We pledge action. ≠ We act. Most certainly so, when it comes to the climate crisis.In my latest commentary with Observer Research Foundation, I argue that the necessary transformation of our societies is underminded by pervasive climate misinformation. Beyond outright climate change denial, diffuse, distract, and delay tactics are far more widespread than one may... Continue Reading →
Launch of new project
Official as of October 1: I’ll be co-leading a new team working on disinformation in digital spaces. Under the title “Upgrade Democracy”, we will analyse and highlight the dynamics of disinformation. If this seems detached from my usual focus on sustainability, climate action, and innovation — I can assure you, it is not. Not only... Continue Reading →
Blog: Big Tech & The Climate
Read any highly ambitious climate pledges or reduction targets lately? I’m guessing yes, given the level of attention on corporate responsibility to reduce and mitigate their climate impact. Including —and especially so— Big Tech. However, to do so, all of them must effectively (not just on paper) reduce their emissions. Are they? Here’s the tl;dr... Continue Reading →
Climate litigation just became that much more powerful
161 for -- 8 abstensions -- 0 against🌍🌎🌏On July 28, 2022, the UN General Assembly adopted a historic resolution declaring access to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, a universal human right. This is huge. And it has been 50 years in the making.There are many reasons to applaud the many people whi tirelessly fought... Continue Reading →
Research: Environmental Impact of Publishing Houses
New research piece: Together with Chris Hartgerink, we look at scholarly publishing houses and their environmental impact in this guest post.TL;DR:1) We need transparent, comparable, machine-readable emissions data. We are in a Climate Emergency — there is no time to hide behind wordy (100 pages) reporting.2) Some of these research publishers are big enough to... Continue Reading →
Consultancy: Liberate Science’s 2021 environmental impact
I really enjoy working with smaller organisations on their sustainability and impact journeys. Seeing their creativity and progress is just so rewarding. Year 2 of Liberate Science‘s GHG assessment took Chris Hartgerink and me merely an hour to calculate. What did we learn? ✅ Practice helps✅ Every decision matters✅ Focus on both, reduction & mitigation... Continue Reading →
Panel: re:publica 2022
#rp22 — “Frictionless Planet” During this year’s re:publica 2022, June 8-10 in Berlin, I had the great pleasure of joining two remarkable women and longtime friends for a panel discussion on the intersection of open data, digital rights, and the climate crisis. Together with Open Knowledge Foundation CEO, Renata Avila and Sustainable Internet Lead with... Continue Reading →
Keynote: GedankenGut
Am 28. April war ich auf Gut Oppershausen in Wienhausen eingeladen von der IHK Lüneburg-Wolfsburg. In meiner Keynote ging es um das Zusammenspiel von Digitalisierung und Nachhaltigkeit mit einem klaren Credo: Wir müssen unternehmerischen Erfolg neu definieren. Erfolg muss an sozialen und umweltschützenden Aspekten, nicht nur finanziellen Gewinnen gemessen werden. ~Cathleen Berger, @_cberger_Tweet Ein kurzes... Continue Reading →
Interview: IHK Lüneburg
Auf Einladung der IHK Lüneburg-Wolfsburg durfte ich Anne Klesse ein Interview zu den Zusammenhängen von Digitalisierung und Nachhaltigkeit geben. Es war ein spannendes Gespräch und ich freue mich darauf im April auf Gut Oppershausen meine Gedanken in einem längeren Vortrag zu vertiefen. Anmeldungen zum Event sind nach wie vor möglich, Link im Interview.
Blog: The UK’s fight against Greenwashing. And why the Oatly case presents a conundrum.
A short while back, the UK's CMA practically declared greenwashing illegal (by reiterating consumer protection law). One of the recent cases, enforcing these guidelines, was Oatly, an oat milk consumer brand. Their ads are generally designed as advocacy campaigns that raise awareness around the climate crisis, and our dietary choices. We need more companies contributing... Continue Reading →