Diary

Citation

(2003), "Diary", International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, Vol. 4 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijshe.2003.24904cac.001

Diary

Rotterdam, The Netherlands8 September-3 October 2003Organised by the Sustainable Building Support Centre at the Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS), Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

The third edition of the Sustainable Building and Urban Design course, organised by the Sustainable Building Support Centre at IHS Rotterdam, begins on 8 September 2003.

The four-week course will be held at IHS Rotterdam and The Wageningen University and Research Centre, The Netherlands. It is intended to train mid-career professionals in sustainable design approach, sustainable planning and construction techniques, assessment of buildings and sustainable building policies.

Included in the course programme are five expert workshops, a one-week excursion to pilot projects in Germany and Belgium, and the participation in the International Building Physics Conference in Leuven, Belgium.

The course is hosted by the Sustainable Building Support Centre, an international knowledge centre involved in training, expert assistance, knowledge generation and knowledge dissemination around the core themes of sustainable building and sustainable urban development.

The course is organised with support and participation of the Dutch Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment, VROM, and iiSBE, the international initiative for Sustainable Built Environment (www.iisbe.org/). Further details are available at: www.ihs.nl/UED/SBUD/SBUD_2003.pdf and www.ihs.nl/UED/SBUD/ApplicationSBUD2003.pdf

For more information about the SBS Centre please visit: www.ihs.nl/SBSCentre

Education for a Sustainable Future: Conference in Prague

Prague, Czech Republic10-11 September 2003The International Association of Universities and Charles University in Prague are organizing an international conference on “Education for a Sustainable Future – Shaping the Practical Role of Higher Education for Sustainable Development”, to be held at Charles University, in Prague, Czech Republic, on 10-11 September 2003. The event’s themes are:

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  How can universities contribute to achieving the millennium development goals?

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  Global higher education for sustainability partnership (GHESP) as a contribution to the WSSD plan of implementation.

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  Contributing to education for a sustainable future through the curriculum, by innovative methods of education and other means.

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  What is the role for higher education institutions in the UN decade of education for sustainable development?

Further details are available at: www.unesco.org/iau/conference/prague/index.html

ECPR General Conference 2003

Marburg, Germany18-21 September 2003The ECPR Conference is organising an “Environmental politics section” This section has ten panels covering important (and new) issues in green political theory and environmental policy. Each panel is made up of a maximum of four papers.

Currently, the European Union (EU) consists of fifteen member states that exhibit an array of political and constitutional systems, ranging from unitary to the fully federal. The UK is an example of a state that was formerly unitary in character. However, recently it has begun to decentralise decision-making by devolving powers, in a number of policy areas including the environment, to bodies in Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and the English regions. Similar trends can be observed in other EU states.

This panel sets out to record and assess the impact of the degree and process of decentralisation on environmental governance and focuses on the (changing) role(s) of and relations between state and non-state actors in environmental decision-making under such altered circumstances. The following questions are posed for the panel:

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  Which state and non-state actors at the local/regional/national and EU level(s) have had a role in environmental policy-making process in a given member state or policy area (e.g. waste management)?

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  Where decentralisation has occurred, to what extent, how and why have the roles of and relations between the state and non-state actors been affected?

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  What does decentralised/dispersed environmental decision-making power imply for EU environmental governance?

This panel invites applications from contributors who can offer comparative national and/or sectoral case studies (e.g. water, air, waste management, or biodiversity policy) that provide empirical evidence about the impact of decentralisation on environmental governance in the EU. Papers that reflect on the theoretical implications of dispersed environmental decision-making powers are also welcome.

For further details of the Conference (including full details of sections and panels) see: www.essex.ac.uk/ecpr/events/generalconference/index.asp

Managing on the Edge

Nijmegen, The Netherlands25-26 September 2003This two-day conference provides an international forum for the dissemination of research findings and related practical experiences associated with corporate social responsibility (CSR).

A total of 25 bursaries for PHD candidates are being offered. These bursaries allow young researchers to come to the conference for free (with exception of their own travel expenses). A bursary will cover the conference fee, a maximum of two nights of (modest) lodging, meals and drinks during the conference (including the conference dinner) and the conference proceedings. In order to be eligible for a bursary, candidates must complete as fully as possible a questionnaire they can find on: http://cms.nsm.kun.nl/MoE/bursaries/index.html. This questionnaire forms part of a European Research Project investigating research and education in the field of CSR. Completed questionnaires should have been received prior to 1 May 2003.

