Sustainable Solutions, Focus on Africa - Int. Symposium

The key question of the symposium is, 'What contribution can (technical) Universities make to sustainable development, particularly but not exclusively in Africa?' To answer this question properly, the relationship between the technical quality of projects and the social (People) environment (Planet) and economic (Prosperity) quality will be established. The metaphor for this '4P' model is the tetraeder. Although the main quality is at the top, it still rests on the three other qualities.

The first part of the symposium focuses on mono-disciplinary themes such as water, energy, food, health, urban areas, resources, mobility and ICT. These are followed by more interdisciplinary themes such as entrepreneurship and climate change and risks. In the last part, there is a quest for a trans-disciplinary approach in which government authorities, business, science, education and NGOs work together.

This trans-disciplinary approach is necessary to achieve the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations before 2015. This concerns a marked improvement in the area of poverty, hunger, education, women's rights, child mortality, aids and malaria, a sustainable living environment and fair trade.In Africa, particularly, this is an enormous challenge.

The symposium will bring together representatives from various world perspectives and continents: government authorities, business, (technical) universities, other educational institutions and NGOs. Together, they are working on sustainable solutions for Africa and the rest of the world.

More information about the program, speakers, etc. will be available at the end of July. Please contact the secretariat if you have any questions. For information and registration please visit the website www.lustrum.tudelft.nl/symposium