What I do for a loving

As a scientist, I am committed to an ethos of absolute objectivity. In qualitative methodology, as employed for my doctoral project, explicating one's personal perspective is an integral part of the research process. This allows everyone to learn about my premises and to criticize the conclusions I derive.
Therefore, research questions can be allowed to be inspired by idealistic striving. In turn, activism actually ought to be based on scientific findings.

As a human being, I am committed to my values. In the past, I have pursued manifold sorts of activism: I have organized virgils for the animal victims of hunting; carried banners in solitary or group protests; launched a petition for reconciling what the fashion industry offers with what animal protection laws say; founded and spearheaded the Singen foodsharing chapter; rallyed for votes as deputy chairperson of an ecological party; and ran countless information booths for animal and nature rights causes. I sought to take responsibility for a livable and lovable future.

Now, I wish to accompany doom by my love. She who has a heart cannot just fatalistically stand by. Yet, she who learned self-care the hard way, likewise learned to focus. Who knows - when every one of us contributes what they can joyfully contribute, maybe there is a future after all.

This is the focus of my striving today:

Human-Corvid Coexistence

• Federal Working Group for „Corvid Protection“ of the German Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (NABU)
  I initiated and lead a coalition of scientists, officials, environmentalists and citizens who share the goal of being advocates of crows, ravens, jays, jackdaws and magpies. We challenge outdated prejudices against corvids and we educate the public; we contest laws and regulations which negatively impact corvids; we offer our advice to authorities and citizen groups interested in human-corvid coexistence; and we practically engage in the protection of corvid species and individuals.


• The "Trail of Rooks" Project
  I devised a nature trail in my hometown Ascheberg, the "Trail of Rooks". It discovered the local rookery as a resource for tourism, thus furthering acceptance and protect the birds. The project received wide acclaim. Meanwhile, I have developed adaptations of that trail for multiple German cities that are home to rooks, and advised others in their process of developing nature trails showcasting their corvids. For example, in 2013 I counselled a team who realized a trail of rooks for the horticultural show of state Brandenburg in Eastern Germany.


• Mediating and Managing Human-Rook Conflicts
  I bring my academic and practical knowledge about human-rook relations to bear on counselling private groups and state institutions aming to find ways of coexistence with their rookeries. I develop custom-made concepts and assist communities in making the best of their rookeries as a natural resource that can benefit them, thus creating win-win situations for humans and corvids.

Fur was alive

As a girl, my way to the elementary school would lead me past a store for fur fashion twice each day. Every time I passed that store, I was struck with horror upon imagining that animals are killed for nothing but human vanity. So it is probably no coincidence that my fight for animal rights began with an anti-fur campaign: "Fur was alive". Since the onset of that campaign, I have learned that vanity is not the only motive for people to produce and wear fur fashion: hunger for monetary profit, naive anthropocentrism and - above all - ignorance likewise motivate exploiting living beings for their pelts. "Fur was alive" is an attempt to change people's minds gently and effectively.

Approaching my Values each Day

In my plant-based, biking, walking, post-growth, upcyceling ways, I happily struggle for living my values as best I can:
I got to great lengths to act in accordance with my convictions. I readily accept the hassles that come with, for example, not owning a car.
Thereby, I am aware that every striving for a value-based life can at best be a trade-off of different values and is bound to be deficient when measured against the ideal. A human life is one of compromise and I carefully assess the trade-offs I make. Yet, I am unconditionally committed to choosing the most veracious and mindful way of coexisting with my fellow earthlings.
The values breathe life when I connect to the individual beings I love.