International Center for Ethics in the Sciences and Humanities (IZEW)

Sonja Pfisterer

Co-laborative research and innovation

Sonja Pfisterer studied philosophy, cultural theory, literary studies, and educational sciences in Tübingen and Essex. Her work focuses on applied ethics, ethics education, and ethics didactics, as well as inter‑ and transdisciplinary questions concerning ethics in science and society. Within the ANKER project, she works on embedding ethical principles into the technical development of AI and on integrating these principles within practical technology development processes.

Research Areas

  • Applied Ethics and Ethics Didactics
  • Political Philosophy and Social Philosophy
  • Cultural Theory

Publications

Koeritz, L., & Pfisterer, S. (2026). Beyond the principle‑practice gap: How digital AI ethics tools fall short in the age of GenAI. In F. Butollo & A. K. Krüger (Hrsg.), Generative AI and society: What is at stake? Weizenbaum Conference 2026 – Book of abstracts. Weizenbaum Institute. https://doi.org/10.34669/wi.cp/6

Pfisterer, S., Spindler, M., & Koeritz, L. (2026, April 1). Das IZEW Ethics‑Tools Lab: Ein Werkzeugkasten für die Vermittlung von Ethik in Technikentwicklungs‑, Forschungs‑ und Bildungsprozesse. Blog BedenkZeiten. https://uni-tuebingen.de/de/296070

Stapf, I., Schelenz, L., Dreyer, S., Pfetsch, J., Lampert, C., Andresen, S., Paschel, F., Thiel, K., Wysocki, N., Pfisterer, S., & Heesen, J. (2024). Der SIKID‑Kompass: Sicherheit von Kindern in der digitalen Welt im Akteursnetzwerk ermöglichen (Materialien zur Ethik in den Wissenschaften, Band 25). IZEW. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14179984

Pfisterer, S. (2023, September 16). Insights and impact: A recap of the symposium on social justice and technological futures. Blog BedenkZeiten. https://uni-tuebingen.de/de/254693

Talks and Conferences

Session „Verantwortungsvolle KI-Entwicklung" with Dr. Simon David Hirsbrunner and Lisa Koeritz; 18.-19.06.2026, 6. Fachkonferenz Cluster Integrierte Forschung „Digitale Demokratie gemeinsam gestalten“ in Düsseldorf (in german)

Talk „Beyond the Principle-Practice Gap: How Digital AI Ethics Tools Fall Short in the Age of GenAI" with Lisa Koeritz; 10.-11.06.2026, Weizenbaum Conference 2026 „“Generative AI and Society: What is at stake?” in Berlin

Session "Co-laborative Technology Development in the Context of Generative AI” with Lisa Koeritz und Céline Gressel; 04.05.2026, 24. STS Conference “Critical Issues in Science, Technology and Society Studies” in Graz

Symposium „Social Justice and Technological Futures”, organised with Laura Schelenz and others.; 02.-03.05.2023, Universität Tübingen

Podcast

Podcast Justice Tech Log by Sonja Pfisterer. Access all podcast episodes here. 

Teaching

Summerterm 2026

Blockseminar on ‘Responsible AI Development’; in collaboration with Dr Mone Spindler and Lisa Koeritz; University of Tübingen, Data Literacy Certificate (german)