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Presentation of the CASE needs analysis on 22 March 2016 at the Free University of Bolzano

Representatives of sustainable enterprises, Terra Institute and the Free University of Bolzano met on 22 March 2016 to discuss the results of the CASE needs analysis and to explore possibilities for implementation in South Tyrol. All entrepreneurs who were interview-partners in the needs analysis as well were highly interested in the outcomes and in further development of cooperation in the CASE project. Some of them have already concrete ideas for service-learning projects regarding various sustainability issues of their enterprises.

A pilot lecture “Competencies for sustainable entrepreneurship”, which is planned for the winter semester 2016/2017 at the Free University of Bolzano, will provide the appropriate frame to test this kind of transdisciplinary cooperation. As a further step towards a closer network, a newsletter was initiated so as to keep the partners informed about the latest developments in CASE.

70 students from eight universities and universities of applied science, five professors from the four biggest universities in Vienna, three start-up experts, nine service-learning partners such as SPAR a multinational retail chain, the electricity company Verbund or the Austria Glas Recycling GmbH and the RCE Vienna came together at the Kick Off event of the Sustainability Challenge on March 7, 2016. Opening remarks by Evi Frei from the Austrian Federal Ministry of Science, Research and Economy (BMWFW) and Edeltraud Hanappi-Egger, rector of the Vienna University of Economics and Business showed the importance of the course as part of the third mission of universities.

The Sustainability Challenge is an interuniversity course on sustainable development, organized on a yearly basis by the Regional Center of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development (RCE) Vienna. During two semesters students with a wide variety of backgrounds participate in this course jointly taught by five professors, each from a different institute. Students either choose a service learning project, where they work together with companies, NGOs or ministries to find solutions for concrete challenges or a new start-up option, where students get the chance to develop their very own entrepreneurial answers to the challenges in the field of sustainability.

This year’s program , organized with the support of the UNESCO-Commission and the BMWFW, focuses on “Smart City – Global Challenges, local answers” and aims at promoting a more just and social world. This is done by encouraging transdisciplinarity and by facilitating the translation of sustainability from theory into practice. Through interactive teaching practices students get encouraged to reflect upon their actions and to take different points of view.

A more sustainable education requires the development of important competencies such as the ability to analyze problems from different perspectives, the capacity to work cooperatively across disciplinary borders and strategic competence to realize ideas in practice. By allowing the development of such competencies, the Sustainability Challenge plays an important role in the educational landscape of Vienna. It brings together the four biggest universities of Vienna as organizing units, several praxis partners and 70 students to jointly address a crucial task: achieving a more sustainable future.

More information about the Sustainability Challenge.

At the early spring (15-17th March 2016), the CASE team met again in an outdoor environmental education centre situated in the south-Moravian region, Kapraluv Mlyn (The Kapral Mill). The place well reflected the values communicated by the project. The Mill is connected with the story of the Czech entrepreneur Ales Kapral, the man who was always able to cope with the challenges of his time and never lost his inventory spirit and invincible trust in the better future. The Mill is situated in the beautiful nature of Moravian Karst and the participants could remember for themselves that it is our effort to protect the nature beauty for our children, what lays deeply in our motivation looking for a more sustainable way of life.

Although the intensive agenda of the meeting, as the team had to specify the framework for pilot testing of the modules for the future master in sustainability-driven entrepreneurship, intensive discussions of some of its courses, or reflecting the mechanisms of its own teamwork, it also offered an opportunity

for enjoying the nature or contemplation about motivation and dreams of its members.

Many thanks to the host of the meeting and CASE partner, Michal Medek, director of the Kapraluv Mlyn, and let’s meet again in Vienna!

Website of Kapraluv Mlyn
More impressions from the workshop

18 students of „business and ethics: social business” from the University of Vechta presented the results of their study project at the Airbus site in Ottobrunn, Munich. During the winter semester 2015/16, the students had worked in four small groups on the topic of “Compliance and Integrity” in cooperation with Airbus. The students had analysed the compliance management at Airbus and gave advises how to improve it.
The lecturer Jürgen Sander draws a positive balance: “The students convinced with their creative ideas and their presentations at a very high level.” The persons responsible at Airbus for the compliance management were delighted and thanked for the great results and suggestions.
From the CASE perspective this is another example of a university-business cooperation that benefited both parties: the motivating challenge was a great learning opportunity for the students and the business partner got valuable feedback on its performance with “state-of-the-art” advises from university.

 

The University Business Forum took place on 25 and 26 February 2016 in Vienna at the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber. About 500 participants including top politicians and representatives from administration, research, education and economy came together in order to tackle a wide spectrum of issues linked to university-business cooperation.

The CASE project was present at a poster exhibition in the “Knowledge Alliances‘ Showroom“. Petra Biberhofer, CASE team member at the Vienna University of Economics and Business, gave a presentation about CASE in a special session dedicated to “Responsible cooperation“ and informed about goals, success stories, current developments and next steps of the project.

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