The socio-ecological transformation is facing an implementation crisis. The necessary changes have recently been made even more difficult by geopolitical shifts. In order to better understand and overcome the challenges, more social science climate research is needed.

The climate targets are facing an implementation crisis

In the Augsburg Appeal, over 220 scientists call for targeted funding for this area of research. On 27 March 2025, the appeal was presented to the public at the annual conference of the German Climate Consortium e.V. by DKK Chairwoman Prof. Dr Angela Oels. It is the result of the conference ‘Implementation crisis in climate protection and adaptation and possible ways out’.

At the invitation of the DKK, more than 100 leading German scientists from the social sciences met at the Center for Climate Resilience at the University of Augsburg from 17 to 19 February 2025. The conference was organised by the DKK and the Center for Climate Resilience with financial support from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

A central issue of the conference was the gap between ambitious climate targets and the inadequate measures to realise them. It became clear that technological innovations such as geoengineering or artificial intelligence will not be enough. The authors of the appeal emphasise: What is needed are far-reaching social transformation processes that bring about sustainable changes in the economy, politics and society.

Social conflicts over socio-ecological transformations are on the rise

Dr Stefanie Baasch is a human geographer and head of the Social-ecological Governance & Justice research group at the artec Sustainability Research Center. A participant in the conference and one of the first signatories of the Augsburg Appeal, she emphasises the growing need for a social science perspective in climate research:

“Especially in view of the increasing social conflicts surrounding socio-ecological transformations, such as the energy or mobility transition, there is a need for a substantial boost for social science research.”

Concrete research policy measures are needed

Despite its importance, social science climate research has only received a small proportion of research funding for decades. The Augsburg Appeal therefore calls for concrete research policy measures: 

1. comprehensive funding of social science climate research through national research programmes. 
2. independent funding of inter- and transdisciplinary climate research with a leading role for the social sciences in order to integrate different forms of knowledge.
3. strengthening climate research networks and associations for the co-production of knowledge, science communication and transfer.
4. systematic promotion of early and mid-career researchers in the field of social science climate research.
5. institutionalisation of social science climate research, e.g. through new social science departments at existing major research institutions or through independent institutes.

The initiators of the appeal offer themselves as dialogue partners to politics and society in order to jointly tackle the implementation crisis in climate protection. Social science climate research seeks close cooperation with natural science climate research.