Sustainability Matters
Education & Explainer
About
Sustainability Matters (formerly Humanities Matter)—produced by De Gruyter Brill—takes a deep dive into sustainability in scholarly communications and beyond. The podcast explores topics such as promoting diverse voices and marginalized perspectives in academia, the global accessibility of research, research ethics, combatting misinformation and more. Sustainability Matters features experts, advocates, practitioners, and De Gruyter Brill authors whose work on ethical and sustainable practices breaks boundaries, builds new bonds, and shapes a better future. Join us as we explore how we can shape a more equitable and accessible future for knowledge sharing—because sustainability truly matters, in scholarly publishing, and beyond.
Episodes
- Virtual, Real, Resilient: Jewish Spaces in 21st Century Europe
This episode of Sustainability Matters discusses the transformation of Jewish Europe in the 21st century, focusing on how virtual environments impact heritage preservation and cultural identity. It also addresses the effects of rising anti…
- Who Gets to Be Indigenous?
This episode of Sustainability Matters discusses the definition and contestation of indigeneity, questioning whether it is inherited or a political construct. It also explores the collaboration between scientific and Indigenous knowledge s…
- Play Like a Girl: Girlhood and Identity in Video Games
This episode of Sustainability Matters, featuring Dr. Stephanie Harkin, explores how video games are changing the representation of girlhood and identity. It discusses the historical association of games with boyhood and examines contempor…
- The Power of Unions: Rise, Fall, Return?
This episode of Sustainability Matters discusses the factors influencing the rise and fall of labor unions, using the history of New York's Transport Workers Union Local 100 as a case study. Dr. Marc Kagan, author of a related book, is fea…
- Religion in a Culture of Digitality: Belief, Power, and Participation
This episode of Sustainability Matters examines the impact of digital technology on contemporary religious belief and practice. Dr. Thomas Schlag and Katharina Yadav discuss how digital culture reshapes religious authority, education, and…
- Do Solutions to Current Ecological Challenges Lie in Decolonizing the Environment?
What are the limits of the utilitarian approach to studying the environment? How do we go beyond Western philosophies in our thinking around the environment? Can Western and Non-Western approaches work together? And why is it imperative th…
- The Heritage of Psychiatry: Whose Voices Are Heard?
On this episode of Sustainability Matters, we ask: What does it mean to narrate the heritage of psychiatry? Why is the history of mental health research so relevant today? How can we celebrate diverse experiences of "madness" without roman…
- Does Promoting Research Actually Pay Off?
This month on Sustainability Matters , we discuss whether external research promotion has any tangible effects. Can external media attention translate into academic citations? Does choosing the “right” journal matter? And do we risk perver…
- Open Access: Who Pays, Who Publishes, Who Benefits?
On this episode of Sustainability Matters , we celebrate the progress of Open Access in expanding the reach of research, while also asking how it can become more inclusive. From evolving publishing models and transformative agreements to b…
- Originality in the age of machine-generated text, part 2: Brainrot, peer-review, and the importance of voluntary reading
In this second half of our special double episode of Sustainability Matters , we take a look at the impact of generative AI on academic culture. Should AI tools be used for peer review, grant writing, performance assessments, and the like?…
- Rethinking Global South representation in scholarly publishing
This month on Sustainability Matters , we discuss the persistent underrepresentation of Global South scholars in leading English-language journals. From editorial appointments to peer review practices, structural biases continue to shape w…
- Publishing with Pride: Using Gender-Fair Language in Research Literature
In honour of Pride Month, on this episode of Sustainability Matters , we explore the politics, practice, and perceptions of gender-fair language. Is it the same as gender-neutral language, or something more expansive? How do linguistic ref…
- Originality in the age of Gen AI, part 1: Creativity, higher education, and the moral panic
In this first half of a special double episode on Sustainability Matters , we unpack how generative AI is challenging traditional ideas of writing, learning, and originality. Are large language models truly that revolutionary, or just glor…
- Reading Between the Numbers: What Publishing Data Tells Us About Sustainability
In this episode of Sustainability Matters , we get into the numbers behind scholarly publishing. We unpack why publishing consumption patterns vary so widely across countries, how data can inform efforts around diversity, equity, and inclu…
- Transdisciplinarity and the Future of Knowledge: Why Sustainable Research Struggles to Survive
In this episode of Sustainability Matters, we explore what responsible research and innovation (RRI) means. How can science move beyond disciplinary siloes to embrace transdisciplinarity? What does it mean to conduct research that is truly…
- Beyond Tokenism: What Does True Diversity in Higher Education Look Like?
On the first episode of Sustainability Matters (formerly Humanities Matter), we explore the complexities of diversity and inclusion in higher education. Do the frameworks in US universities today advance equity, or merely mask deeper syste…
- Adult Education: Exploring the Inequalities in the World’s Most Populated Country
This month on Humanities Matter, we discuss the variation in literacy rates among India’s social strata, the importance of considering a gendered perspective in adult education policies within the country, and how such policies can empower…
- Fact or Fiction: Are Sea Serpents Real?
