This focus on interdisciplinary collaboration and societal impact directly echoes EUR’s Strategy 2030 commitment to fostering open and international innovation networks and advancing a just transition to a sustainable society
Elise Wester
Student Representative for EUR at UNIC
From 16 September to 17 October, students and staff from Erasmus University participated in the UNIC (The European University of Post-Industrial Cities) International Sustainability Leadership Autumn School, hosted by University College Cork (UCC).
The hybrid programme, with the theme of "Walking and Pedestrianisation for Liveable, Net-Zero Cities" Included lectures and workshops on topics such as Knowledge to Action: Ensuring Social Impact and Leading and acting for Sustainability, and combined students, academic staff and local municipality representatives.
Prof.dr. Lasse Gerrits and Dr. Sophia Pagliarin from Erasmus University gave an online lecture on systems thinking competence focusing on complexity and systems thinking in the context of cities. "We very much enjoyed our lecture. We shared our ideas about the very fundamental principles of urban dynamics, such as self-organisation and emergence, which will help the understanding of pathways to sustainability. Above all, it tells future urban leaders that there is no quick way to 'fix' unsustainable practices. However, it highlights smarter ways in which leaders can go about." – Prof.dr. Lasse Gerrits.
Following the online part of the Autumn school, the program continued with an in-person session at the UCC campus, recognised as the most sustainable campus in Europe.
Giorgio Palladino, a recent EUR graduate of the MSc Urban Governance of Inclusive Sustainable Cities, was among the attendees. He mentions a highlight on the section on Walking, green spaces and nature: "I was really passionate about the presentation about greenery and children. They focused on the visibility of greenery in cities, a lot of which is often not immediately noticeable, for example in private gardens. Additionally, they explained how they try to map informal greenery, so not just trees planted by the municipality, but greenery that children interact with, and adults may not even notice." He goes on to say: "The workshops taught us a lot how to collaborate with people from different disciplines: the choice of participants was very intentional: we had civil engineers, people with psychology backgrounds, and others like me from public administration. Sustainability was approached from all these angles, and we were encouraged to genuinely learn from each other's disciplines and apply those insights to our own fields." Additionally, a network during the program was created through LinkedIn so participants can stay connected.
This focus on interdisciplinary collaboration and societal impact directly echoes EUR’s Strategy 2030 commitment to fostering open and international innovation networks and advancing a just transition to a sustainable society.
An Autumn school like this is one of the many great mobility opportunities UNIC, the European university alliance EUR leads, offers. Find out more about UNIC: UNIC (European University of Post-Industrial Cities) | Erasmus University Rotterdam.