AAU SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT AALBORG UNIVERSITY 2019-2020 DECEMBER PAGE2020 1 DENMARK AAU SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020 in brief Sustainability at Aalborg University Content Aalborg University was founded in 1974 and is the result gas plants. This type of work un-doubtedly contributes 4 Foreword of a partnership of the region, business community and to Aalborg University today having the world’s leading educational institutions that share a common desire to and most-cited researchers in the field of energy. Right 6 No poverty ensure the sustainable development of the North Den- from the beginning, students in the social sciences mark Region. Sustainability has always been an implicit worked with social and economic inequality and its 8 Zero hunger focus of research and education in all faculties at Aal- impact on society. Research in the social sciences is borg University where the fundamental principle is that currently addressing issues such as inequality, pover- 10 Good health and well-being research and education should benefit society. ty, social inclusion, migration, sustainable economic growth, decent jobs, as well as sustainable manage- 12 Quality education Aalborg University has three campuses in Denmark: ment and business development. Aalborg, Esbjerg and Copenhagen. More than 20,000 14 Gender equality students are enrolled at Aalborg University, 10 percent In 2020, after broad consultation and support among of whom are international students from all parts of staff and students, sustainability is now an explicit fo- 16 Clean water and sanitation the world. The university employs 2,200 academic staff cal point for AAU operations. This is formally expressed and 1,300 administrative and technical staff, and the in the Aalborg University Policy on Balanced and Sus- 18 Affordable and clean energy university is one of the largest employers in the North tainable Development. Denmark Region. 20 Decent work and economic growth This report reviews the progress that AAU has made in The problem-based approach is a fundamental part contributing to sustainable development in the report- 22 Industri, innovation and infrastructure of all activities at the university. Since its inception, ing period 2019/2020. teaching at Aalborg University has been focused on 24 Reduced inequalities project work in groups where the project work is in- The report covers examples of AAU’s sustainability terdisciplinary and centred around a problem. This is activities and as such, the report is not an exhaustive 26 Sustainable cities and communities called “The Aalborg Model”. For example, projects on al- review of every aspect of AAU’s sustainability-related ternative energy have included wind turbines and bio- activities and achievements. 28 Responsible consumption and production 30 Climate action 32 Life below water 34 Life on land 36 Peace, justice and strong institutions 38 Partnerships for the goals 40 About this report RESEARCH ENGAGEMENT TEACHING OPERATIONS PAGE 3 AAU SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020 foreword by the rector and pro-rector Aalborg University and the world’s most important plan 2019 and 2020 have been two remarkable years that Similarly, a research group at the AAU Faculty of clearly demonstrated that we live in an interdependent Medicine along with industry partners developed an world and that we need sustainable and balanced de- emergency ventilator and shared the entire technical velopment. specification with the world as open source. Another research group at the AAU Technical Faculty of IT and The UN Sustainable Development Goals represent an Design along with colleagues from other universities unprecedentedly ambitious and transformative devel- developed mathematical models to advise the Danish opment agenda. The adoption of the SDGs is a call to national health authorities on the impact of various action for a new plan on how to restore the balance be- measures to prevent spread of the virus. tween humans and planet Earth if we want to ensure that future generations live in a healthy world. Finally, research groups at the AAU Faculty of Social Sciences and the AAU Faculty of the Humanities have Universities and other higher education institutions conducted research projects to examine the impact of have a critical role in helping society fulfill this impor- Covid-19 on the work environment, the consequences tant plan through their research, teaching, campus op- of the pandemic for work organisation and our mental erations and leadership. health as well as how expanded digitalisation during the crisis has shaped Danes’ everyday lives. All of these In December 2019, the Danish Parliament reached a examples make clear that university research is help- broad political agreement on a climate law that will ing society navigate the Covid-19 crisis. ensure that Denmark reaches the ambitious goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 70 percent in We are proud of the fact that our university staff across 2030 compared to the level in 1990. Aalborg Universi- disciplines have stepped in and made a signficant ef- ty (AAU) is