Prof. Ortwin Renn served as Scientific Director at the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS, now RIFS) from Feb. 1, 2016 to Dec. 31, 2022, and is Professor Emeritus for Environment and Technology Assessment at the University of Stuttgart.
Together with Dr. Rainer Kuhn and Agnes Lampke, he continues to co-direct the non-profit research institute Dialogik for researching and implementation of innovative forms of science communication and participation.
Renn studied economics, sociology, and social psychology and completed his master and Ph.D in social psychology at the University of Cologne. He has worked as a researcher and university lecturer in Germany, the USA and Switzerland.
Renn has received numerous awards, including the Federal Cross of Merit, First Class, an honorary doctorate from ETH Zurich and Mid-Sweden University, and an honorary professorship from the Technical University of Munich. Renn is a member of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, the German Academy of Science and Engineering Acatech (where he is also a member of the board), and the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BBAW), among others. He is a member of numerous commissions and committees for policy advice, including chairman of the Sustainability Advisory Board and the Sustainability Platform of the State of Brandenburg.
His publications include over 30 monographs and edited volumes as well as more than 250 scientific articles. He publishes primarily on the topics of risk, sustainability, and citizen participation. Of particular importance are his 2008 monograph: "Risk Governance", his 2014 book "Das Risikoparadox. Warum wir uns vor dem Falschen fürchten" (The risk paradox. Why we are afraid of the wrong thing) and his 2019 book "Gefühlte Wahrheiten: Orientierung in Zeiten postfaktischer Verunsicherung“ (Perceived Truths: Orientation in Times of Postfactual Uncertainty).