Sustainability Matters
Sustainability Matters (formerly Humanities Matter)—produced by De Gruyter Brill—takes a deep dive into sustainability in scholarly communications and beyond. The podcast explores topics such as promoting diverse voices and marginalized perspectives in academia, the global accessibility of research, research ethics, combatting misinformation and more. Sustainability Matters features experts, advocates, practitioners, and De Gruyter Brill authors whose work on ethical and sustainable practices breaks boundaries, builds new bonds, and shapes a better future. Join us as we explore how we can shape a more equitable and accessible future for knowledge sharing—because sustainability truly matters, in scholarly publishing, and beyond.
Episodes
107 episodes
Reading Between the Numbers: What Publishing Data Tells Us About Sustainability
In this episode of Sustainability Matters, we get into the numbers behind scholarly publishing. We unpack why publishing consumption patterns vary so widely across countries, how data can inform efforts around diversity, equity, and in...
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Season 13
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Episode 3
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44:36
Transdisciplinarity and the Future of Knowledge: Why Sustainable Research Struggles to Survive
In this episode of Sustainability Matters, we explore what responsible research and innovation (RRI) means. How can science move beyond disciplinary siloes to embrace transdisciplinarity? What does it mean to conduct research that is truly soci...
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Season 13
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Episode 2
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47:17
Beyond Tokenism: What Does True Diversity in Higher Education Look Like?
On the first episode of Sustainability Matters (formerly Humanities Matter), we explore the complexities of diversity and inclusion in higher education. Do the frameworks in US universities today advance equity, or merely mask deeper systemic i...
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Season 13
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Episode 1
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1:39:17
Adult Education: Exploring the Inequalities in the World’s Most Populated Country
This month on Humanities Matter, we discuss the variation in literacy rates among India’s social strata, the importance of considering a gendered perspective in adult education policies within the country, and how such policies can empower marg...
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Season 12
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Episode 11
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49:21
Fact or Fiction: Are Sea Serpents Real?
In this episode of Humanities Matter, we take a closer look at the documented sightings of the so-called Gloucester Sea Serpent over the years. Are there truly monsters lurking in the deep? Or do these stories reveal a stark truth about marine ...
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Season 12
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Episode 10
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1:01:21
Unpacking Responsibility for Autonomous Weapons Systems Part 2: A Terminator Scenario?
In the second half of this episode on Humanities Matter, we examine when countries might deploy autonomous weapons systems, whether these weapons could better follow international human rights law than humans if properly programmed, the feasibi...
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Season 12
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Episode 9
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40:52
Unpacking Responsibility for Autonomous Weapons Systems Part 1: The Legal Frameworks
In this special extended episode of Humanities Matter, we take a closer look at Autonomous Weapons Systems and the legal frameworks surrounding their use. What exactly defines an autonomous weapon? Can an individual be held legally ...
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Season 12
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Episode 8
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47:56
Rights, Camera, Action: The Asian Yearbook of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law
In this episode of Humanities Matter, we dive into human rights and humanitarian law development in Asia, exploring current regional challenges, persisting colonial legacies, external geopolitical pressures, and the push for greater accountabil...
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Season 12
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Episode 7
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39:07
Protecting the Planet and its People: Environmental Human Rights Law
This month on Humanities Matter, we take a closer look at a groundbreaking environmental human rights law being developed in Latin America and the Caribbean. What is it? How is it connected to the Escazú Agreement and the American Convention on...
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Season 12
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Episode 6
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40:05
Growing Communities: Exploring Regenerative Agrourbanism and Sustainable Food Systems
In this episode of Humanities Matter, we look at the role of regenerative agrourbanism in creating sustainable urban living spaces. How can urban agriculture boost local economies and enhance community well-being? Is it possible to strike a bal...
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Season 12
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Episode 5
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45:52
Shaping A Sustainable Future: The Role of Adult Education
In this episode of Humanities Matter, we explore various aspects of adult education, including the influence of Paulo Freire's critical pedagogy, impact of environmental education on social change, and challenges and opportunities when it comes...
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Season 12
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Episode 4
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46:15
Difference, Diversity, and Intersectionality in Adult Education and Beyond: A Pride Month Special Episode
It’s pride month!In this episode, we discuss the importance of an intersectional approach to research, the role of adult educators in fostering inclusive learning environments, the power of pop culture in addressing gender and sexuality ...
