Group member Vipul Chawla presented his research at the Homecoming of the Göttingen School of Development Economics. The presentation was a joint work with Prof. Kopp entitled "A Room of One’s Own? A Panel Data Analysis of Income Inequality and Living Space in Post-Communist and Non-Post-Communist Countries in Europe.”

This study explores the relationship between income inequality and living space in Europe, and whether this association differs between post-communist and non-post-communist countries. The results suggest a significant positive but non-linear relationship between income inequality and living space, which may be explained by competing channels in play: conspicuous consumption at the top and housing crowding at the bottom of the income distribution.

On November 10, 2026, the Department of Agricultural Policy and Market Research invited Prof. Julia Höhler from Wageningen University and Research.

She presented her work entitled "Organising the Bioeconomy: Ownership, Contracts and Cooperation.” Drawing on experimental evidence from farmers and foresters, she discussed how non-binding agreements affect contributions to public goods. The findings offered insights into the design of institutional arrangements that support cooperation and help align private incentives with broader societal objectives in agriculture and forestry.
An overview of all upcoming presentations can be found here.

Vipul Chawla, research assistant to the chair, was awarded the Scholarship for Exceptional Commitment at the University of Göttingen. The scholarship is awarded to students who have demonstrated good academic performance and outstanding commitment in an international
university context.
 
The award recognises his work on "DevEcon Friends,” a student self-help group that provides students with a safe space to talk about their daily struggles and feel understood. It has become a key resource for students' mental well-being at the university. He has also been nominated for the Lower Saxony Science Prize 2026 (Niedersächsischer Wissenschaftspreis) for his work driving student engagement by organising preparatory courses for incoming students, academic excursions, career events, and support groups.

On October 29, 2026, Dr. Markus Nabernegg, postdoctoral researcher at the Professorship for Global Nutrition and Trade, officially received his doctoral certificate during the 20th Annual Reception of Faculty III at the University of Siegen. During the ceremony, Markus briefly presented his doctoral dissertation, "Essays on Inequality, Digitalization, and the Environment," completed under the supervision of Prof. Thomas Kopp. The reception, held at the Haus der Siegerländer Wirtschaft in Siegen, celebrated the achievements of doctoral graduates and other members of the academic community.
We thank Faculty III at the University of Siegen for a wonderful evening.

On October 27, 2026, the Department of Agricultural Policy and Market Research kicked off our weekly Research Seminar for the Winter Semester 2026/27! 

We welcomed Prof. Vivian Wei Huang from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Uppsala, who presented her work entitled "Are Environmental Efficiencies of Swedish Agriculture More Transient or More Persistent? Heterogeneity and Determinants.” The study estimates Swedish agriculture's environmental efficiency over 15 years using the Generalised True Random Effects approach, and finds that targeted policies promoting energy-efficient technologies, farm-size optimisation, and refined subsidy structures could improve long-term environmental performance.
Thank you, Vivian, for your valuable insights and presentation!

An overview of all upcoming presentations in this semester can be found here <https://www.uni-giessen.de/en/faculties/f09/institutes/agri/gnt/teaching/winter26-27/research-seminar>.

The Chair for Global Nutrition and Trade (Prof. Tom Kopp) and the Chair for International Food and Nutrition Security (Prof. Gudrun Keding) have launched a new soft skill training series for the winter term 2026/27. Sessions take place every Wednesday on a wide range of topics.

In the first session, "The life cycle of academic articles and the publication process,” Prof. Tom Kopp introduced how scientific quality is assessed, including common indicators for evaluating researchers and academic journals and their strengths and limitations. Participants also learned about the peer-review and publication process, including how to respond effectively to reviewers’ comments from submission to publication.

The upcoming sessions and more details can be found here <https://www.uni-giessen.de/en/faculties/f09/institutes/agri/gnt/teaching/winter26-27/soft-skill-course>.

Thomas Kopp, Fynn Schmidt, Inga Stademann, Julia Wiethüchter, Severin Caspari and Niklas Heiland recently published the paper "Creating realities on trial: experimental organizational development for sustainability in public institutions” in Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy.

This study investigates learning processes within universities and experimental pathways for the transformation of higher education institutions (HEIs) towards ecological and social sustainability. Using a case study approach, the study compares sustainability challenges at two German universities, concluding that changes towards sustainability are deemed necessary.

