ESF Junior Summit "Water: Unite and Divide"

Water: Unite and Divide.
Interdisciplinary approaches for a sustainable future

Stresa, Lago Maggiore, Italy
27-30 August 2012


The European Science Foundation (ESF) offered, on a competitive basis, full-cost awards to leading early career scholars to participate in the first ESF Junior Summit "Water: Unite and Divide. Interdisciplinary approaches for a sustainable future"

On this occasion, the next generation of leading scientists (‘early career researchers’) across the academic spectrum – from Humanities and Social Sciences to Life, Environmental, Natural and Mathematical Sciences - were invited to participate in a four-day, in-depth discussion of the challenges and opportunities posed by inter (multi, trans) disciplinary research. Discussions were fuelled by world-class experts from very different academic backgrounds.

Discussions  focused on various issues related to the event’s general theme of “Water: Unite and Divide. Interdisciplinary approaches for a sustainable future”. An important restriction though was that the Summit focused on fresh water. Examples – to be taken in a global context – include, but are not limited to, the following:

1.    Water management and governance
1a.  Dialogues: Conflicts and cooperation
1b.  Water quality and Public Health
2.    The value of water
3.    Climate change and Adaptation

Keynote speakers

  • Prof. Knut J. Børve, Dept of Chemistry, University of Bergen, Norway
  • Prof. David Feldman, Dept of Planning, Policy & Design, University of California, Irvine, US
  • Ms Kristina Ferkovic, European Council of Doctoral Candidates and Junior Researchers (EURODOC)
  • Prof. Robert Frodeman, Center for the Study of Interdisciplinarity, University of North Texas, US
  • Prof. Mats Gyllenberg, Dept of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Helsinki, Finland
  • Prof. Michael Hanemann, Dept of Agricultural and Resource Economics, UC Berkeley, US
  • Prof. Kirsten Hastrup, Dept of Anthropology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
  • Prof. Poul Holm, Dept of Environmental History, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
  • Prof. Janne Hukkinen, Dept of Environmental policy, University of Helsinki, Finland
  • Prof. Ahmet Saatci, Dept of Environmental Engineering, Marmara University, Turkey
  • Prof. Verena Winiwarter, Faculty of Interdisciplinary Studies, Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt, Austria