Johanna Sommerauer

BSc Environmental and Bioresource Management, Stud. Master Organic Agricultural System and Agroecology; Author

Biography

When I wrote a paper on world hunger as part of my high school diploma, I first really realised the extent of the topic of nutrition and health and decided to enroll at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU).

I started studying “Environment and Bioresource Management,” to get an overview of the different aspects. For my bachelor’s thesis, I then wrote about the feelings of farmers. It was important to me to find out how the producers of our food are doing.

Subsequently, I began my master’s degree in organic agricultural systems and agroecology also at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU) in Vienna. I developed a particular interest in plants that grow by themselves in the field, the so-called “weeds.” Thus, as the last step before graduation, the master’s thesis, I chose as the topic, “Organic farmer’s knowledge about the contributions to people provided by edible weeds.” I wanted to find out what “weeds” had to offer. Ethnobotany, ecology, and, especially, the knowledge of organic farmers about edible weeds were my central topics. As life goes, however, I have not yet been able to complete my master’s thesis.

My favourite aspect of studying has always been reading and writing well-researched articles. My first attempt to make a career out of these activities was writing for “Lebensart – Magazine for Sustainable Living Culture.” Since 2023, I have been able to write articles for diet health, focusing in particular on the ecological footprint of various foods.

Motivation

I have been a vegetarian since childhood. At seven years old, I became aware of the effects of diet – thus, I no longer wanted to eat animals. As it was still unusual in the 90s to eat a meat-less diet, especially in rural regions, those around me constantly made feel malnourished. As a result, a balanced diet has been a central theme in my life ever since.

The topics of nutrition, the health of people, as well as the soil, animals, and nature as a whole lie close to my heart. I see a balanced nutrition as the foundation for a healthy world. Everything is connected in nature, and so I see food as the cause of many problems, but also as the solution. Many people are not even aware of the associated eco-social issues, let alone have the time to study them. Thus, it really pleases me to work intensely with vegan nutrition, sustainable production, and environmentally conscious consumption and to prepare the information in easy-to-understand articles for many people.