actively contributing to achieving this goal fort to assist society in getting through the crisis. This through research activities; broad partnerships with effort illustrates that universities can and do play a key private industry, public sector authorities and the civil role in supporting society with a sustainable way for- sector; and providing support to the Danish govern- ward. ment by serving on various advisory committees. In 2020, the world was hit by a global pandemic caused by the coronavirus. It became very clear to all of us how mutually dependent we are and how important cooperation is in surmounting a worldwide crisis. In March 2020, when the pandemic shut down Danish so- ciety, researchers across faculties at AAU immediately embarked on projects that could mitigate the conse- quences of the pandemic. Per Michael Johansen Inger Askehave “We are proud of the fact that our university The Danish Prime Minister locked down Denmark on 11 Rector Pro-Rector March 2020. In the days following, a research group at staff across disciplines have stepped in and the AAU Faculty of Engineering and Science postponed their current research project and collaborated with made a signficant effort to assist society in Statens Serum Institut on genetic sequencing of virus- es in all Covid-19 positive cases in Denmark. Their work getting through the crisis. is a central element in the fight against coronavirus. Per Michael Johansen and Inger Askehave PAGE 5 AAU SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020 CISKO INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION The research group CISKO at the Department of Sociology FOR IMPROVED STUDENT LEARNING and Social Work investigates how vulnerability is expressed in children, young people and families, as well as the underly- AND EMPLOYABILITY ing causes and mechanisms that create and maintain vulner- As part of the strategic ERASMUS+ partnership EPIC (Improv- ability. This focus includes research on the mental health and ing Employability through Internationalisation and Collabora- social well-being of children and young people, conditions of tion), researchers and students from AAU take part in inter- children and young people with disabilities or chronic illness, national collaborative projects, such as the Global Student and research on living conditions of vulnerable families, such SDG Challenge. as the consequences of poverty and social inequality. One of the specific problems that students from different universities have partnered on solving is located in Brazil. FLOW When the world’s second largest dumpsite just outside Bra- silia was closed and replaced by a modern recycling centre, The research project FLOW led by the Department of Politics it was a huge step forward for the city of millions in terms and Society focuses on global flows of migrants and their im- of waste disposal. However, for the nearly 1000 children and pact on Northern European welfare states, including climate adults who survived by trash-picking, it was a disastrous loss migrants. FLOW’s mission is to provide basic research on of livelihood. Students participate in different projects to migration flows and consequences as well as application-ori- support the locals who lost their livelihood to the new recy- ented research regarding the ways the socio-economic and cling centre. This includes a mobile education platform and socio-cultural integration of immigrants may be improved in IoT waste management. developed welfare states. As part of the international project The State of the Street, FLOW heads the study Making Asylum: Life in a Suspended State which examines the perspective of asylum-seekers, investigating their lived experiences in different types of reception settings. During the suspended state of having left behind their normal life and not yet belonging to the new state, this projects aims to eluci- date how socio-cultural understanding, identification, and po- tential integration (or return) of asylum-seekers is informed by such a suspended state. CENTER FOR YOUTH RESEARCH Project team in Brasilia At the Department of Culture and Learning, CeFu focuses on the growing dissatisfaction among Danish young people. The project contributes with research-based answers to ques- SOCIAL WORK (MSC, AAL/CPH) tions of increasing societal interest, such as why more and more young people are affected by mental dissatisfaction As the only one of its kind in Denmark, the Master’s pro- and the risk of vulnerability, including poverty. It has been gramme in Social Work deals with a variety of social prob- thoroughly demonstrated that social heritage is crucial for lems, such as poverty, abuse, cultural clashes, mental health young people’s level of education, life chances and well-being. problems and long-term unemployment. Students acquire However, recent studies suggest that vulnerability is chang- a scientific theoretical and methodological foundation en- 74 ing expression and that middle-class youth are increasingly abling them to carry out research, analysis, evaluation and publications being affected. New forms of vulnerability require new op- development tasks in social work areas.