Author Archives: Elke Kellner

Our new open access paper critically reassesses how scientific progress is measured in the social sciences. In natural sciences, disruptiveness is often treated as a key indicator of scientific progress. Drawing on philosophy and sociology of science, we argue that in the social sciences, scientific progress is predominantly cumulative. High disruptiveness scores may reflect pseudo-noveltyContinue reading “New open access paper”

I have just completed a Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS) in Hypnosystemic Organizational Development with Dr. Gunther Schmidt, the developer of hypnosystemic approaches and one of the leading figures in hypnosystemic thinking. This training builds on my engagement with hypnosystemic approaches across various contexts over more than ten years. What matters to me is notContinue reading “I completed a CAS in Hypnosystemic Organizational Development”

Many thanks to Dr. Laura Herzog and Prof. Claudia Pahl-Wostl for inviting me to give a presentation at the Osnabrück University (14. January 2026). Title: “Fast-Track Procedures to Mitigate Climate Change: Are We Really Accelerating Towards Sustainability? – A Perspective Informed by a Relational Approach” In my talk, I discussed fast-track procedures as a globallyContinue reading “Invited Talk at Osnabrück University”

At the 6th Park Research Switzerland Conference (6. Tagung Parkforschung Schweiz), October 2025, I presented findings from one of my Marie-Curie Fellowship case studies in the United States: Chaco Culture National Historical Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We then discussed what we can take from this case for the Swiss context, in particular, howContinue reading “6th Conference on Park Research Switzerland”

I’m happy to share that I’ve started a new chapter as a Lecturer in Sustainability at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Institute of Business and Regional Economics, Competence Centre Regional Economy. At HSLU, I’m excited to I look forward to continuing collaborations, connecting with new colleagues and students, and working with partnersContinue reading “From the Arizona desert (USA) to Lake Lucerne (Switzerland)”

Sydney Lewis When I started my senior year of college, I had a daunting task before me: spending the next year of my studies writing an honors thesis. I had been intimidated by it since the start of college, but after Dr. Elke Kellner agreed to supervise my project, I was not afraid anymore. IContinue reading “Thesis Project Reflections: My Experience Working with Dr. Elke Kellner”

Sydney Lewis On a Friday morning in April 2023, our research team, led by Dr. Elke Kellner, embarked on a 5-hour drive to Grand Canyon National Park. We set out to collect interview data from tourists at the park, with the goal of adding further qualitative data – and the unique perspective of tourists –Continue reading “SURE Team Embarks on Field Expedition at Grand Canyon National Park”

When I applied to the Student Undergraduate Research Experience with the College of Global Futures, I was not expecting to find all the opportunity that lay before me. After I had interviewed for two other projects, I came to my final interview meeting Dr. Kellner. Mentally, I had already committed to a project with anotherContinue reading “A Unique Experience — Grand Canyon Case Study”

In April 2023, our research team had the opportunity to conduct fieldwork in – inarguably– one of the most beautiful places on Earth, Grand Canyon National Park. While I had experienced nearly everything we had planned in one way or another, such as camping in cold weather, hiking in the Grand Canyon, and conducting interviews,Continue reading “New experiences in a familiar place”

Getting the call to be selected as one of four women to take part in researching trade-off situations within a National Park was a very exciting day. From the first group meeting we had, I knew that we were on the verge of contributing to something important. My research partner and I went on toContinue reading “My experience in Elke’s lab”