The human brain is plastic throughout life; new wiring patterns and thus new ideas and behaviors can be formed into old age. Nevertheless, only a few people succeed in fundamentally changing the inner attitudes and behaviors that have been formed and anchored in the brain later in life. Why is this the case and under what conditions are people - including in Wiesbaden - prepared to align their thoughts, feelings and actions with different, more sustainable criteria than before?

The search for an answer to this question leads neurobiologist Gerald Hüther into areas that have received little attention in previous discussions on sustainability. It is about basic needs that are deeply rooted in us, about the longing for connection and autonomy, for community and encounters, and also about preserving our own dignity. And it is about overcoming self-centeredness, consumption and the preservation of possessions as energy- and resource-wasting substitute satisfactions.