Active working group: Industry, Environment, Energy and Infrastructure (IEEI)

The 2nd meeting of the group that was planned for August 15, 2008, at CBS, has been postponed. A new date will be announced soon. 

Objectives:
The IEEI-group seeks to contribute to improvement of the environmental situation in the South by investigating pertinent challenges, communicate to and engage with key actors (South researchers, policy makers, civil society actors and students) and undertake educational and training activities in support of this.

The group also seeks to continue collaboration between numerous institutions in Denmark and expand this nationally and internationally, depending on interest from other like-minded. As the objectives fall in line with the objectives of DDRN, the activities of the group will contribute to the achievement hereof.

Three specific areas of activities will lie in the climate and energy field, in the area of globalisation of trade and production, and in the area of water. Emphasis within these three fields is both on the design of new educational programs and on research. Themes that will be taken up by the group include, but is not limited to, the impact of standards, customer demands, product chain management and localisation of activities in relation to local sustainability; water scarcity (in urban settings, for example) and the use, re-use and recycling of water in the industrial sector; and general resource efficiency and productivity.

Promoters:
Søren Jeppesen and Susse Georg, CBS; Eskild Holm Nielsen and Martin Lehmann, AAU; Jan Andersen og Søren Lund, RUC; Ulrik Jørgensen and Michael Søgaard Jørgensen, DTU; Jørgen Eskemose Andersen and Jørgen Andreasen, RDA.

Background:
Several issues in relation to the environment (whether industrial, infrastructural, human settlements, health or energy related) continue to have major negative impact on many inhabitants, institutions and firms in the South. As the issues often are complex and interdisciplinary in nature, this has called and continues to call for collaboration across traditional disciplinary boundaries and sectors (public, private, civil society). Whether impacting on poverty conditions, sustainable industrial development or participation in the global economy, further investigations are needed to enlighten us on how to improve the situation.

The growing global emphasis on the impacts of climate change impacts, on sustainable and responsible actions in the trade, and on localisation of industries makes a trans-national focus on energy technology and use important in relation to e.g. CDM as well as a focus on the global product chains and how they serve as means of either promoting improvements or stabilising non-innovative practices creating even more economic dependency.

Target group:
Apart from DDRN members, South researchers, policy makers and civil society actors, Danish (and maybe Southern) master students, practitioners in Denmark (policy makers, consultants, NGO-staff). Students, teachers, universities and SME’s in the South are also included in the target group of these actions of this group as most of our specific activities will be placed here.

Activities:
The IEEI-group seeks to address the above mentioned pertinent development issues by; a) arranging workshops in Denmark and in the South with relevant parties (members, South researches and policy makers etc),
b) publishing research in the form of reports, journal articles and books on these issues, c) supporting and promoting relevant educational and training activities in order to sensitise master students and practitioners on how to analyse and work in the field, and d) draft joint research applications.
A plan of activities will be drafted following the first meeting of the group.

Expected outcome:
The group plans to be active during at least the present funding period of DDRN.
- Hosting a number of workshops on relevant themes;
- Submit research project applications to relevant funding agencies (in Denmark, EU and the South);
- Publish relevant material (reports, briefing papers, journal articles, depending on the interest of the group);
- Host educational and training seminars and organise so-called joint courses between Danish and Southern Universities.

For questions and suggestions, please contact the initiating convenors: Ulrik Jørgensen, DTU & Søren Jeppesen, CBS.