05. October 2021Sustainability Transitions Month

General information Sustainability Transitions Month

Sustainability transitions are highly contested. Different actors hold different views on the preferred direction and pace of the transition, and we often see fierce struggles over public policies or technologies. TRAJECTS aims at advancing the discussion on Transitions to Sustainability by bringing together different actors for co-creating a vision of how a Transition to Sustainability could look like in their respective contexts. The month of Sustainable Transitions will host 8 of these events.

Schedule and registration link below.

Mobile Sustainability Transitions Schools (MSTS) reach to front-line actors being directly affected by or already working for Sustainable Transitions, by engaging with labour unions in fossil fuel extraction, ancestral communities stewarding strategic ecosystems or farmer communities willing to shift to more sustainable practices. MSTS are one of TRAJECTS tools to ground its work on the local perspectives and experiences of those actors at the frontline of Transitions. They aim to (co-) create a new layer of multiplicators on the ground, while valuing and supporting the organization processes already occurring to accelerate Transitions to Sustainability.

Joint Virtual Lectures (JVLs) with (international) guest lecturers from various academic and non-academic partner institutions will be co-hosted by our partner universities allowing for academic and extra-academic exchange. They seek to showcase the research and teaching by TRAJECTS academic partners, as well as high-level guests from other academic institutions. JVLs will be recorded and available online to those students unable to attend the virtual lectures.

Sustainability Transition Dialogues (ST Dialogues) aim to create a more informal shorter discussion space for some of the more contentious or under-studied topics of Transitions to Sustainability. STDs intend to enlarge the perspective that students of sustainability have when approaching the topic while offering an open-access alternative for anyone interested in the topic to connect. This measure has the intention to bring together figures in public administration, business, civil society, academia, university students and front-line communities.

 

 

---

Schedule Sustainability Transitions Month

Date	Time	Event	Open for	Registration
Tuesday 9 November	9:00 – 11:00 Colombia 15:00 – 17:00 Germany 16:00 – 18:00 South Africa	Launch event Sustainability Transitions Month Location: Santa Marta (COL) + virtual (streaming)	Semi-virtual event – Virtual: Public – Physical: per invitation only	Online registration  here.
Thursday 11 November	9:00 – 12:00 Colombia 15:00 – 18:00 Germany 16:00 – 19:00 South Africa	ST Dialogue 1 UniMadgalena (COL) – Mine Closure and Employment Challenges in the Colombian Caribbean Region	Virtual event – open to the public	Online registration required –   Register here.
Friday 12 November	9:00 – 12:00 Colombia 15:00 – 18:00 Germany 16:00 – 19:00 South Africa	ST Dialogue 2 UNAL (COL)– Agroecology and Energy Transition in Colombia	Virtual event – open to the public	Online registration required –  Register here
Thursday 18 November	15:00 – 17:00 South Africa 14:00 – 16:00 Germany 8:00 – 10:00 Colombia	ST Dialogue 3 – UCT (ZAF) Alternative employment opportunities for Mpumalanga’s coal transition	Semi-virtual event – Virtual: Public – Physical: per invitation only	Online registration required  –  Register here
Friday 19 November	14:00-16:00 Germany 15:00 – 17:00 South Africa 8:00 – 10:00 Colombia	ST Dialogue 4 – TUB /EUF (DEU) Coal phase-out in Germany: Challenges and Lessons Learned	Semi-virtual event – Virtual: Public – Physical: per invitation only	Online registration required –  Register here
Wednesday 24 November	9:00 – 11:00 Colombia 15:00 – 17:00 Germany 16:00 – 18:00 South Africa	Joint Virtual Lecture 1 Mining, energy transition and environmental conflicts	Students “Tópico de profundización en temas ambientales” (UNAL)	Contact lecturers for requests to participate. Jesse Burton (UCT) Andrea Cardoso (UniMagdalena) Paula Walk (TUB)
Thursday 25 November	8:00 – 10:00 Colombia 14:00 – 16:00 Germany 15:00 – 17:00 South Africa	Joint Virtual Lecture 2 Energy Transitions in Latin America and Europe: comparative perspectives	Students “Energy Economics” (EUF) and “Economía Ecológica” (UNAL)	Contact lecturers for requests to participate. Online registration required –  Register here Pao-Yu Oei (EUF) Carmenza Castiblanco (UNAL)
Tuesday 14 December	15:00-17:00 Germany 09:00-11:00 Colombia	Joint Virtual Lecture 3 Approaching Sustainability from Environmental Economy and Ecological Economy	Students “Environmental Economics” (EUF) and “Economía Ecológica” (UMS)	Contact lecturers for requests to participate. Online registration required –  Register here Marina Blohm (Europa-Universität Flensburg) Andrea Cardoso (Universidad de Magdalena)