Kopp, T., Schmidt, F., Stademann, I., Wiethüchter, J., Caspari, S., & Heiland, N. (2027). Creating realities on trial: experimental organizational development for sustainability in public institutions. Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy, 23(1).
https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2026.2735356

At the invitation of the German Export Association for Food and Agriproducts (GEFA e.V.), Prof. Thomas Kopp took part in a parliamentary evening-, "Free Trade in a Changing World", organized at the German Parliamentary Society in Berlin. He gave the keynote on "Open markets in an uncertain world - agricultural trade between export opportunities, resilience and geopolitical risks", followed by a discussion with the ohter guests, including Ms. PSt Silvia Breher, MdB, Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Food and Regional Affairs, Mr. Hermann Färber, MdB, Chair of the Committee on Agriculture, Food and Regional Affairs and Mr. Jan-Bernd Stärk, acting GEFA spokesperson. 

Our final GreenPaths meeting at the Universidad de Cantabria in Santander brought colleagues together to share findings, reflect on three years of collaboration, and consider what comes next for just green transitions.
Daniel Chavez and Donna Andrews delivered thought-provoking keynotes, connecting European transitions with wider global questions on a socially just and ecologically sustainable transition and highlighting the importance of solidarity across borders.
A memorable contribution came from our colleague Aimen Abbas, who reflected on her experience as a junior scholar from Pakistan in GreenPaths. The talk highlighted how supportive collaboration, openness to different perspectives, and space to learn can help early-career researchers grow. Her reflections on finding a sense of community within the project gave our final meeting a particularly meaningful closing note.
Thank you to all our colleagues and partners for the knowledge, care, and commitment they brought to GreenPaths. A special thank you to Judith Clifton, Daniel Díaz-Fuentes, Ana Lara Gómez Peña, and Marcos Fernández Gutiérrez for hosting us in Santander.
As the project draws to a close, we take forward both what we have learned and the relationships built along the way.

Prof. Kopp participated at the annual meeting of the German Association of Agricultural Economists (GeWiSoLa), focusing on the theme "Agriculture and rural areas: challenges in a local, regional and global context", at which there was also a reunion with colleagues from Göttingen.

Prof. Thomas Kopp participated in the panel discussion “Toward ‘Long-Term Competitiveness’ in the EU?” at the Annual ELU-S Conference in Lisbon on September 3, 2026. In his contribution, entitled “Beyond Competitiveness as Usual: Toward a Sustainable European Competitiveness Strategy,” he discussed the limitations of an efficiency-focused approach to European competitiveness and argued for a broader understanding of long-term competitiveness.

The contribution highlighted the interdependence of economic dynamism, political functioning, and environmental integrity, arguing that none of these dimensions can be traded off against the others without ultimately compromising Europe's long-term competitiveness. The panel brought together different perspectives on how environmental, social, political, technological, and economic factors should inform the EU's future competitiveness strategy.

Several members of our group attended the 16th Conference of the European Society for Ecological Economics (ESEE) from June 30th until July 3rd in Ghent, Belgium. Four group members as well as Professor Kopp presented their current work and enjoyed the discussions with ecological economists from across Europe.

Syeda Aimen Abbas presented her paper titled “Greener at Home, Dirtier Abroad? Environmental Policy Stringency and Emissions Embodied in EU Imports.” This work explores how stricter EU environmental policies can be linked to increasing emissions embodied in imports.

Marcel Böhl, in a joint work with Steffen Lange titled "Rising Prices, Rising Populism: Inflation and Far-Right Populists' Electoral Gains in Western Europe,” analyses a monthly panel dataset of 19 countries over 25 years. This study concludes that inflation tends to increase far-right support in Western European countries.

Markus Nabernegg discussed a joint paper with Luca Salvatici titled "Where is the EKC turning point? A meta-study of in-sample vs. out-of-sample turning points for production- and consumption-based carbon indicators.” This paper reviews studies that utilise the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) to classify them as no EKC, in-range EKC, or out-of-range EKC.

Vipul Chawla presented a paper titled "A Room of One’s Own? A Panel Data Analysis of Income Inequality and Living Space in Post-Communist and Non-Post-Communist Countries in Europe." This study explores the relationship between income inequality and living space in Europe, and whether this association differs between post-communist and non-post-communist countries.

Prof. Thomas Kopp discussed a collaborative research with Severin Caspari and Niklas Heiland titled "Reducing Emotional Distress in Academic Work Environments through Experimental Organizational Development.” This work reveals that a two-hour annual workshop appears to meaningfully strengthen leadership practices and improve the working conditions of junior researchers at universities.

Inga Stademann, Julia Wiethüchter, Pia Mamut, Hannes Wender and Thomas Kopp recently published the paper "Grasping Sustainability Culture in Higher Education Institutions: Conceptualizing and Understanding Key Elements" in Higher Education Quarterly. 