In this episode of Humanities Matter, we take a closer look at the documented sightings of the so-called Gloucester Sea Serpent over the years. Are there truly monsters lurking in the deep? Or do these stories reveal a stark truth about ma…
- Unpacking Responsibility for Autonomous Weapons Systems Part 2: A Terminator Scenario?
In the second half of this episode on Humanities Matter, we examine when countries might deploy autonomous weapons systems, whether these weapons could better follow international human rights law than humans if properly programmed, the fe…
- Unpacking Responsibility for Autonomous Weapons Systems Part 1: The Legal Frameworks
In this special extended episode of Humanities Matter, we take a closer look at Autonomous Weapons Systems and the legal frameworks surrounding their use. What exactly defines an autonomous weapon? Can an individual be held legally respons…
- Rights, Camera, Action: The Asian Yearbook of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law
In this episode of Humanities Matter, we dive into human rights and humanitarian law development in Asia, exploring current regional challenges, persisting colonial legacies, external geopolitical pressures, and the push for greater accoun…
- Protecting the Planet and its People: Environmental Human Rights Law
This month on Humanities Matter, we take a closer look at a groundbreaking environmental human rights law being developed in Latin America and the Caribbean. What is it? How is it connected to the Escazú Agreement and the American Conventi…
- Growing Communities: Exploring Regenerative Agrourbanism and Sustainable Food Systems
In this episode of Humanities Matter, we look at the role of regenerative agrourbanism in creating sustainable urban living spaces. How can urban agriculture boost local economies and enhance community well-being? Is it possible to strike…
- Shaping A Sustainable Future: The Role of Adult Education
In this episode of Humanities Matter, we explore various aspects of adult education, including the influence of Paulo Freire's critical pedagogy, impact of environmental education on social change, and challenges and opportunities when it…
- Difference, Diversity, and Intersectionality in Adult Education and Beyond: A Pride Month Special Episode
It’s pride month! In this episode, we discuss the importance of an intersectional approach to research, the role of adult educators in fostering inclusive learning environments, the power of pop culture in addressing gender and sexuality i…
- Breaking Boundaries: Navigating Critical Pedagogy in Today's Educational Landscape
In this episode of Humanities Matter, we explore how partnerships among schools, communities, and higher education institutions can help disrupt inequitable social processes. We highlight the unique perspectives that Black educators bring…
- Protecting Human Rights: The Role of NGOs in Today’s Landscape
As global crises have time and time again demonstrated, NGOs play an invaluable role in the protection and promotion of human rights. But what exactly does this role entail? How do NGOs fulfil their responsibilities while adapting to techn…
- Open Access: The Publisher's Perspective
In another special episode on Open Access, Brill’s Head of Open Research Stephanie Veldman speaks with Dr. Anthony Watkinson, author of "Open Access: A publisher's view" by Brill. Having worked in publishing for nearly five decades, Dr. Wa…
- Open Access: What Would it Take to Make Knowledge-Sharing Equitable?
It’s open access week. So, this episode, we break down the concept of open access to research. Is it a basic human right? What’s its role in shaping global development? And how are technologies—both new and old—influencing a movement for i…
- Humanity’s Harmonies: How Music Enriches Word, Dance, and Drama to Tell Our Collective Stories
This month on Humanities Matter, we talk about Music! We wonder why apocalyptic soundtracks have captivated people since Medieval times, we re-discover the beauty and cultural significance of court music, and we explore the ways in which m…
- A Changing World Order in the 21st Century
This month on Humanities Matter, we talk about the need for space laws to include laws governing cybersecurity, data privacy, and war; role of capitalism in the West’s Covid-19 fatalities; and the precarity of certain types of labour in th…
- Digital Humanities: How the Future Will See its Past
This month, we talk about the ancient world going digital, pedagogy through virtual reality, how open access is changing scholarly publishing, and whether digital tools could make non-Western scholarship more mainstream. Also, is AI the gr…
- [Message from Brill] Thank you listening. Stay tuned; we will be back with a new format and brand new insights on May 17th, 2023!
- Episode 48: Re-Evaluating Our Laws: Discussing Brill’s Book Series Global Health, Human Rights and Social Justice with Series Editor Alicia Ely Yamin
Global Health, Human Rights and Social Justice —Brill’s upcoming book series—provides multi-disciplinary perspectives on legal strategies across different fields and movements. The series addresses the gaps in writing about specific domain…
- Mahlzeit: Folge 6: Umkämpftes Essen - Produktion, Handel und Konsum von Lebensmitteln in globalen Kontexten, mit Cornelia Reiher und Sarah Ruth Sippel / Mahlzeit: Episode 6: Contested Food—Production, trade and consumption of food in global contexts, with
Wie wurde die bescheidene Tomate zum Symbol der kulinarischen Globalisierung? Die komplexen Interessen und Machtstrukturen, die das Welternährungssystem prägen, sind ein deutlicher Hinweis auf den politischen Charakter von Lebensmitteln. A…
- Mahlzeit: Folge 5: Fleisch – Die Geschichte einer Industrialisierung, mit Prof. Dr. Christian Kassung / Mahlzeit: Episode 5: Meat—The history of an industrialization, with Prof. Dr. Christian Kassung
Der Wert der globalen Fleischindustrie beträgt aktuell ungefähr eine Billiarde Dollar. Fleisch ist überall leicht erhältlich und diese permanente Verfügbarkeit als Konsumartikel ist ein einzigartiges Merkmal des modernen Zeitalters. In sei…
- Mahlzeit: Episode 4: Applied Food Sciences, with Bart Wernaart and Bernd van der Meulen
Food science is a vast field that encompasses subjects ranging from microbiology to marketing. Considering the present global scenario, with factors such as climate change, war, and recession affecting supply chains worldwide, understandin…
- [Message from Brill] Thank you for listening. Stay tuned; we will be back soon!
