Summer School 2014 – First Summer School

IRCS (International Research Center on Sustainability) at Rheims University hosted a Summer School on Urban Transitions to Sustainability in the framework of the yearly Rencontres Internationales in Sustainability Studies. This summer school was organized jointly with SENSE (The Netherland Research School for Socio-Economic and Natural Sciences of the Environment).

This course was specifically designed for doctoral students, post-docs and young scholars who wish to further explore urban sustainability, discuss cutting-edge research with peers and established scholars alike and develop specific skills such as presenting their own research, developing abstracts and discussing the research of other scholars in the make.
The course took place in an environment that favours mutual learning, exchange and conviviality surrounded by the beautiful landscape of Champagne.

The Summer School was composed of three modules and a high level final conference. The specific topics of each module were the following:

  1. Citizen participation;
  2. Sustainable urban water management;
  3. Smart grids.

Each module lasted a full day and was composed of two sessions:

  • Morning session: interactive lectures;
  • Afternoon session: parallel workshops:
    1. Research seminars (participants presented their research followed by a discussion animated by an established scholar);
    2. Tandem discussion (participants presented another participant’s research);
    3. Abstract discussion (participants discussed their abstracts in small groups).

Each participant was expected to attend the morning lectures, as well as presented and discussed their research and abstracts in the afternoon workshops.

The final day was devoted to the participation in the final conference of the Fourth Rencontres Internationales de Reims in Sustainability Studies, which this year also focused on Urban Transitions to Sustainability. Confirmed participants include Nicos Salingaros (University of Texas at San Antonio), Sheila Jasanoff (Harvard Kennedy School, USA), Antoine Picon (Harvard School of Design, USA), Ignacy Sachs (EHESS, France) and Bernardo Secchi (IUAV, Italy).