia University
Salzdahlumer Straße 46/48
38302 Wolfenbüttel
Your contact at the City of Wolfenbüttel:
Sophie Charlotte Lakemann
Wolfenbüttel City Council
Climate Protection and Environment
City market 3-6
38300 Wolfenbüttel
Telephone: 05331 86-247