Leuphana University Lüneburg is pleased to announce the appointment of Prof. Harald Hantke as Co-Chair of the UNESCO Chair in Higher Education for Sustainable Development. His expertise in social science education, particularly at the intersection of political, economic, and vocational education, will strengthen the Chair’s interdisciplinary work and future direction. Together with Chairholder Daniel Fischer, Harald will contribute to advancing transformative learning, research, and international collaboration within the global ESD community.
Prof. Harald Hantke has been appointed as Co-Chair of the UNESCO Chair in Higher Education for Sustainable Development at Leuphana University of Lüneburg. This announcement comes at a time when the university marks the twentieth year of establishment of the Chair at Leuphana.
The UNESCO Chairs programme was started by UNESCO in the year 1992 to bring the expertise from the scientific world closer to the work of UNESCO. According to UNESCO, a UNESCO Chair is a team led by a higher education or research institution that partners with UNESCO on a project to advance knowledge and practice in an area of common priority. There are currently some 1,000 UNESCO Chairs in different fields from across the globe. Germany hosts 16 UNESCO Chairs and constitutes one of the most active networks of the UNESCO Chairs.
The UNESCO Chair in Higher Education for Sustainable Development was one of the earlier Chairs established in Germany and leads an international network to advance cooperation and knowledge regarding Education for Sustainable Development and Social Transformation.
Together with Chairholder Prof. Daniel Fischer, Harald will play an important role in shaping the further development of higher education for sustainable development. With his expertise in social science education, especially at the interface of political, economic, and vocational education, Harald will broaden the Chair's profile in key future-oriented fields. His works on democracy education, curriculum development, dealing (of teachers and learners) with complexities, uncertainties, ambiguities, and contradictions, and the shaping of civic transformation processes will enrich the interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary orientation of the Chair.
Commenting on the announcement, the current Chairholder, Prof. Daniel Fischer, opines, "The appointment of Prof. Dr. Hantke is an important step for us in further expanding the visibility, networking, and effectiveness of the UNESCO Chair. A warm welcome!"
For his part, Professor Hantke says: "I am proud to have this exceptional opportunity to advance sustainability research in the field of social science education and vocational education as a UNESCO Co-Chair to also strengthen the profile of the Chair. The principle of my work at Leuphana is to obtain scientific expertise to enable learners, teachers, policy makers and communities to shape the future at all levels. This perfectly fits with the chair's work. I am looking forward to the collaboration!".
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Professor Daniel Fischer & Professor Harald Hantke
UNESCO Chair in Higher Education for Sustainable Development,
Leuphana University Lüneburg, Germany
