News: Jun 30, 2021
Mid-Year Greetings from Global Sustainable Futures
The bright nights we experience in Sweden in late June remind us that we live on a planet. The beauty of this fascinating and inescapable condition may strike us anew every year, despite being a highly foreseeable northern phenomenon.
At Global Sustainable Futures (GSF) we can look back as an academic year of increasing collaboration and exchange. We have had the privilege to meet — digitally of course — with many colleagues at our two universities, Chalmers University of Technology and University of Gothenburg. We have realised the diversity and richness of exchange in different forms and are in the process of constructing an interactive map that illustrates these activities and of structuring our support of current and new initiatives.
At GSF, we of course apply worldwide perspective to most of what we do — not so much in a geophysical sense, as in a sense of global connectedness and opportunity. Especially related to the goals of Agenda 2030 and low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) — our special mandate. In the past academic year, we have had the privilege to meet colleagues with a great variety of interests in and experiences of exchange of addressing these goals, especially with partners in low- and middle-income countries. We have also had the pleasure of hosting events with the participation of partners in several countries (see below). In the coming semester, we will stage another series of webinars that highlight collaboration involving local and LMIC partners that focus on timely topics. On November 16, we will hold an online conference, where we highlight selected themes. Find out here about how you can contribute to the conference and submit your abstract.
Two GSF pilot activities have progressed in the past year. The Thematic Working Group — Water has identified widespread interest at Chalmers and University of Gothenburg around water research, essentially connected to Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6), Clean Water and Sanitation. Likewise, the pilot around SDG 8, Decent Work and Economic Growth, has made strides in scrutinizing the targets and to formulate research to address knowledge gaps and influence policies that advance development towards the SDG 8. We look forward to upcoming events in both pilots.
We especially look forward to the launch of the Sweden-East Africa University Network (SWEAFUN), a new strategic joint initiative from Chalmers and partner universities in East Africa to increase transdisciplinary, thematic collaboration and develop knowledge that promotes global sustainable development. Having secured initial support from STINT, The Swedish Foundation for International Cooperation in Research and Higher Education, GSF will help launch the first themes of SWEAFUN: Food and Nutritional Health, Sustainable Energy Innovations, Air Quality and Transport, Data Driven ICT and Drinking Water Health Assessment.
As the countdown to 2030 is ticking and global challenges such as climate change and the still ongoing looming covid-19 pandemic, it is gratifying to be in a position to addressing these issues head on, with knowledge as our main resource. With the support from both Chalmers University of Technology and University of Gothenburg, not least expressed in the visions of both institutions — "Chalmers for a Sustainable Future" and "A University for The World" (University of Gothenburg) — we welcome everyone’s engagement and contributions to a globally sustainable future and look forward to hearing from you.
/Magdalena Eriksson, Platform Leader, Global Sustainable Futures
Read our Mid-Year Greetings and find out more about current activities and up-coming initiatives and events.