 

Detailed information Sustainability Transitions Month

More information at:

 trajects.events@gmail.com

---

Launch event Sustainability Transitions Month

Tuesday 9 November. 9:00 – 11:00 Colombia/ 15:00 – 17:00 Germany/16:00 – 18:00 South Africa

Agenda
1. Welcoming remarks by the Rector, Dr. Pablo Vera Salazar
2. Opening remarks by the Ambassador of Germany in Colombia (or representative)
3. Introduction on the DAAD Global Centers for Health and Climate by the DAAD Director (or representative)
4. Socialization and launching of the month of sustainable transitions and the TRAJECTS Center, by Dr. Andrea Cardoso Díaz, director of the TRAJECTS project at Unimagdalena.
5. Presentation of the project partners UNAL, UCT and TUB via Zoom. Brief presentation of the role of their organizations in the TRAJECTS Center
6. Discussion on the importance and impact of sustainable transitions in the territories. Participants: Angelica from Fuerza Mujeres, Alvaro Castro del Cesar, Ambassador, DAAD Director (Optional), Prof. Andrea Cardoso, Rector Unimagdalnena. Moderator: Dean Rafael García.
7. Closing event
8. Campus Tour

---

ST Dialogue 1 – UniMadgalena (COL) – Mine Closure and Employment Challenges in the Colombian Caribbean Region

Thursday 11 November 9:00 – 12:00 Colombia/15:00 – 18:00 Germany/16:00 – 19:00 South Africa

Climate change mitigation presents a significant challenge for humankind: achieving a truly just energy transition. This transition must consider the socioeconomic conditions of each territory and community. This includes considering labour rights and creating sustainable, decent, and quality jobs.

Socio-ecological transformations have four important consequences on labour markets; I) Substitution of jobs that will shift employment from the extractive mining sector to renewable energy; II) Elimination of jobs in sectors where there is no direct replacement; III) Transformation and redefinition of existing jobs; IV) Displacement of jobs as effects of carbon leakage, such as the transfer of companies to other countries with less restrictive regulations.

Against this background, the eventual closure of mines -whether voluntary or involuntary- presents great challenges and radical socioeconomic changes, both in the territories where mines operate and in those beyond the mining frontier. Therefore, local populations need to fully know mine closure plans, closure dates, after closure measures, and post-closure stages. Moreover, this information is essential for communities and territories to prepare for a future without coal mining and look for training opportunities, employment, and alternative business and economic pathways before mining operation ceases.

The cessation of mining activity in Cesar and La Guajira is an opportunity to revisit other economic sectors different than mining and resource extraction, i.e., to look for sustainable economic diversification. At the same time, this represents a challenge not only for local governments but for the Colombian State as mines shut down in these departments entails shrinking tax revenues (e.g., mining royalties) and private investments (due to corporate social responsibility). Moreover, mine closures in these regions oblige the Colombian state to guarantee the human rights of affected people and communities.

This dialogue will be held in Spanish with simultaneous translation into English. Register here.

Agenda

1. Introduction TRAJECTS
2. Panel 1: Researchers in Dialogue
3. Panel 2: Decision-makers and Trade Unionists in Dialogue
4. Panel 3: Communities in Dialogue
5. Closing

Speakers and Moderators:

Dr. Andrea Cardoso, Researcher – Professor, Universidad del Magdalena.

