Environmental Change (TEMAM)

Tema M – Environmental Change is a platform for highly topical, problem-oriented and critical interpretive environmental research and education. At a time when almost the entire nature bears traces of human activity, the state of the environment is strongly linked to the development of society. Today, environmental problems are no longer perceived as ‘problems in nature’ but also as complex social problems that set new standards for scientific breadth, integration and problem-solving.

Environmental Change meets this challenge through a strong combination of analysis traditions and methods for natural science, social sciences, and the humanities. Among these included are analysis of biogeochemical processes and material flows, policy studies developed in close collaboration with user groups, as well as analytical studies of ideas and debates within the environmental and climate field. By promoting interdisciplinary cooperation in the borderland between these different analytical traditions, Tema M ensures that environmental change as a concept, process and political point at issue is not taken for granted but instead subject to constant review and transparency.

Tema M builds on a strong tradition of interdisciplinary environmental studies that have permeated the unit since 1980 and the Center for Climate Science and Policy Research (CSPR) since 2004. At Tema M, these studies are further developed and profiled in relation to contemporary environmental science and environmental policy development.

News

Några personer som sitter i ett rum.

16 September 2026

Future workshops give more people a say in shaping the future

From Vision to Change. Through the Enhance project, students, researchers and societal stakeholders in six countries have tested future workshops to develop ideas for education, campuses and communities.

Two women sitting at a desk talking to each other.

01 September 2026

Two scholarships for early career historians announced at the Department of Thematic Studies

Thanks to a donation, two early career researchers will have the opportunity to devote three years to historical research at the Department of Thematic Studies. Applications are now open.

En grupp människor som sitter vid ett bord framför en folkmassa.

23 July 2026

Participants in UN climate meetings want greater focus on implementation

UN climate negotiations are often criticised for moving too slowly. A new study published in Nature Climate Change examines what changes government delegates and other participants at the COP29 UN climate conference would like to see.

Research areas

Research environments

Publications

Latest publications

2026

Therese Asplund, Pål Dobrin (2026) Contemplative pathways to personal sustainability transformations: technique and practice of loving kindness Sustainability Science (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11625-026-01884-y
Alexandra Buylova, Naghmeh Nasiritousi (2026) Bridging Silos in EU Climate Governance? Elite Perceptions of the EU Cities Mission and Its Mechanisms of Change Contemporary European Politics, Vol. 4, Article e70048 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/cep4.70048
Yanfen Hao, Jing Xu, Tiantian Han, Zeguo Yang, Wenjuan Li, Xiaoguang Wang, Huiming Cao, Chuan Yi, Thanh Wang, Pu Wang, Yong Liang (2026) Bioaccumulation and prioritization of emerging liquid crystal monomers and organic light-emitting materials in an urban lake ecosystem Journal of Hazardous Materials, Vol. 515, Article 143247 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2026.143247
Victoria Wibeck (2026) Attending to the 'security of being' in climate change research: reflections on the ontological security concept for studies of non-economic losses and damages Climatic Change, Vol. 179, Article 178 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10584-026-04272-8
Djalma Alvarez Brochado Neto, Rinata Kazak (2026) Environmental risks of data center infrastructure in Northeastern Brazil from an ecocide risk perspective Discover Sustainability, Vol. 7, Article 1472 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s43621-026-04462-5
Salvatore Paolo De Rosa, Anna Kirstine Schirrer, Mads Ejsing, Stefan Gaarsmand Jacobsen (2026) A multiscalar framework for assessing climate politics from a justice perspective: the case of Denmark Environmental Politics, p. 1-23 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2026.2717841
Gustav Strandberg, Carolina Nilsson, Renate Anna Irma Wilcke, Lotten Wiréhn (2026) Late spring frost may hinder Scandinavian farmers from making advantage of the longer vegetation period Communications Sustainability, Vol. 1, Article 133 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s44458-026-00141-8
David Bastviken, Martin Karlson, Guillem Domènech-Gil, Magnus Gålfalk, Henrique Sawakuchi (2026) Greenhouse gas flux measurements in wetlands One Earth, Vol. 9, Article 101743 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2026.101743

PhD Programme and education

Contact

Staff

Address

Visit us in Tema Building, Campus Valla

Postal adress
Linköping University, Department of Thematic Studies/Environmental Change, 581 83 Linköping, Sweden

About the Department of Thematic Studies