Seal element of the university of freiburg in the shape of a clover
Text icon 'UFR' standing for University of Freiburg
  • Sonne scheint durch eine Baumkrone

Chair of Forest and Environmental Policy

Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources

Chair of Forest and Environmental Policy

Abkürzung der Fakultät für Umwelt und Natürliche Ressourcen "unr" in der Farbe sand auf grünem, kreisförmigen Hintergrund

We carry out research and academic education within the field of forest and environmental policy. Our work is placed in applied social sciences covering forest-, climate-, water- and nature conservation policy at different policy levels. We are in particular interested in issues relevant for different political sectors, such as sustainability or bioeconomy.

Latest News

Dissertation

Successful PhD Defence by Laila Berning

We warmly congratulate Laila Berning on the successful defense of her dissertation titled “EU Politics of Regulating Transnational Forest and Agricultural Commodity Supply Chains for Legality and Sustainability”. The dissertation was supervised by Prof. Daniela Kleinschmit (UFR) and Prof. Rachael Garrett (University of Cambridge) and makes an important contribution by highlighting the political complexity of the EU Deforestation Regulation process.

In her work, Laila highlights the role of different ideational and material factors in driving EU policy change or stability. The EUDR serves as an emblematic case study for analysing the increasing role of public regulation in global environmental governance and the unilateral turn in EU trade policy.

We are deeply impressed by Laila’s work and proudly wish her all the best for her future academic and professional path!

New Research Project

MangrovES

On 1 October 2025, the MangrovES project (Mangrove Governance Innovation for Sustainable Ecosystem Service Provision) was launched, a comprehensive international research initiative led by Professor Daniela Kleinschmit and Stefan Sorge. Addressing a critical environmental challenge, the study analyzes governance innovations for mangrove forest management across three regions in Colombia, integrating ecological, social, and economic factors to ensure the sustainable provision of essential ecosystem services. The project employs the Social-Ecological-Technical-Forestry-Innovation-Systems (SETFIS) analytical framework and combines multiple research methodologies with on-the-ground collaboration through partnerships with CEMarin in Colombia and the Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT) in Germany.

Read more

Publication

Forests in the Spotlight: Discourse Coalitions and Storylines Shaping the EU Nature Restoration Regulation

New paper published by Simon Fleckenstein, Simon Schaub (Heidelberg University) and Metodi Sotirov in the Journal Politics & Governance. The paper investigates the policy-making process of the EU Nature Restoration Regulation, with a particular focus on the discourse on forest ecosystem restoration. Using discourse network analysis and process-tracing, it examines how arguments and storylines advanced by a range of state and non-state actors influenced the process and its outcome. In doing so, it provides critical insights into the development of the EU‐NRR— the EU’s first directly applicable and legally binding forest‐related policy instrument.

Read more

Research

Our research focuses and current projects

chevron-right More

Teaching

Our courses and information about theses

chevron-right More

Team

Overview of our team members

chevron-right More

Research on forest and environmental policy at the University of Freiburg – now also available as a podcast!

In the “Forest & Environmental Policy Podcast” by the Chair of Forest and Environmental Policy, doctoral students and post-docs share insights about their research and the projects they are working on. Listen to the episodes to find out about the diverse topics related to forest and environmental policy.

Subscribe to our podcast to never miss a new episode!

chevron-right Learn more
Screenshot des Forest & Environmental Policy Podcasts