Alvaro Castro, La Jagua negotiation table regarding the mine, local researcher.

Etna Bayona – Professor – Researcher, Semillero de Investigación en Transición Energética de la Universidad del Magdalena.

Johandris Movilla – Research fellow, Semillero de Investigación en Transición Energética of the Universidad del Magdalena

Iris Castro – Research fellow, Semillero de Investigación en Transición Energética, Universidad del Magdalena

Carolyn Caselles – Research fellow, Semillero de Investigación en Transición Energética, Universidad del Magdalena

---

ST Dialogue 2 – UNAL (COL)– Agroecology and Energy Transition in Colombia

Friday 12 November 9:00 – 12:00 Colombia/15:00 – 18:00 Germany/16:00 – 19:00 South Africa

The dialogue “Agroecology and Energy Transition in Colombia” raises the debate from the perspective of agroecology as a scientific discipline, a set of practices, and a social movement. In this dialogue, the voices of the communities (black communities of the Pacific and peasant communities of the Andes and the Colombian Caribbean) and their proposals to face the challenges of energy transitions are at the center. In this sense, the dialogue approaches energy transition not merely as a shift of technologies to replace energy sources but also includes issues related to gender equality, productive diversification, food sovereignty, access to resources, and the combination of different knowledge systems and power relations.

This dialogue will be held in Spanish with simultaneous translation into English. Register here.

---

ST Dialogue 3 – UCT (ZAF) – Alternative employment opportunities for Mpumalanga’s coal transition

Thursday 18 November. 15:00 – 17:00 South Africa / 14:00 – 16:00 Germany / 8:00 – 10:00 Colombia

In this dialogue, diverse stakeholders will share their unique perspectives about the alternative employment opportunities and socioeconomic pathways for coal mine workers and local communities in the province of Mpumalanga, where the bulk of South Africa’s coal mining and power infrastructure currently resides. Panellists also will share their insights on renewable energy and discuss bioremediation and net-zero strategies for this region.

This dialogue will be held in English with simultaneous translation into Spanish.

Speakers and Moderators:

• Dr. Jules Scher, Senior Researcher, Energy Systems Research Group (ESRG), UCT
• Jonathan Hanto,  Researcher, Energy Systems Research Group (ESRG) and CoalExit Group (TUB)
• Tara Caetano, Project Manager: Climate Change, Water and Energy, National Business Initiative
• Jennifer Broadhurst, Associated Professor, University of Cape Town (UCT)

 

---

ST Dialogue 4 – TUB /EUF (DEU) – Coal phase-out in Germany: Challenges and Lessons Learned

Friday 19 November. 15:00 – 17:00 South Africa / 14:00 – 16:00 Germany / 8:00 – 10:00 Colombia

In this dialogue, we will look into the challenges and opportunities of the coal phase-out process in Germany and reflect on what lessons can be learned for similar processes in other countries, particularly in the Global South. Coal mining and power generation played an essential role in Germany’s energy supply for several decades. However, since the ’70s, coal mining entered into a declining trajectory that led to coal-intensive regions in Germany, such as Rhineland and Lusatia, experiencing a significant structural transformation, particularly after German reunification in the ’90s. In 2018, the last hard-coal mine closed in Germany. In 2019, after negotiations of a “coal commission,” a national plan to phase out coal by 2038 at the latest is in place.

With a new government coming into power in Germany, the probability of an acceleration in the phase-out plan has increased; nonetheless, there are several challenges and opportunities of this accelerated phase-out. Our panellist will discuss these challenges and opportunities and reflect on what lessons from the coal phase-out and structural transformation process can be useful for other coal-dependent countries.

This dialogue will be held in English with simultaneous translation into Spanish. Register here.

