UU will help society move forward in 2050 with word and deed

Utrecht University would like to be sustainable in 2050, but what does that look like? That was the main question of a dialogue organised last week by Pathways to Sustainability. The participants want Utrecht University not to remain on the sidelines but rather advocate for a more activist university that takes responsibility for societal issues at both the local and global levels.

This is a hard time for environmentalists. More than 2,000 lobbyists from the fossil fuel industry were present at COP28 in Dubai, a fourfold increase compared to previous summits, and negotiations on the reduction of fossil fuel use are proceeding laboriously. At the national level, the winning party in the latest elections criticises scientific reports on climate change and prefers all financial support for "climate nonsense" to disappear.

Maybe that's why those who participated in the sustainability dialogue held last Thursday would like to see the university play a more prominent role by taking action. The sustainability dialogues, organised several times a year by the Pathways to Sustainability programme, aim to bring together people from different faculties and services working on sustainability. This time, more than thirty employees, teachers, and alumni gathered at Minnaert café to discuss what a sustainable Utrecht University could look like in the future.