Perspectives on mobility
Transformation Paths to Sustainable Mobility
Registration
The registration takes place via RWTH Online and is possible from September 15th till October 9th. Further information about the registration process can be found in our FAQ.
All students can register for one module. You can specify two preferences. Please use the numbers “1” and “2”. If you have not been assigned a place in the project after the end of the assignment and are still interested in participating, please contact sibel.yildirim[@]ipw.rwth-aachen.de directly.
(If you have any problems with the registration or with RWTHonline, please contact Mrs. Sibel Yildirim (IPW), also stating your matriculation number: sibel.yildirim@ipw.rwth-aachen.de)
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Academic Responsibility
Teaching and research area Economic, Social and Technological History
RWTH Aachen University
Chair of Economic Geography and Senior Partner at Roland Berger
Contact Person
Emilia Karaula
Schedulue
Start
20.10.2025
Time
Monday, 18:30-20:00
Place
S10 (1385|210)
Claßenstraße 11
Contents
Mobility, as a basic human need, has been and continues to be an important socio-economic factor. Traditionally, the motto was “faster, higher, further.” The issue of sustainability played only a minor role, even though transport services worldwide account for more than 20% of CO₂ emissions. With the increasingly rapid acceleration of climate change, the pressure to act is growing. New patterns of mobility must emerge.
Accordingly, the module addresses the opportunities, risks, and limitations of combining mobility consumption and mobility technology under the imperative of sustainable resource use. The focus lies on urban transport concepts in international comparison and historical perspective. Planned case studies include the Euregio Meuse-Rhine, Berlin, Hamburg, Paris, and Bangkok.
The starting point is marked by the groundbreaking 1972 study by the Club of Rome, The Limits of Growth. For the first time, it placed the concept of sustainability as an indispensable premise of human action into the global public spotlight. The new mobility designs inspired by this shift in awareness will be analyzed and compared in order to identify criteria for success and failure.
Learning Outcomes
The course is designed to enable students to systematically and holistically analyze and interpret mobility on a historical basis. The methodological and subject-specific competence thus acquired not only equips them to actively and critically engage with research and teaching during their studies. It also enables them to design and implement sustainable mobility research and mobility models.
To foster articulation and argumentative skills, the module places great emphasis on communication between students and lecturers; that is, all sessions ideally include a 45-minute discussion component. Information material will be made available in the learning space beforehand.
Program
T.b.a.
Procedure/Working method
Depending on the course of studies, module and examination, credit points can be achieved through participation. If you would like to take an exam, please make sure beforehand how you can get credit for it in your degree program. Of course, you can also take exams without receiving curricular credit for them. Visit our FAQs for more information.
Certificate
Certificate of Participation (0 CP, not graded)
Protocol with critical analysis (2 CP, not graded)
Presentation (3 CP)
Term Paper 15-20 pages (4 CP)