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Season 12
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Episode 3
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58:49
Breaking Boundaries: Navigating Critical Pedagogy in Today's Educational Landscape
In this episode of Humanities Matter, we explore how partnerships among schools, communities, and higher education institutions can help disrupt inequitable social processes. We highlight the unique perspectives that Black educators bring to ac...
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Season 12
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Episode 2
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40:26
Protecting Human Rights: The Role of NGOs in Today’s Landscape
As global crises have time and time again demonstrated, NGOs play an invaluable role in the protection and promotion of human rights. But what exactly does this role entail? How do NGOs fulfil their responsibilities while adapting to technologi...
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Season 12
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Episode 1
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43:58
Open Access: The Publisher's Perspective
In another special episode on Open Access, Brill’s Head of Open Research Stephanie Veldman speaks with Dr. Anthony Watkinson, author of "Open Access: A publisher's view"<...
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Season 11
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Episode 5
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32:02
Open Access: What Would it Take to Make Knowledge-Sharing Equitable?
It’s open access week. So, this episode, we break down the concept of open access to research. Is it a basic human right? What’s its role in shaping global development? And how are technologies—both new and old—influencing a movement for it.
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Season 11
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Episode 4
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54:56
Humanity’s Harmonies: How Music Enriches Word, Dance, and Drama to Tell Our Collective Stories
This month on Humanities Matter, we talk about Music! We wonder why apocalyptic soundtracks have captivated people since Medieval times, we re-discover the beauty and cultural significance of court music, and we explore the ways in ...
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Season 11
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Episode 3
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54:27
A Changing World Order in the 21st Century
This month on Humanities Matter, we talk about the need for space laws to include laws governing cybersecurity, data privacy, and war; role of capitalism in the West’s Covid-19 fatalities; and the precarity of certain types of labour in the Glo...
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Season 11
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Episode 2
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1:13:00
Digital Humanities: How the Future Will See its Past
This month, we talk about the ancient world going digital, pedagogy through virtual reality, how open access is changing scholarly publishing, and whether digital tools could make non-Western scholarship more mainstream. Also, is AI the greates...
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Season 11
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Episode 1
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58:18
[Message from Brill] Thank you listening. Stay tuned; we will be back with a new format and brand new insights on May 17th, 2023!
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Season 2
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Episode 49
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1:16
Episode 48: Re-Evaluating Our Laws: Discussing Brill’s Book Series Global Health, Human Rights and Social Justice with Series Editor Alicia Ely Yamin
Global Health, Human Rights and Social Justice—Brill’s upcoming book series—provides multi-disciplinary perspectives on legal strategies across different fields and movements. The...
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Season 2
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Episode 48
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21:51
Mahlzeit: Folge 6: Umkämpftes Essen - Produktion, Handel und Konsum von Lebensmitteln in globalen Kontexten, mit Cornelia Reiher und Sarah Ruth Sippel / Mahlzeit: Episode 6: Contested Food—Production, trade and consumption of food in global contexts, with
Wie wurde die bescheidene Tomate zum Symbol der kulinarischen Globalisierung? Die komplexen Interessen und Machtstrukturen, die das Welternährungssystem prägen, sind ein deutlicher Hinweis auf den politischen Charakter von Lebensmitteln. Anhand...
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Season 10
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Episode 6
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24:49
Mahlzeit: Folge 5: Fleisch – Die Geschichte einer Industrialisierung, mit Prof. Dr. Christian Kassung / Mahlzeit: Episode 5: Meat—The history of an industrialization, with Prof. Dr. Christian Kassung
Der Wert der globalen Fleischindustrie beträgt aktuell ungefähr eine Billiarde Dollar. Fleisch ist überall leicht erhältlich und diese permanente Verfügbarkeit als Konsumartikel ist ein einzigartiges Merkmal des modernen Zeitalters. In seinem B...
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Season 10
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Episode 5
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23:00
Mahlzeit: Episode 4: Applied Food Sciences, with Bart Wernaart and Bernd van der Meulen
Food science is a vast field that encompasses subjects ranging from microbiology to marketing. Considering the present global scenario, with factors such as climate change, war, and recession affecting supply chains worldwide, understanding t...
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Season 10
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Episode 4
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22:50
