Taxes for the climate? Corporate taxation in the context of sustainability

How can tax instruments contribute to achieving ecological goals? The bachelor's seminar is dedicated to the interface between corporate taxation and sustainability. The focus is on current tax policy measures to promote sustainable investments and to price negative environmental impacts - for example through CO₂ taxes or depreciation incentives for green technologies, in Germany, the EU and beyond. The aim is to develop a deeper understanding of how tax frameworks can steer the behavior of companies towards sustainable business practices.
The seminar begins with a kick-off event at the start of the semester, at which key topics and organizational processes are introduced. Students then work independently on a topic as part of an academic assignment. The results are then presented and discussed at a joint presentation day. The seminar thus offers not only a substantive examination of a highly topical subject, but also the opportunity to deepen academic work and presentation skills.

Learning objectives:
Students take a critical look at current environment-related tax reforms. They learn to analyze tax policy measures in the context of sustainability and to classify them internationally. In addition, they strengthen their skills in academic work, particularly in literature research, structured argumentation and in writing and presenting academic texts.