Contemporary applications of umwelt theory. Introduction
Contemporary applications of umwelt theory. Introduction

Summary/Abstract: Jakob von Uexküll’s works, originally grounded in biology and philosophy, have garnered increasing interest in academia. This interest is rooted in the foundational nature of Uexküll’s umwelt theory, which examines how organisms perceive and interact with their environments, offering a framework for understanding subjective realities in both natural sciences and humanities (for a relevant bibliography, see Kull 2001, 2020). In the last ten years, the continuing interest has been evident in the publication of edited collections of papers (e.g. Michelini, Köchy 2020), special issues of journals (e.g. Brentari, Tønnessen 2024) and ideahistorical biographies (e.g. Brentari 2015), not to mention individual articles and book chapters. Several of these studies have sought to apply Uexküll’s theories in contemporary contexts and expand their scope beyond the original boundaries of umwelt theory (see e.g. Caves et al. 2019; Herrmann-Pillath et al. 2023; Schroer 2021; Tyler 2022). The goal of this volume is not only to honour Uexküll’s intellectual legacy, but also to expand it further, and to invite authors to reflect on the potential of umwelt theory in addressing modern challenges and to explore the applicability of theory in contemporary contexts. We also hope that this special issue demonstrates how Uexküll’s ideas continue to inspire new directions in research.

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