For more information on the conference, go to http://cms.nsm.kun.nl/MoE/nieuws/index/index.html or contact Dr Jan Jonker, conference organiser. Tel: 00.31.314.363.253; e-mail: J.Jonker@nsm.kun.nl

Got Sustainability? Plan for it! Making Sustainability a Foundation of Higher Education Learning and Practice

Live satellite telecast9 October 2003Sponsored by The Society for College and University Planning (SCUP), this two-hour telecast designed for senior academic, operations and facilities administrators, planners, faculty, and students will be broadcast by satellite links to campuses in the USA and Canada. SCUP’s desire is to bring the topic of sustainability to the higher education community, including those who make policy decisions that influence purchasing, building, energy, curriculum, and more. The telecast will be a highly interactive session among some of the most forward thinking, established leaders in all aspects of both sustainability and higher education. As a downlink licensee, you will be able to participate in the live question and answer section of the telecast by phone and fax. The telecast is designed to coincide with the publication of a themed issue of SCUP’s journal Planning for Higher Education. This issue is titled “Sustainability: taking the long view” and will be a valuable resource for participants. A complimentary copy will be provided to each downlink site.

For more information and to register, visit SCUP’s site at: www.scup.org/sustainability/telecast2003.htm or send an e-mail to: telecast@scup.org or call Sunny Beach at (734) 998-6967.

Responsible Marketing: Sustainability and Quality of Life. The Contribution of Research

Berlin, Germany12-14 October 2003This conference, sponsored by The World Association of Research Professionals (ESOMAR) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), aims at establishing a dialogue and debate on the importance of sustainability, social and green policies, bringing to the fore real cases from all types of industries and institutions where research has helped move the sustainability agenda for a better quality of life. Embracing sustainability is not only responding to environmental and societal wants and needs but establishing a competitive marketing advantage. It is therefore imperative to get accurate information about sustainable development and consumer expectations so that corporate strategies can be adapted to meet the upcoming challenges. The conference is aimed at policy makers, business managers (marketing, environment and corporate affairs departments), consultancy firms, consumer associations, media and marketing researchers.

For details of the conference, visit: www.esomar.nl/synopses/RM2003IFC.htm or contact ESOMAR at Vondelstraat 172, 1054 GV Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Tel: +31-20-664-2141; e-mail: conference@esomar.nl

GIN2003: Innovating for Sustainability – 11th International Conference of The Greening of Industry Network

San Francisco, CA, USA12-15 October 2003The 11th GIN conference will focus on innovation: accelerating progress toward a sustainable society will require both incremental and radical innovation in every sphere of society. The 2003 Greening of Industry Network conference will catalyze innovation in:

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  collaborating to meet the needs of individuals and communities not well served by current institutions, policies and practices;

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  designing and implementing new institutions, public policies, civil regulation strategies, technologies and business practices;

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  creating new business models to meet basic human needs and serve the poorest segments of the global population;

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  developing and delivering education for sustainability; and

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  accelerating the adoption of frameworks and practices to achieve complex objectives.

For more information, visit GIN’s Web site at: www.greeningofindustry.org/gin2003.htm or contact them at: GIN2003@greeningofindustry.org Tel: (781) 646-4596; Fax: (781) 646-4189.

Governance of Sustainability Conference: Incentives for Sustainability Markets in Japan, Germany and Other Countries

Japanese-German Centre, Berlin, Germany13-14 October 2003The conference will bring together Japanese research groups with German, other European, and a few American scholars who deal with policy analyses and related research of sustainability pioneers. These policy analyses focus on governmental as well as non-governmental actors, particularly from business. Central issue is what kind of incentives can be given to corporate actors in order to facilitate their action on emerging markets for sustainability.

