Third Ways of Feeding The World

The program “Third Ways of Feeding The World” (TWFW) is a joint undertaking of the Faculty of Agricultural and Nutritional Science and the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Kiel and the Protestant Church scholarship organisation Evangelisches Studienwerk Villigst. Students will generally be located in Kiel throughout the first year. Thereafter, students might also be based at partner institutions in Africa or South America.

The Evangelisches Studienwerk e.V. Villigst has granted up to 20 PhD fellowships for research projects within the program

» Third Ways of Feeding the World «

at the University of Kiel. The interdisciplinary program integrating agricultural science, economics and ethics will run from 2015 to 2020.

Doctoral Program

The objective of the program is to train doctoral students so that they can work at the frontier of theory-guided, evidence-based research topics related to the trade-off between sustainable agriculture and the environment. In contrast to existing neoliberal approaches focusing on increasing agricultural production, while neglecting the environment and in contrast to the ecological farming paradigm focusing on the environment ignoring the
need to intensify world food production to meet future demographic developments and changes in nutritional behavior, the research program of this program follows/suggests third ways of feeding the world promoting sustainable intensification. In our view, the main innovation of this program in both training and research of students is that it allows theory-grounded and evidenced based policy analysis that contributes to practical solutions of feeding the world and maintains sustainability. At a methodological level our program focuses on an integrated interdisciplinary methodological approach, and it allows for substantive applications from different fields in agricultural science, economics, political science and philosophy, while closely cooperating with international research institutions, non-profit organizations, and leading scholars worldwide, both in training and research supervision.

Mission Statement of Evangelisches Studienwerk Villigst

Evangelisches Studienwerk Villigst takes on Christian responsibility for the world through providing scholarship systems for gifted students. Here Evangelisches Studienwerk believes that talent with particular intellectual and creative skills obligates such people to use their gifts in a social, future-oriented way and in open communal approaches. Our complex and highly contradictory society needs committed intellectuals and decision makers, who are able to combine specialist, interdisciplinary and political discernment. Individual education and a willingness to ethically reflect upon the modern societal issues and knowledge developments are essential prerequisite for this. Evangelisches Studienwerk supports young people who are willing to face up to these challenges of the future in all fields of society in the Protestant tradition.

Core Faculty

The members of the core faculty are based at the departments of organic agriculture, agricultural economics and philosophy of the University of Kiel which together with the Evanglische Studienwerk Villigst and the Gustav-Radbruch-Network (CAU) support the administration of the program.

Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel (CAU):

• Department of Grass and Forage Science/Organic Agriculture, Prof. Dr. Friedhlem Taube (director and chair)
• Department of Agricultural Economics, Prof. Dr. Dr. Christian Henning (director and chair)
• Department of Philosophy, Prof. Dr. Konrad Ott (director and chair)
• Gustav-Radbruch Network, Dr. Lieske Voget

Studienwerk Villigst, Dr. Almuth Hattenbach