(by Carsten Horn)

10 ... 9 ... Before leaving the premises, you have to undergo a radiological control measurement. If your hands and feet are correctly placed on the probes, the countdown will begin. Nuclear energy: Once the harbinger of a new era of unlimited energy supply and prosperity has come under attack by environmental and anti-nuclear movements of the 1970s ...

Is a job guarantee enabling long-term unemployed people to return to work? This has been investigated in the “Modellprojekt Arbeitsplatzgarantie Marienthal”, with scientific support from a team of sociologists around Jörg Flecker. Team member and ViDSS student Hannah Quinz explains why the participants’ return to work is only one of the positive outcomes of the project. (In German)

(by Paul Dunshirn, Ayşegül Sırakaya, Adam McCarthy and Irma Klünker)

Decision 15/9 of the Conference of the Parties to the CBD, agreed in December 2022, constituted an important signpost in bringing genetic resource governance to the digital age. Until then, it was disputed whether access to and benefit-sharing from the utilization of DSI, a placeholder term for various types of genetic ...

Doctoral candidate in Science and Technology Studies Laura Bomm is awarded a Doktoratsfertigstellungsstipendium by the Literar-Mechana for her doctoral thesis project on citizens’ perceptions and sensemaking of plastics in contemporary Austrian society. The scholarship is awarded for up to six months for the completion of a doctoral thesis. Congratulations!

Social and cultural anthropologist Catherine Raya Polishchuk has received an ifk Junior Fellowship for her doctoral thesis project on urban renewal in Vienna. The fellowship is awarded by the International Research Center for Cultural Studies (University of Art and Design Linz) for one academic year and includes the possibility of a funded stay abroad in the following year. Congratulations!

Nyamadzawo “Max” Sibanda and Emily Genatowski about the support systems PhD students may rely on during their studies. Find out why institutional support and personal engagement were crucial for Emily and Max when they arrived in Vienna, how they now provide support to others and what a can of Japanese matcha and a belt have to do with getting support as a PhD student.

(by Ahrabhi Kathirgamalingam and Aytalina Kulichkina)

In academic spaces, individuals from underrepresented social groups often face systemic barriers that hinder their full participation and success. Such barriers include systemic biases in hiring, promotion, access to resources, and lack of representation. Underlying factors, including persisting racism, sexism ...

Women journalists often face various forms of sexual harassment at the workplace and on assignments. A recent study conducted by communication scientist Birte Leonhardt together with Folker Hanusch, Shailendra Singh and Geraldine Panapasa demonstrates how widespread the phenomenon is and how inadequate safeguards contribute to harassment’s wide-ranging effect on journalists’ lives.

(by Ekaterina Zhelenkova)

Education is today a sector in receipt of record-high and still rising amounts of investment. And for good reason, since education has proven to be the major driver behind reducing poverty, propelling development and overall welfare. Increased education is also behind lower fertility rates and better child health outcomes ...