For full details or to register please contact Dr Raimund Bleischwitz, Wuppertal Institute, PO Box 100480, D-42002 Wuppertal, Germany. E-mail: factorfour@wupperinst.org

Education for Sustainable Human Development

Lowell, MA, USA23-24 October 2003The UMass Lowell Committee on Industrial Theory and Assessment will host a conference on sustainable human development that will address the following questions:

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  What strategies are being used for embedding concepts of sustainable human development in college and university undergraduate or graduate liberal arts and professional programs?

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  In what ways are colleges and universities embedding themselves in their region’s geographic, social, and economic fabric so as to aid in the development of ‘indicators of progress’ in increasing sustainability?

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  Is greater equity in educational opportunity necessary for sustainable development?

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  How are institutions of higher education going about transforming themselves into regional models for sustainability and how this transition can be or is being assessed?

For further information on the conference, contact Bob Forrant (Tel: 978-934-2904; e-mail: rforrant@external.umass.edu) or Linda Silka (Tel: 978-93404247; e-mail: Linda_Silka@uml.edu). For additional information on CITA visit: www.uml.edu/com/CITA/

Environmentally Conscious Manufacturing (ECM) Conference

27-31 October 2003Rhode Island Convention Center, Providence, RI, USAEnvironmentally-conscious manufacturing (ECM) is concerned with developing methods for manufacturing new products from conceptual design to final delivery and ultimately to the end-of-life disposal such that all the environmental standards and requirements are satisfied. Industrialized countries all over the world are facing serious aftermath of the rapid development that has taken place in the last few decades.

In recent years, environmental awareness and recycling regulations have been putting pressure on many manufacturers and consumers, forcing them to produce and dispose of products in an environmentally responsible manner. Government regulations are becoming more compelling as many manufacturers feel the pressure to use recycled materials whenever possible.

Sometimes they are even required to take care of their products at the end of their useful lives. This has created a need to design products that are friendly towards the environment, and easy to disassemble and recycle. To that end, there is a need to develop algorithms, models, heuristics and software for addressing recycling and other end-of-life issues (such as the economic viability and the logistic aspects of disassembly, recycling, and remanufacturing) for an ever-increasing number of discarded products.

This conference will provide a forum for the latest developments in the field of ECM such as product reuse, remanufacturing, disassembly, and recycling strategies in a focused manner. Potential topics to be addressed in this conference include, but are not limited to, the following:

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  algorithms and heuristics in ECM;

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  case studies in ECM;

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  closed-loop supply chain;

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  design for disassembly, environment, recycling and for remanufacturing;

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  disassembly process planning;

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  disassembly scheduling;

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  disposition and waste management;

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  ECM design of product and processes;

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  economic aspects of ECM;

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  end-of-life management and recovery;

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  environmental impact assessment models;

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  environmentally benign packaging;

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  integrated disassembly line;

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  life cycle assessment of ECM;

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  logistic aspects of ECM;

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  product reuse;

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  product recovery;

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  recycling process planning;

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  remanufacturing process planning; and

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  sustainable products.

Further information and the call for papers is available at: www.coe.neu.edu/∼smgupta/rb03.pdf

AISHE Course

Amsterdam, The Netherlands5-7 November 2003The Dutch Committe on Sustainability in Higher Education is organising a training course on the use of AISHE. The training will take place from 5 to 7 November of 2003, in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

The course will deal with issues such as which strategies can be followed to implement sustainable development in higher education and the relationships with total quality management.

Further information is available from Niko Roorda, Consultant for Sustainable Development in Higher Education (e-mail: nroorda@planet.nl).

International Conference on Sustainability Indicators

Valletta, Malta6-8 November 2003Organized by the Islands and Small States Institute of the University of Malta, the themes to be covered at this conference include:

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  purpose, coverage and applicability of sustainability indicators;

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  methodology of constructing sustainability indicators;

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  sustainability indicators in the mediterranean region;

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  sustainability indicators and small islands;

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  international agencies/organisations promoting sustainability indicators; and

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  sustainable development paths.

Those wishing to present a paper are requested to send an abstract of the paper (not exceeding 300 words) and a bionote (not exceeding 150 words) by not later than 10 October 2003. For more information, contact the Islands and Small States Institute, Foundation for International Studies, University of Malta. Tel: +(356) 21248218; e-mail: si-mo@um.edu.mt Go to www.um.edu.mt/intoff/si-mo/conference.html to see the conference announcement.