Connecting Minds for a Greener Future: Insights from ENGAGE.EU Winter School
An exciting week full of sustainability-related activities is behind the 44 participants of the first ENGAGE.EU Winter School at the University of Mannheim. From 20 to 24 January 2025, students from nine partner universities worked intensively on the topic ‘Studium Oecologicum - Current Issues in Sustainability’ in stimulating group work and interdisciplinary exchange."
The aim of the Winter School is to provide participants with an understanding of current knowledge and skills in sustainability, with a strong focus on international collaboration. In his opening speech, ENGAGE.EU coordinator Moritz Fleischmann emphasised the importance of intercultural exchange, especially in light of the climate crisis: “Bringing together people from different institutions, disciplines, and cultures is what ENGAGE.EU is all about. Climate change is an urgent challenge. The pressure to give it increasing importance is constantly rising.”
Caroline Golly from the Mannheim Climate Protection Agency was a guest speaker and inspired the participants with her keynote: “We have to do more than adapt to climate change – we have to reduce emissions,” she said, sparking a lively discussion with the students.
A highlight of the week was the engaging impulse lectures by guest speakers from four companies:
- Mareike Parisi from SAP spoke about how the software company enables sustainable business transitions for its international customer base.
- Kristine Clev from the Metropolregion Rhein-Neckar introduced their regional sustainability developments for the metropolitan region.
- University of Mannheim alumnus Tassilo von Schmeling explained actori GmbH’s consultancy successes in improving the sustainability of cultural institutions.
- Christopher Anderlohr from BASF highlighted the benefits of their enterprise-wide Product Carbon Footprint calculations to steer towards net-zero.
The Winter School concluded with a certificate ceremony, where all students celebrated a fulfilling and intensive week of learning. The programme provided participants with valuable insights into sustainability, opportunities to expand their networks, and the chance to collaborate with peers from different backgrounds. The Managing Sustainable Projects course offered a deeper understanding of sustainability challenges and approaches.