Leibniz Research Centre LiFE2050 – Nachhaltigkeit und Klimaschutz

In light of the climate change caused by anthropogenic greenhouse gases, the global aim is to replace fossil fuels and their material use with renewable processes. It is therefore of fundamental importance for society to transition its energy supply to sustainable energy resources – that is, those that are available in the long term and produce low emissions. The goal has been set to have taken significant steps in this transformation process by 2050. Current climate research indicates that anthropogenic global warming is accelerating. To ensure the 1.5-degree target agreed in Paris is not exceeded, the process must consequently be completed much sooner. Leibniz University aims to achieve climate-neutral operations by 2031. This requires disciplinary, interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary expertise.

Leibniz Universität Hannover has a long history in the field of energy research, especially in power plant technology, electrical energy technology, support structures for wind turbines and solar research. Research for a sustainable energy supply is bundled in the Leibniz Research Centre Energy 2050 (LiFE 2050), creating a cross-faculty network of about 30 LUH institutes. LiFE 2050 is also integrated into the Energy Research Centre of Lower Saxony (EFZN). This joint scientific centre brings together Lower Saxony's energy research competencies, actively participates in the ForWind Center for Wind Energy Research and closely cooperates with the affiliated ISFH institute in Hameln in the area of solar research.

Man’s efficient cause lives on in the actions of others

Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz

Thanks to the fact that Leibniz Universität Hannover provides all major scientific disciplines based on the model of the traditional universitas litterarum, we can draw upon a broad competency profile in interdisciplinary energy research to find solutions for a gradual transformation of the energy system towards renewable energy sources. This provides a solid foundation for finding answers to the following problems: How can energy be used more efficiently? How can we guarantee wind power, solar energy and bioenergy availability for electricity and heat supply throughout the whole year? How can we enable the switch to sustainable raw material sources, for example from coal to hydrogen for steel production? What will our power grids and decentralised energy generation plants of the future look like? What energy storage systems will we need in the future? Socio-political and economic framework conditions are important factors to consider in order to make the transformation process economically viable, and socially and environmentally compatible.

Further information on energy research can be found on the website https://www.energie.uni-hannover.de/en/.