Sustainability is one of the greatest challenges that the world faces, and one of the key themes in which ACT researchers are active. At the core of this theme is the question of how we move towards a future that can sustain itself both ecologically and socially. At ACT, we are interested in the transformation toward sustainability in a twofold manner. In the first place, we seek to understand and imagine the role of private law in transformations towards sustainable goals, such as a carbon neutral economy, the sustainability of social and business practices, land use and regulation. These transformations happen at a local, national, European/regional, transnational or global level. Secondly, we are particularly interested in exploring whether and how the process of transformation is conducted in an equitable and socially sustainable manner with due regard to the rule of law and the different approaches to governance.

Balancing these choices will be a key element of our research endeavours to further investigate, understand and foster sustainable transformation. In both roles we do not see private law as merely instrumental, but also as a strong normative agent of change.

These starting points translate into current and future research projects in a multitude of ways:

1. Firstly, we embrace pluralism in the understanding of the concept of sustainability and welcome reflections on its meaning.
2. Second, we map, analyse and develop new ways of thinking about finance, business, consumption, property, nature, labour and social justice.
3. Third, we identify the structuring effects of law in entrenching ways in which humans interact with one another and with the non-human world, and we articulate how those interactions may aid or hamper the path toward a sustainable future.