How did the idea for the joint degree program come about?

Anja Gerstenmeier: On the Fraunhofer UMSICHT side, it was the then Head of Institute Prof. Weinspach who had the idea of establishing a university in Oberhausen. At the same time, the FernUniversität in Hagen was planning to establish a department of environmental sciences and was looking for a partner in the field of natural sciences and technology. With their respective ideas, both institutions held independent discussions with the Ministry of Science of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia. There, someone had the brilliant idea of bringing UMSICHT and FernUniversität together. The rest, as they say, is history.

 

What makes infernum special?

Anja Gerstenmeier: infernum has a unique selling point that has been the key to the program's success for many years: its combination of interdisciplinarity, subject diversity, and flexibility. Other continuing education programs in the fields of environmental sciences and sustainability may fulfill one or two of these points, but they do not offer the combination of all three to the same high standard as the infernum program. We can do this thanks in particular to the cooperation model – i.e., the collaboration between FernUniversität and Fraunhofer UMSICHT as joint providers of the program – supplemented by other partners such as the University of Lüneburg, the Alfred Wegener Institute, and the Wuppertal Institute.

Beyond that, it is of course the people who make infernum what it is: our very large network of teachers, the scientific management, and the teams at the two offices in Hagen and Oberhausen. Everyone is highly committed, motivated, and always ready to respond personally and individually to our students and interested parties. Our aim is to deliver education for sustainable development at the highest level. And we take that very seriously.

 

What lies behind the triad of interdisciplinarity, subject diversity, and flexibility?

Anja Gerstenmeier: The infernum curriculum is divided into three areas. The first covers law, social sciences, and economics and is organized primarily by the FernUniversität. The second area covers natural sciences and engineering and is organized primarily by Fraunhofer UMSICHT. In these two areas, students acquire basic and methodological knowledge relevant to the environment in the various subject areas and learn about the perspectives of the subject areas on environmental science issues. The third area covers the so-called interdisciplinary cross-cutting topics. In this area, environmental science topics are examined from the perspective of several disciplines in areas 1 and 2.

The three areas of the curriculum comprise a total of approximately 20 teaching modules. These are supplemented by cross-module seminars in face-to-face and online formats, in which current environmental science topics are addressed and discussed in an interdisciplinary manner.

An example: In our face-to-face seminar on hydrogen, scientific and technological perspectives as well as political and psychological aspects play a role. Through this approach, students learn how complex and challenging sustainability is. They understand that there are often no easy solutions and that different disciplines must work together to find answers to environmental science questions.

Compared to competitors who offer less subject diversity and set technical priorities on the part of the provider, infernum stands out with its diverse interdisciplinary curriculum, in which students themselves can set the content priorities depending on their previous education, interests, and goals.

Finally, flexibility means that the range of courses on offer is optimally tailored to the needs of working professionals who study flexibly and in a way that suits their respective professional and family situations. This allows students to join at any time and take modules. There is no fixed semester cycle as at traditional universities and colleges. There are also no traditional exams; instead, individual deadlines for coursework and exams apply to each student, and longer breaks can also be taken.

 

And who are your students?

Anja Gerstenmeier: We basically have all disciplines represented – engineers, scientists from all fields, lawyers, business and economics experts, economists, doctors, theologians, PR people... And they all bring different professional backgrounds, goals, and motivations to the table.

Our goal is to provide this diverse student body with complementary knowledge and enable them to understand the language of each other's disciplines and work in interdisciplinary teams. And that's where flexibility comes into play again: students largely put together their own study content and decide what expertise they want to acquire to complement their own professional background.

 

Was that also the basic idea you started with 25 years ago?

Anja Gerstenmeier: From the outset, our approach was to provide an interdisciplinary environmental science program that would enable students to solve problems in the environmental field. Working professionals were also our target group from the very beginning. Over the past 25 years, we have, of course, repeatedly adapted and optimized our range of courses in terms of both content and organizational structure to meet current requirements. However, this process will never be complete. In order to remain successful in the continuing education market, we must continuously keep our range of courses fit for the future.

 

Such optimization has probably also taken place in the area of didactics...

Anja Gerstenmeier: Definitely. We started with traditional study letters. In other words, purely written material that students worked through at home. We now rely on a blended learning concept: depending on the course content and objectives, knowledge is imparted through a combination of study letters, e-learning, and online and face-to-face seminars.

 

How do you ensure that formats and content remain both up-to-date and tailored to the needs of students?

Anja Gerstenmeier: We are very dynamic in this regard. On the one hand, we conduct regular evaluations and ask our students and graduates what we can do better. We take this feedback very seriously and always take suggestions and criticism on board in order to further improve infernum. At the same time, we always keep an eye on developments in the field of didactics. However, this does not mean that we jump on every bandwagon. Teaching formats such as e-learning must not become an end in themselves. They must add value to the learning process in order to be effective. We always check whether the format is suitable for our target group, our objectives, and our quality standards.

On the other hand, we systematically and continuously monitor the quality of our curriculum, in particular with the help of a traffic light system for the topicality of the teaching content: Is there any content that is outdated? Where does it need to be updated because, for example, legal frameworks or technologies have changed? And which topics should we include for the first time?

 

In summary, it can be said that a great deal of work has gone into infernum over the past quarter of a century...

Anja Gerstenmeier: ...and our students really appreciate that. This is evident from both regular surveys and a look at the figures: we started in 2000 with 43 students. Currently, more than 500 people are enrolled, and we are delighted to have had more than 2,000 graduates from the master's program and certificate program to date.

In addition, we also receive regular awards for our work. Just last year, the German UNESCO Commission and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research awarded us the "National Award – Education for Sustainable Development." This is the seventh time we have received this award, if you include the corresponding awards from previous programs.

 

Apart from these awards, what are some milestones that have particularly stuck in your memory?

Anja Gerstenmeier: Definitely the actual launch in November 2000, which I was also involved in – at that time still in the role of project coordinator. Then the initial accreditation of the master's program three years later. And also our last reaccreditation three years ago. This was approved without conditions for nine years, which is really rare.

A highlight from 2024: The Federal Ministry of Economics included the infernum master's program in its internal advancement program, which enables employees to advance to higher civil service positions. However, after the federal elections, the ministry's portfolio changed: Climate protection was dropped again, and cooperation with infernum cannot be continued in the Federal Ministry of Economics for the time being.

 

Are there already plans for the further development of infernum?

Anja Gerstenmeier: In terms of content, we want to add a module on climate adaptation to the curriculum relatively soon. We also have our sights set on the topics of biodiversity and education for sustainable development. And, of course, we have to address the topic of artificial intelligence and create clear framework conditions for our students, especially with regard to study and exam performance. We have already taken the first steps in this direction.

 

And finally, what has been the best student feedback you have received so far?

Anja Gerstenmeier: We regularly receive very nice and appreciative feedback. What stuck in my mind was the feedback from a student in a seminar evaluation who summed up his satisfaction succinctly: "Works" – followed by a smiley face.