Agenda

1. Introduction TRAJECTS
2. Keynote: Coal phase-out process in Germany
3. Presentation: Structural change and coal commission – lessons from Germany
4. Presentation: Just Transition and coal phase-out in the Global North and lessons for the Global South
5. Panel discussion: Challenges and opportunities for coal phase-out and just transition: lessons from Germany
6. Closing

Speakers and Moderators:

Philipp Litz, Senior Researcher, Agora Energiewende

Prof. Dr. Pao-Yu Oei, Professor for Economics of Sustainable Energy Transition, Europa-Universität Flensburg

Isabell Braunger, Research Associate, Flensburg Europa Universität  / CoalExit Group

Andrea Furnaro, PhD Candidate, Department of Geography, UCLA

Paola A. Yanguas Parra, Research Associate, Technische Universität Berlin / Workgroup for Infrastructure and Policy (WIP)

---

Joint Virtual Lecture 1 – EUF (DEU)/UCT(ZAF)/UMS(COL)/ UNAL (COL) – Mining, energy transition and environmental conflicts

Wednesday 24 November. 15:00 – 17:00 South Africa / 14:00 – 16:00 Germany / 8:00 – 10:00 Colombia

Professors and researchers from the Universities of Magdalena, Cape Town, National of Colombia, and Technische Universität Berlin will reflect on environmental conflicts related to coal mining, the transition to clean energy, and support strategies for both the affected communities in the exploited territories and those dependent on the extractive industry.

Lecturers

• Jesse Burton (University of Cape Town)
• Andrea Cardoso (Universidad de Magdalena)
• Paula Walk (Technische Universität Berlin )
• Moderator: Nataly Díaz (Universidad Nacional de Colombia)

Streaming Facebook (Spanish):
https://www.facebook.com/InstitutoEstudiosAmbientales

Streaming Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq-hULPwUBWJnYKxTtNFtOw

---

Joint Virtual Lecture 2 – EUF (DEU)/UNAL (COL) –Energy Transitions in Latin America and Europe: comparative perspectives

Thurday 25 November. 15:00 – 17:00 South Africa / 14:00 – 16:00 Germany / 8:00 – 10:00 Colombia

This event invites students from two classes, “Energy Economics” (Europa-Universität Flensburg) and “Economía Ecológica” (Universidad Nacional de Colombia), to participate in a joint lecture about energy transitions in Latin America and Europe. This lecture will offer analytical perspectives and empirical examples to compare and contrast the challenges and drivers of transitioning to a low-carbon economy in both regions.

The lecture is open for students enrolled in the classes “Energy Economics” (Europa-Universität Flensburg) and “Economía Ecológica” (Universidad Nacional de Colombia).

Other students interested in participating in this lecture, please register here:

Lecturers

• Dr Pao-Yu Oei (Europa Flensburg University)
• Prof. Carmenza Castiblanco (Universidad Nacional de Colombia)

 

---

Joint Virtual Lecture 3 – TBC (DEU) /UNAL (COL) – Approaching Sustainability from Environmental Economy and Ecological Economy

Tuesday 14 December. 16:00 – 19:00 South Africa / 15:00 – 18:00 Germany / 9:00 – 11:00 Colombia

This event invites students from two classes, “Environmental Economics” from the Europa-Universität Flensburg and “Economía Ecológica” (Universidad de Magdalena), to participate in a joint lecture about sustainability studies from two approaches: Environmental Economy and Ecological Economy. In this lecture, these different approaches will be analysed and compared using empirical examples from Europe and Latin America.

The lecture is open for students enrolled in the classes “Environmental Economics” (Europa-Universität Flensburg) and “Economía Ecológica” (Universidad de Magdalena).

Other students interested in participating in this lecture, please register here:

Lecturers

• Marina Blohm (Europa Flensburg University)
• Prof. Andrea Cardoso (Universidad del Magdalena)

 

---

Mobile School 1 –  Mobile School of transitions towards alternative models in the Colombian Caribbean

Tuesday 9 November.  11:00 – 16:00 Colombia

Mobile School 2 – Mobile School of transitions towards alternative models in the Colombian Caribbean

Tuesday 20 November.  9:00 – 16:00 Colombia

Follow the progress of these schools in the Social Networks of the Semillero de Transición Energética of the Universidad del Magdalena:

https://twitter.com/STEunimagdalena

https://www.facebook.com/Steunimagdalena

---