Campaign 2025

Campaign 2025

Who is interested in taking over and continuing the charitable non-profit limited company
“European College of Human Ecology gGmbH” (COHE)?

We, Wolfgang Serbser (CEO) and Dieter Steiner, owners of COHE, would like to hand over their commitment to younger hands after many years of work and are therefore
looking for successors.

20 years ago, the idea of founding a liberal arts college for human ecology was born. This initially gave rise to a DGH study group, then to the non-profit limited company that we are focusing on here. In order to draw attention to our mission, but also to try out new approaches ourselves, we have offered summer schools and organized conferences in addition to other work, but have not yet achieved the goal of establishing an accredited college of human ecology.  However, a draft for accreditation is already available.

For more details, see the text “Working Towards a College of Human Ecology”.

Human ecology study programs are needed because the courses on sustainable development currently available at most universities are often inadequate. One problem is that both the orientation of universities and the concept of sustainable development are often bound to a certain traditional idea of economics and business management. However, the serious environmental degradation is mainly a result of the way our economic system works. There is also a need for a consistent democratic orientation throughout the education system itself. Human ecology attempts to contribute to a change in awareness and action in the direction of a meaningful, non-destructive life of mankind on earth.

For more details, see the text “On Human Ecology”.

Our role model is the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine, USA. Its course offerings are completely interdisciplinary and lead to a degree in human ecology. Most courses are taught in seminar style. Project studies, self-learning and practical orientation are highly valued. The college organization and administration is fully democratic with student participation.
For more details see the text “The College of the Atlantic (COA)”.

“Earth overshoot will come to an end, either through our planning or through a catastrophe,” says the Global Footprint Network. Our education system is challenged in this respect, but is not up to the task. Alternatives are urgently needed.

You can find out more about Wolfgang Serbser & Dieter Steiner here.

Please reply to: serbser[at]coh-europe.de