Preface
A living labs approach provides good opportunities to improve the environmental
sustainability of universities, combining the expertise of staff and students, and
encourages the application of knowledge to a real-world context. But despite its
relevance and applicability, the use of a living labs approach is not as widely used
as it can- or should-be.
This book addresses the need for academic materials related to living labs in a
sustainable development context. It contains a set of papers presented at the “4th
World Symposium on Sustainable Development at Universities” (WSSD-U-2018),
which was held at the Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) in Malaysia, organised by
Manchester Metropolitan University (UK), the Research and Transfer Centre
“Sustainable Development and Climate Change Management” of the Hamburg
University of Applied Sciences (Germany), and the World Sustainable Development
Research and Transfer Centre, in cooperation with the Inter-University Sustainable
Development Research Programme (IUSDRP) and the United Nations University
initiative “Regional Centres of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development”
(RCE).
The “4th World Symposium on Sustainable Development at Universities”
(WSSD-U-2018) focused on “Universities as Living Labs for Sustainable
Development: Supporting the Implementation of the Sustainable Development
Goals” and provided a contribution to the further development to the debate on the
use of a living labs approach as a means to foster the cause of sustainable development at higher education institutions.
This book is structured around three main parts as follows:
Part I: Campus as Living Labs for the SDGs
Part II: Education for Sustainable Development
Part III: Sustainability Processes and Practices
This publication documents practical experiences on education, research and
extension (the so-called 3rd Mission, whereby universities outreach to local communities, industry and other groups) and makes them available to a wide audience.
v
A living labs approach provides good opportunities to improve the environmental
sustainability of universities, combining the expertise of staff and students, and
encourages the application of knowledge to a real-world context. But despite its
relevance and applicability, the use of a living labs approach is not as widely used
as it can- or should-be.
This book addresses the need for academic materials related to living labs in a
sustainable development context. It contains a set of papers presented at the “4th
World Symposium on Sustainable Development at Universities” (WSSD-U-2018),
which was held at the Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) in Malaysia, organised by
Manchester Metropolitan University (UK), the Research and Transfer Centre
“Sustainable Development and Climate Change Management” of the Hamburg
University of Applied Sciences (Germany), and the World Sustainable Development
Research and Transfer Centre, in cooperation with the Inter-University Sustainable
Development Research Programme (IUSDRP) and the United Nations University
initiative “Regional Centres of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development”
(RCE).
The “4th World Symposium on Sustainable Development at Universities”
(WSSD-U-2018) focused on “Universities as Living Labs for Sustainable
Development: Supporting the Implementation of the Sustainable Development
Goals” and provided a contribution to the further development to the debate on the
use of a living labs approach as a means to foster the cause of sustainable development at higher education institutions.
This book is structured around three main parts as follows:
Part I: Campus as Living Labs for the SDGs
Part II: Education for Sustainable Development
Part III: Sustainability Processes and Practices
This publication documents practical experiences on education, research and
extension (the so-called 3rd Mission, whereby universities outreach to local communities, industry and other groups) and makes them available to a wide audience.
v