- Mahlzeit: Folge 3: Wie wir essen, mit Martin Hablesreiter und Sonja Stummerer / Mahlzeit: Episode 3: How We Eat, with Martin Hablesreiter and Sonja Stummerer
Esskultur und Essgewohnheiten sind ein prägnanter Teil von Kultur und entwickeln sich permanent weiter. Die Art, wie wir essen, ist nicht biologisch vorgegeben, sondern Ergebnis unserer sozialen und kulturellen Prägung. Warum haben sich be…
- Mahlzeit: Episode 2: Crossroads of Cuisine: The Eurasian Heartland, the Silk Roads and Food, with Dr. Eugene Anderson
Central Asia—the Eurasian heartland—is home to multiple culturally rich countries such as China, Iran, Mongolia, and Turkey. Naturally, with the advent of trade and globalization, multiple cultural exchanges occurred among these countries…
- Mahlzeit: Episode 1: Changing Climate: Implications for Justice and Food Security, with Ivo Wallimann-Helmer
Food security is threatened the world over, with the number of chronically undernourished people increasing from 775 million in 2014 to 821 million in 2017. This situation is likely to worsen by the effects of climate change, which is exac…
- Episode 47: Rebooting the European Journal of Jewish Studies, with Marcin Wodziński and Katja Smid
The European Journal of Jewish Studies (EJJS) is a prominent voice in global Jewish studies, having delivered entirely new directions for research in the field. Recently, a new editorial team took charge of this prestigious journal. With t…
- Episode 46: Writing/Reading the Bible in Postcolonial Perspective, with Dr. Steed Vernyl Davidson
The intricacies of imperialism and colonialism within the context of the Bible are nuanced and varied. Understanding the legacy of European Imperialism requires careful reflection of the Bible’s affinity with the empire and concentration o…
- Episode 45: In Fashion: Culture, Commerce, Craft, and Identity, with Dr. Laura Petican and Dr. Jacque Lynn Foltyn
There has been no greater surge in global fashion trends and expressions of personal style than in the contemporary era of social media fashion influencers. But what constitutes “being in fashion” amongst this multiplicity of interpretatio…
- “War and Peace” Episode 5: NATO Rules of Engagement: On ROE, Self-Defence, and the Use of Force during Armed Conflict, with Dr. Camilla Guldahl Cooper
The NATO rules of engagement (ROE) are highly important political and strategic laws that determine the circumstances surrounding the use of armed conflict. However, these laws are often ambiguous and confusing. It requires a great deal of…
- “War and Peace” Episode 4: Understanding Where International Law Stands on the Question of the Secession of Crimea, with Dr. Majid Nikouei and Dr. Masoud Zamani
The right to self-determination is, in some respects, the supreme right of rights, without which it is impossible to recognize a host of other human rights. The 2014–2015 crisis of Ukraine that continues with Russia’s invasion in 2022 call…
- “War and Peace” Episode 3: The Aggression Against Ukraine and the Effectiveness of Inter-state Cases in Case of War, with Kanstantsin Dzehtsiarou and Vassilis P Tzevelekos
The post-World War 2 period saw the emergence of several peace-keeping institutions. The Council of Europe is one such international organization tasked with the responsibility to uphold democracy, human rights, and the rule of law through…
- Episode 44: Professional Power and Skill Use in the 'Knowledge Economy': A Class Analysis, with Dr. D. W. Livingstone
In the advanced capitalist nations, a new form of economic hierarchy is emerging, that of the professional class. While the managerial class thrives, the non-managerial workforce is plagued with decreasing job security, overqualified profe…
- “War and Peace” Episode 2: International Security in the 21st Century: The Ukraine Crisis and the European Security Order, with Dr. Wolfgang Ischinger
The sudden Russian aggression on Ukraine, besides wreaking havoc on the latter, has created a ripple effect impacting the socio-economic conditions of the rest of Europe and the world. The carefully built security order has been dismantled…
- Episode 43: Redefining Food Security in the Light of Changes in the Socio-Political and Environmental Climates, with Dr. Olga Śniadach
Access to adequate food and nutrition is an essential human right. But ensuring food security has become a real challenge today. Climate change, natural disasters, and inefficient political systems are roadblocks in fortifying this basic n…