Inauguration of the International Project Office at Lund University

April 14 marked the inauguration of the International Project Office of the Earth System Governance Project at Lund University. The launch has been celebrated with guest lectures on earth system governance research followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a dinner.

Karin Bäckstrand Lund University, Dept. of Political Sciences

Per Eriksson Vice-Chancellor of Lund University

Frank Biermann Chair of the Earth System Governance Project

Lennart Olsson Director of LUCSUS

The afternoon ceremony in the Palestra Building of Lund University has been chaired by Karin Bäckstrand (Lund University, and ex officio representative of Lund University in the Earth System Governance Scientific Steering Committee). As first speaker, Per Eriksson, Vice-Chancellor of Lund University welcomed all guests to the event and the International Project Office to Lund University. Frank Biermann, Chair of the Earth System Governance Project, thanked the Vice-Chancellor of Lund University for hosting the International Project Office. He then briefly introduced the concept of earth system governance and the research agenda of the Earth System Governance Project.

Joyeeta Gupta, VU University Amsterdam, and member of the Earth System Governance Scientific Steering Committeee, gave a guest lecture on “The Impact Of Changing Governance Patterns On Developing Countries”. The second guest lecture by Peter Newell, University of East Anglia, and Earth System Governance Associate Faculty, was about “Transitioning To A Low Carbon Economy: What Role For Global Environmental Governance”. The afternoon closed with a short presentation by Ruben Zondervan, Executive Director of Earth System Governance Project. In his presentation, he outlined the position of the project in the global change research institutions and the functions of the International Project Office at the centre of the Earth System Governance Project.

Joyeeta Gupta VU University Amsterdam

Peter Newell University of East Anglia

With drinks and a ribbon-cutting ceremony in front of the door to the International Project Office at Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies (LUCSUS), the office has been officially opened. The following dinner has been attended by many researchers and students as well as the leadership from the Faculty of Social Sciences, the Department for Political Sciences, and LUCSUS. Allan Larsson, chairman of the Board of Lund University, also joined the dinner.

Since January 2011, the International Project Office of the Earth System Governance Project is hosted by Lund University. Lund University is the highest ranked comprehensive research university in Scandinavia with a strong background in transdisciplinary environmental and global change research. The Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies (LUCSUS) and the Faculty of Social Sciences, represented by its Department of Political Science, lend vital support to the International Project Office and facilitate university-wide research collaboration. This overall excellent arrangement provides the Earth System Governance Project with an effective and stable International Project Office in an inspiring, dynamic and high quality academic environment.