RITA is an interdisciplinary network hub for applied knowledge and tools
to face the socio-ecological challenges of the 21st century and to bring the SDGs to life
RITA holds the label Regional Centres Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development (RCE),
granted by the UNESCO.
Our Services
Together we make the difference
- We support companies, institutions and communities to understand, evaluate and promote their own positive socio-ecological impact.
- We develop practical tools and methods to meet the challenges of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
- We facilitate learning for change on various levels and enhance the capacity of people to engage actively in shaping a sustainable future
Learn more about Transformative Learning and the RCE
A major focus of RITA rests on transformative learning which is learning for change and includes cognitive, emotional and activity-oriented aspects. It facilitates the recognition of different worldviews while enabling paradigmatic change. As transformative learning is driven by the diversity of various knowledge domains and different legitimised perspectives, the actual learning process cannot be limited to the selective homogeneity within a university and must include new learning environments outside the academic world.
Such transformative learning environments at the bridge between science and society are fundamental preconditions for tackling the grand challenges of the Anthropocene and are the first starting point for the radical innovations urgently needed to implement the SDGs.
Learn more about Impact Assessment
The second major focus of RITA rests on SDGs oriented impact assessment. Assessing the social and ecological impact, especially the impact of enterprises and communities, is a growing research topic of high relevance and is extremely important for the implementation of the SDGs.
Only if we are able to understand and evaluate how a positive impact on the SDGs is created we are able to promote the positive effects of business and communities and create concrete measures towards the implementation of the SDGs.
The integrative and holistic assessment of the impact created by business and communities is also the base for impact investment, which, in addition to financial returns, has an added positive social and ecological impact. As a growing economic activity impact investment provides various new opportunities for change makers and SDGs pioneers. Impact investment as well as green finance in general can contribute to a successful socio-economic transformation towards the SDGs.