Call for abstracts to BISC 2022: From conflict to collaboration (extended deadline)

We are at a turning point in human history. Soon, the effects of climate change will be felt by everyone. However, climate change is not an isolated problem – it is deeply connected with other sustainability issues. Complexity, uncertainty and incomplete knowledge make solving these sustainability issues difficult. The sustainable development agenda itself is riddled with conflicting goals and visions. There are multiple pathways to sustainability, where different actors have different priorities and preferred solutions. To move from inaction to action and from conflict to collaboration, we must think of sustainability as a wider concept and open up for divergent viewpoints in academia and beyond.

Problems of unsustainability call for sustainable solutions. We are facing problems more complicated and globally intertwined than ever, and simple solutions are not going to solve them. To be able to solve any of these boundary-breaking issues and conflicts, it is necessary to increase collaboration: it is key to involve the wide spectrum of actors affected. This includes transcending academic disciplinary divides as well as cultural and social differences.

We invite undergraduate and postgraduate students to present on the following themes: 

• What are the key conflicts that are we facing regarding sustainability, and can conflicts be necessary or useful to further sustainable development?
• How might we envision innovative ways to collaborate towards sustainability?
• How do we prioritize between potentially conflicting sustainability goals?
• How can we think critically and creatively around solutions, and how do solutions help redefine problems? What sort of future should we work towards?

Practical information

BISC invites both undergraduate and postgraduate students from different academic backgrounds and disciplines, to give us hope and highlight sustainable solutions that will lead the world in the right direction.

Dates and venue: 22.-23. March 2022 at Kvarteret in Bergen, Norway. We welcome both digital and in-person participation.
Call for contributions: Submit your abstract by February 20th, 2022 (extended deadline).

Contact: Submit your abstracts to collaboratory@uib.no

Contribution guidelines: Try to limit the abstract to a maximum of 500 words. It can be written in either English, Norwegian, Swedish, or Danish. Your applications can be based upon a thesis, course paper, exam assignment, or academic work you have completed or currently working on. The abstract should form the basis of your presentation, which also will lead to informal and interactive group discussions between the participants. There is no fee for attending the conference. We encourage participants to seek out financial assistance regarding accommodation and travel expenses at their home institutions.