The transition to a sustainable and inclusive society requires sweeping transformations, and research is central to these changes. Whether primary or applied, disciplinary, interdisciplinary, or even – since the issues related to sustainable development are, by nature, transversal – transdisciplinary, research has a major role to play.
Whether investigating technological and social innovation and governance, culture, or behavioural change, this research is anchored in its ability to question societal paradigms, understand the levers of ecological and social transition towards a sustainable society, and inspire the most disruptive solutions.
UCLouvain is an in situ laboratory where forces are mobilised to inquire, investigate, and innovate in the direction of this major societal issue. The University aims for cutting-edge research, at the forefront of the pathways of transition, the topic that occupies many of our researchers day in and day out.
Circle U.: an avant-garde alliance
Circle U. seeks to build an inclusive, research-intensive, interdisciplinary European university. Circle U. is supported by the European Commission and made up of seven universities, including UCLouvain.
Circle U. plans by 2025 to stimulate collaborations between students, teams, and partners from civil society, businesses, and the public sector in order to develop skills and find solutions to keep Europe and the planet healthy, peaceful, democratic, and prosperous. This unprecedented alliance represents more than 300,000 students and more than 20 Nobel Prize winners who, together, make possible:
- an interuniversity course integrating physical and/or virtual mobility;
- international experience accessible to all;
- joint programmes built around key issues.
Circle U. is creating four platforms for collaboration between the seven universities to address all of the Sustainable Development Goals.