This study assesses the need for a robust sustainability culture to support long-term structural reforms in higher education institutions. The analysis highlights participatory structures, respectful work environments, and transparent communication as critical cultural conditions that shape the effectiveness of sustainability efforts in institutions.

Inga Stademann, Julia Wiethüchter, Pia Mamut, Hannes Wender, Thomas Kopp. 2026. Grasping Sustainability Culture in Higher Education Institutions: Conceptualizing and Understanding Key Elements. Higher Education Quarterly. https://doi.org/10.1111/hequ.70129.

Chair member Markus Nabernegg presented his ongoing work, “Earnings volatility in Latin America: evidence from administrative data”, at the SMOOTHIE seminar of the International Inequalities Institute at the London School of Economics.

In this joint work with Verónica Amarante, Paula Carrasco, H. Xavier Jara, and Joaquín Prieto, harmonised monthly administrative social-security records for Chile, Ecuador, and Uruguay are used to study short-term earnings and labour-market volatility in formal private employment.

Chair member Markus Nabernegg presented his paper "Extreme Income Inequality in Ecuador – Dollarization, Commodity Price Boom, and Citizen Revolution" at the World Inequality Conference at the Paris School of Economics (04 - 06 June).

The three-day event also launched the Global Justice Report, a "new vision for global progress in the 21st century: grounding human development and equality in planetary habitability”.

Syeda Aimen Abbas and Thomas Kopp recently published the paper "The Distributional Impact of Environmental Policy Stringency in Europe" in Ecological Economics.

The study examines the relationship between environmental policy stringency and income inequality across 26 European countries over the period 1990–2022. Using the OECD Climate Actions and Policies Measurement Framework (CAPMF) and three measures of income inequality, the findings suggest that more stringent environmental policies are associated with higher pre-tax and post-tax income inequality, while the effects on disposable income inequality are not statistically significant. The results highlight the important role of redistributive policies, particularly cash transfers and social spending, in supporting a socially equitable green transition.

Abbas, Syeda Aimen, and Thomas Kopp. 2026. The Distributional Impact of Environmental Policy Stringency in Europe. Ecological Economics, 249: 109118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2026.109118

PANE project meeting in Potsdam for a constructive exchange.

The intensive dialogue focused on examining the social, economic and ecological effects of participatory, sustainable food production,
as well as the impact of community-supported agriculture (CSA) on sustainable regional development in rural areas of eastern Germany.

On 11 June, Prof. Kopp presented his joint work with Ashok K. Mishra (Arizona State University) and Alwin Dsouza (New Mexico State University) entitled "Reducing Negative Effects of Risk Aversion on Farming Outcomes: Evidence for Systematic External Selection into Profitable Contracts” at the 15^th Italian Association of Agricultural and Applied Economics Conference in Rome.

 This study examines the interplay between risk aversion and contract farming in developing and emerging economies, focusing on 660 representative okra farmers in Karnataka, India. Utilising an instrumental variables approach, the empirical analysis confirms that risk-averse farmers are over-proportionately selected into production contracts, which are 46.3% more profitable than marketing contracts. The systemic selection benefits vulnerable, risk-averse farmers by grantingthem privileged access to the most advantageous contract farming arrangements.

The results of the study, relevant for the development discourse, emphasise the benefits of production contracting for poverty reduction, while highlighting the monopsonistic tendencies of contracting firms in controlling the selection of farmers.

On 4 June, Vipul Chawla - Master's student and research assistant of the chair - presented his current research at the Housing Studies Association Annual Conference 2026. The presentation was a joint work with Prof. Kopp entitled "A Room of One’s Own? A Panel Data Analysis of Income Inequality and Living Space in Post-Communist and Non-Post-Communist Countries in Europe.”

This study explores the relationship between income inequality and living space in Europe, and whether this association differs between post-communist and non-post-communist countries. The results suggest a significant positive but non-linear relationship between income inequality and living space, which may be explained by competing channels in play: conspicuous consumption at the top and housing crowding at the bottom of the income distribution.

Inga Stademann and Thomas Kopp recently published the paper "Success determinants and institutional impact of sustainability projects in higher education" in the International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education. 

This study aims to identify the determinants of successful sustainability projects in higher education institutions (HEIs). Utilising survey data of 273 participants involved in sustainability projects at German HEIs, the study highlights the critical role of effective project design and management in embedding sustainability.

 Inga Stademann, Thomas Kopp. 2026. Success determinants and institutional impact of sustainability projects in higher education. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSHE-06-2025-0615