On a personal note, we would also like to inform you that our valued colleague Florian Franke will be leaving the institute at the end of March 2026. Over the past year and a half, Mr. Franke has contributed his outstanding skills in policy consulting, (scientific) communication, and stakeholder management to a wide range of projects. We are very grateful for his diverse, professional, and creative contributions. We will also miss him as a colleague. We thank him for his inspiring nature and for the pleasant working relationship we’ve shared! We wish him all the best in his new professional endeavors!
We wish you an exciting read!
Kind regards!
Your ConPolicy team
News about ConPolicy
ConPolicy Hosts Expert Event
Opportunities and Challenges of AI in Everyday Consumer Life
Artificial intelligence is increasingly becoming part of everyday consumer life: whether researching a new product or seeking assistance with consumer issues, consumers are turning to AI chatbots or automatically generated summaries more and more frequently. At the same time, it is foreseeable that AI agents will play a major role in the future.
Against this backdrop, the Ministry of Agriculture and Consumer Protection of North Rhine-Westphalia organized the expert event “Chatbot and AI agent: friend or foe?” on March 12, 2026. The event focused on the question of what opportunities and risks the use of AI presents for consumers. The event was moderated by ConPolicy Managing Director Prof. Dr. Christian Thorun.
Key takeaways from the event:
AI chatbots and AI agents are already changing how consumers seek information and make decisions—a trend that is likely to accelerate further.
Consumers benefit from more efficient information searches, greater relief through automated decisions, and low-barrier access methods, such as voice commands.
At the same time, risks exist, such as the potential centralization of information and opinion formation within a few systems, the uncritical use of AI-generated content, and security and control issues—particularly with AI agents.
The existing European legal framework and current regulatory initiatives (e.g., the Digital Fairness Act) have so far only partially addressed these developments and require further clarification.
New project commissioned by the German Environment Agency
Recipient-Oriented Risk Management of Biocidal Products
Biocidal products are frequently used in German households, for example disinfectants, which have been used more often since the COVID-19 pandemic. Biocides are substances and mixtures used to control harmful organisms. Across the EU, these products are accompanied by risk mitigation measures (RMMs). The purpose of assigning RMMs is to protect consumers, animals, and the environment from negative impacts. The German Environment Agency has commissioned ConPolicy to carry out this study.
The aim of the study is to evaluate existing RMMs with regard to environmental protection and to develop a recipient-oriented risk management approach. To this end, RMMs will be examined empirically and further developed. Methodologically, the study includes the analysis of a real purchase situation, an online experiment, and a laboratory experiment.
More information about the project can be found here.
A podcast episode on climate action
Communicating Climate Change with Sophia Dasch
In the latest episode of Dickon Bonvik-Stone’s podcast “Communicating Climate Change”, ConPolicy researcher Sophia Dasch discusses the role of psychological factors in collective climate action. The focus is on how the current crisis of motivation within the climate movement can be better understood and overcome.
The discussion explores what motivates people to join collective actions – including a sense of belonging to a politicised group, a perception of injustice, and a belief in the effectiveness of collective action. It also examines how climate movements can be strengthened in practice.
Sophia Dasch works as a project manager at ConPolicy and sits on the board of the non-profit organisation Wandelwerk. There, she combines scientific findings with practical approaches to climate communication and social change. Her co-authored book “The Psychology of Collective Climate Action: Building Climate Courage” is freely available and offers in-depth insights into the psychology of climate protest and activism.
Fasel, C. & Kroschwald, S. (2026)
Values and law: environmental and consumer protection in a democratic constitutional state. Festschrift for Tobias Brönneke
The commemorative publication Values and Law: Environmental and Consumer Protection in a Democratic Constitutional State honours the academic work of…
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