Winter School: Change Lab: The Way Into a Sustainable Future

Target group

MCI students of all study programs

Description

In this week, we work intensively on ideas and concepts about how measures against climate change or climate adaptation measures can be implemented in selected countries (or continents) based on the specific resources and framework conditions. Topics such as sustainable land use, urban life, mobility/transport, goods production, etc. are discussed under the conditions of increasing population numbers and rising living standards.

Content

The Change Lab method is used to work in small groups on the overarching question using a concrete model region (could be a continent or a country).

Every day has a special focus:

• Day 1: Definition of framework, analysis of demographic data of the model region. Urban infrasturctur, including housing and mobility and the associated threat and potential for carbon emission and carbon capturing. How do we connect and host our world? What is the carbon cycle? Evolving ideas and technologies in this field and the potential for a more sustainable future.
• Day 2: Agriculture, Nutrition and water supply – how do we feed our world? Understanding of landuse for food production and consequences of environmental pollution. Discussion of pathleading innovations to improve the current landuse and make it more sustainable.
• Day 3: Ressources and biobased economies - the availability and the depletion of our resources and the idea of a biobased economy for a more sustainable supply of raw materials. How do we supply our world?
• Day 4: Energy supply – from fossil fuels to renewable energies. How to power our world? A way from the current energy supply toward renewable energies with less emission and a lower impact on our environment including the principle behind the most promising technologies.
• Day 5: The individual sub-tasks are then combined into an overall concept. Presentation of concepts including landuse, CO2 emission and energy demand.