Communication and outreach

We pay special attention to reaching out with our research results, both to specific target groups such as regulators and to the general public. Two examples are: (i) a blog by the interdisciplinary artist Roman Kroke that was published during the scientific expedition on the German Research Vessel SONNE when crossing the North Pacific Ocean to collect material from the so-called Great Pacific Garbage Patch within the BMBF project MICRO-FATE and (ii) a research comic targeting children between 3 and 10 years giving selected results of the JPI Oceans project WEATHER-MIC. Additionally, we contribute regularly to science fairs like Researchers‘ Nights. Furthermore, information regarding the safety of anthropogenic particles is summarized for everyone on the web-based knowledge base www.nanoobject.info. This science communication activity runs for more than 10 years in the frame of the DaNa projects.

Contributing scientists:

Annika Jahnke
Dana Kühnel
Dušan Materić

Publications

See e.g. articles:
Spotlight January 2021: Nanoplastics challenge – How to improve tracking of nanopolystyrene distribution in the environment.

https://nanopartikel.info/en/knowledge/materials/polystyrene/

https://nanopartikel.info/en/basics/cross-cutting/nanoplastic-in-the-environment/

Projects

DaNa4.0 - Data on new, innovative and safe application related materials; (BMBF) 01.03.2020 - 28.02.2023, https://nanopartikel.info/en/research/projects/dana-4-0/

WEATHER-MIC research comic — Research comic highlighting outcomes of the WEATHER-MIC project

New expertise available

Please see below an exciting addition to our competence cluster on: Political Dynamics and Legal Assessment. Please see the specific sections further down!

Info on sensor technology added

Check out the newly added detailed descriptions for sensor technology in the specific section further down!

Sensor technology

New content added

Check out the newly added detailed descriptions for two areas of expertise: bioplastics in soil and effects of aquatic organisms. Please see the specific sections further down!

New expertise added

We have added two new areas of expertise on road and tire wear particles and tire-associated chemicals. Please have a look further down!

New website launched

We have collected core facts about the diverse research groups at UFZ that study different aspects of plastics in the environment and bundled them in this Microplastics Competence Cluster, to be launched in the framework of the General Assembly of the Research Program Changing Earth - Sustaining our Future.

Please stay tuned for upcoming additions!

For any comments, please reach out to Annika Jahnke

Important papers

MacLeod et al. The global threat from plastic pollution. Science 2021

Materić et al. Nanoplastics measurements in Northern and Southern polar ice. Environ. Res. 2022

Schmidt et al. Export of Plastic Debris by Rivers into the Sea. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2017