by InTrieste
ICTP: Quantitative Human Ecology: Untangling the Determinants of Sustainability workshop was presented Monday, 25 July at the ICTP’s headquarters.
Robert Needham, US Consul General in Milan, virtually present at the conference, talked about U.S. government’s funding for the workshop, which takes place this week on ICTP’s campus and focuses on human ecology and sustainability, promoting scientific and cultural exchange between Italy and U.S.
The “Researching Sustainability, Supporting Sustainability” initiative, led by the Fondazione Internazionale Trieste (FIT) and supported by the American Department of State, sees Trieste-based institutes ICTP and SISSA – Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati, and the prestigious, U.S.-based Santa Fe Institute come together for a better future.
The workshop, illustrated by FIT president Stefano Fantoni, and Matteo Marsili, Head of ICTP’s Quantitative Life Sciences (QLS) section.
The presentation was preceded by institutional greetings from the Regional Councilor for University and Research, Alessia Rosolen. “Trieste is making history today,” said Rosolen during the opening ceremony.
In addition, the Director of ICTP Atish Dabholkar, the Director of SISSA Andrea Romanino, and the Director of the Physics Department of the University of Trieste took part in the press conference.
The President of Illycafè Andrea Illy made introductory remarks, talking about the impact and responsibility the businesses nowadays have and the need to change the old ways. “The problem with sustainability is that we chose the wrong model when we started the industrial revolution 100 years ago. It produces infinite amount of residue, polluting continuously. It created prosperity but impacted the biosphere. We forgot that nature is responsible for life, because whatever we eat or drink is dependent on the biosphere. This crates an enormous problem of ecological transition, of course.”
The Workshop on Quantitative Human Ecology is taking place this week, from 25 to 29 July.
The meeting, which is under the auspices of the UN International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development, has gathered experts from multiple disciplines to discuss human, economic and environmental sustainability.
“The hope for this summer workshop is to become a yearly North Adriatic Summer Institute in the spirit of the complex systems research conducted by the Santa Fe Institute,” added director of ICTP Atish Dabholkar.
“My hope as a Trieste local,” finished regional councilor for education, Alessia Rosolen, “is that all of this can place our city back at the top.”
Marsili, ICTP senior scientist, introduced the week of the workshop. Ictp is a place where scientists meet for the first time. I don’t think we’ll come up with solutions during this workshop. Our goal is to ask the right questions which is a half way to finding the solution.”
