Lena Valentina Mair is a student member of the APRI research group on Socio-Cultural Systems and is currently completing her MSc in Environmental System Sciences – Climate and Transformation Sciences at the University of Graz.
Her master’s thesis investigates the research needs and perspectives of local communities in East Greenland through ethnographic field research, focusing on the community of Tasiilaq near the University of Graz’s Sermilik Research Station. The project aims to establish a foundation for respectful and meaningful future research engagement around the station by supporting transdisciplinary and decolonial approaches to knowledge co-production. The thesis is supervised by Prof. Gerti Saxinger and Prof. Ilona Otto and is funded by the University of Graz.
Lena has worked as a Research Assistant in the Social Complexity and System Transformation Group at the Wegener Center for Climate and Global Change, University of Graz. Having studied Environmental System Sciences, Physics, and Climate and Transformation Sciences, she is interested in transdisciplinary approaches that connect natural and social science perspectives and bridge academic knowledge with political and lived realities.
Driven by a fascination with the interconnectedness of Earth’s social and ecological systems, Lena is interested in how scientific understanding can contribute to just and sustainable futures.
Alongside her academic work, she has been deeply involved in climate movements and nonviolent civil resistance campaigns across Europe, including organizing and campaign work. Rooted in a long-standing connection to mountain and Arctic environments, she is particularly interested in questions of ecological loss, justice, and collective responsibility. She has contributed to a variety of climate education initiatives and explores scientific and political questions through creative and artistic practices.
