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Sustainability

Cultural Dimensions of Global Sustainability: The Jena Declaration (TJD)

Global sustainability cannot be secured by top‑down technological fixes alone. The Jena Declaration argues for a culturally grounded, bottom‑up transformation of everyday life to make the SDGs achievable.

By
Benno Werlen
23 Min Read
How Emotions Shape Climate Action: Barriers and Agency
Emotions: Climate activists march through central London, calling for climate justice and stronger action on the climate emergency. Photo: Alisdare Hickson (CC BY-SA).
BooksEnvironment & Sustainability
19 Min Read
A Free Arctic? A Timely but Long-Resisted Debate, Part II
Aerial view of a braided gravel outwash plain formed by glacial meltwater on the northeast coast of Baffin Island, Nunavut, in the Canadian Arctic. Photo by Mike Beauregard CC BY).
Global North
17 Min Read
A Free Arctic? A Timely but Long-Resisted Debate, Part I
Arctic sea ice and frozen coastal cliffs under the midnight glow of the northern horizon. Photo by Tomsk (CC BY). 
Global North
17 Min Read
The Arctic Front of the Tri-Axis Challenge
A Russian nuclear-powered icebreaker navigates Arctic sea ice, enabling year-round access to the Northern Sea Route and reinforcing the strategic and economic reach of emerging Tri-Axis connectivity.
Global North
25 Min Read
Northeast Asia’s “Tri-Axis” Challenge and the Arctic’s Future
Tri-axis pressures converge at the Arctic frontier, where emerging power alignments meet critical maritime routes (public domain).
Global North
22 Min Read
Religion in International Politics: Power and Influence
Faith and Power: World Leaders in Prayer – A Moment of Reflection in International Politics. President George W. Bush, Mrs. Laura Bush, Former President George H. W. Bush, Mrs. Barbara Bush, Former President Bill Clinton, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Chelsea Clinton, bow their heads during the National Day of Prayer and Remembrance service at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC.
BooksPolitics & Religion
19 Min Read
Debating Greenland: Critics, Context, and the Arctic Future
Map of Greenland (1791), by Franz Johann Joseph von Reilly. Historical representations of the Arctic continue to inform debates on sovereignty, interpretation, and political futures.
Opinion & Insights
17 Min Read
When Scholarly Disagreement Becomes Selective Reading
Selective aurora borealis over Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. In the Canadian North, everyday life unfolds beneath a landscape that is also at the center of debates on sovereignty, Indigenous rights, and Arctic geopolitics.
Opinion & Insights
21 Min Read
Cancel Culture and the Silencing of Arctic Dissent
Ice formations off the coast of Greenland. (Cancel Culture and the Silencing of Arctic Dissent)
Opinion & Insights
15 Min Read
Is the Cuban Dictatorship Coming to an End?
Protest against Cuban dictatorship held in front of the Canadian Parliament in Ottawa, Summer 2021.
Opinion & Insights
11 Min Read
On the Religious Politics of American Borders
BooksPolitics & Religion
17 Min Read
The Christmas Verdict: Europe Alone
The Berlaymont building, headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels : An institutional symbol of a continent confronting the limits of its strategic dependence. Photo by EmDee (CC BY-SA). The Christmas Verdict europe
Opinion & Insights
9 Min Read
After Venezuela: Trump Advances on Greenland
In the context of Greenland U.S. conflict, Arctic-capable forces participate in cold-weather training exercises focused on mobility and logistics. Photo by The National Guard (CC BY).
Global North
22 Min Read
Putin’s Ainu Recognition: Is Hokkaido Russia’s Next Target?
Satellite view of Russia’s Far Eastern Pacific frontier, a strategic launch point toward the Kuril Islands and northern Japan (NASA). Ainu.
Global North
15 Min Read
Hokkaido and the Foundations of Japan’s Arctic Influence
Maoka (now Kholmsk), a Japanese port city in Karafuto (southern Sakhalin) during World War II, reflecting Japan’s historical projection of power north of Hokkaido.
Global North
14 Min Read
The Rise, Fall and Re-emergence of Japan as an Arctic Power
Imperial Japanese map of the North Pacific and sub-Arctic regions, depicting Hokkaido, Sakhalin (Karafuto), the Kuril Islands and the western Aleutians. The cartography illustrates Japan’s historical projection as an Arctic power in the High North Pacific prior to 1945.
Global North
15 Min Read
Christian Globalism: Bridging Distant Ties
Christian Globalism: Vintage letters, handwritten notes, and old photographs arranged beside a world map on a wooden desk, evoking historical global correspondence and Christian sponsorship networks.
BooksPolitics & Religion
11 Min Read
Is Harvard’s Judge Truly Impartial?
Statue at Harvard Yard, a recognizable landmark of the university’s historic campus.
Political Opinion
16 Min Read
Secular Sensibilities amidst French and Québécois Politics
Poster Advocating Bodily Autonomy and Solidarity in a secular context. Outremont, Québec, Canada. Photographed on May 20, 2019. Crédit: A Disappearing Act (CC BY-SA).
BooksPolitics & Religion
19 Min Read
Harvard Admissions, Privilege, and the Trump Challenge
Admission: Harvard’s iconic Eliot House tower, a hallmark of the university’s Georgian architecture. Public Domain.
Political Opinion
15 Min Read
Assata Shakur: Violence in the U.S., Silence on Cuba’s Racism
Assata Shakur police mugshot, issued in the 1970s by U.S.
Political Opinion
16 Min Read
Beyond Subzero: A Future of Cheap, Quiet Polar Submarines
A Swedish Gotland-class diesel-electric submarine in front of a U.S. aircraft carrier — a real-world example of stealth, efficiency, and strategic surprise that inspires the proposed “Hickel Class” fleet.
Global North
18 Min Read
Microhistories and the African Past
Microhistories of Africa: Statues at the Slave Market Memorial in Stone Town, Zanzibar, commemorating the victims of the transatlantic slave trade. Photo by Son of Groucho (CC BY).
BooksPolitical History
16 Min Read
Indigenous Power and the Future of Greenland
A coastal settlement in southern Greenland: daily life intertwines subsistence traditions with emerging forms of local development. Photo by Monitotxi (CC BY-SA).
Global North
18 Min Read
Nagasaki: The Atomic Bombing and the Christian Crossroads
Ruins of Urakami Cathedral in Nagasaki, where the atomic bomb detonated on August 9, 1945, destroying the heart of Japan’s largest Christian community.
Politics & Religion
15 Min Read
Harvard’s Internal Decay: Class, Culture, and Privilege
Harvard Business School building with white columns and red brick façade, surrounded by trees and benches on a quiet green lawn. (Photo credit: Michael A. Herzog, CC BY)
Political Opinion
19 Min Read
Sacred Violence: Military AI in the Israel-Palestine Conflict
sacred violence: Ruins in Gaza after heavy bombardment as military AI reshapes the Israel–Palestine conflict. Photo by Zoriah (CC BY-NC).
Technology
17 Min Read
Trump Battles Harvard Over Elitism and Public Subsidies
Front view of Widener Library at Harvard University. Photo credit: Joseph Williams (CC BY).
Political Opinion
19 Min Read
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