[Report] Sustainability in Contemporary Europe – a Changing Agenda?

The third event of the Research Network ‘The role of Europe in global challenges: Climate change and Sustainable Development’ took place on June 13^th and 14^th, hosted by Prof. Thomas Hoerber at the EU-Asia Institute of ESSCA School of Management in Angers.

The conference was organised as a hybrid event, giving the opportunity for some researchers to network in person for the first time since the pandemic began, though a good number of participants joined online. The title of the event was ‘Sustainability in Contemporary Europe – A Changing Agenda?’ and there was variety in the topics covered, with some common areas emerging for discussion: the energy and cost of living crisis created by the invasion of Ukraine, looking into alternative sources of energy and for instance, the role of hydrogen; but also the changes in the understanding and use of the sustainable development concept (and its three pillars: economic, social and environmental) by European institutions and member State governments alike.

All the events of the Research Network have a dedicated space for PhD students and early career researchers. While in the first two events the focus was on different career paths and advice, organised as Q & A sessions between participants with different profiles and stages of professional career, in the last event the focus was put on grants capture, with really helpful insights from successful recipients of large grants and professionals dedicated to help in with the bidding process. The rationale behind this was to consider possible steps beyond the life of the Research Network, so that the expertise and common interests can be put to work towards something productive and with real impact, beyond academic publications, which of course, we will continue working on. We hope to continue with the growing number of members of the network and see more friends attending our panel at the UACES Annual Conference in Lille. Watch the space for more events next year. Rosa & Thomas & Jonas

See the project page