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Barcelona, ​​April 9, 2024.- Specialists from Catalan entities and universities have put on the table the need to research sustainability and involve citizens to make climate action visible, during the 'Do science with conscience' conference, organized by the Faculty of Educational Sciences of UIC Barcelona on the occasion of World Awareness Day.

During the session, the experts shared different projects they carry out in terms of sustainability and discussed how to contribute to a more just and ecological society from the university level. Among the projects developed by UIC Barcelona researchers, the most notable are the measurement of the eco-social impact of climate actions at the university and from the university, sustainable solutions such as luminescent trees in architecture, the development of a cosmetic free of plastic and water in the area of ​​bioengineering, and ceramic covering panels as collectors and/or emitters of thermal energy in architecture or the Erasmus urban planning project through which carbon-neutral cities are promoted. The restoration of river channels was also addressed through citizen participation.

The UIC Barcelona faculty who have made these initiatives known are Jordi Roviras, Marta Benages, Lorenzo Chelleri and Alberto T. Estévez, from the Department of Architecture; Román Pérez, from Basic Sciences; and Sílvia Albareda, from Education. The participants in the conference have highlighted the need to work from interdisciplinarity. Along these lines, architecture professor Jordi Roviras has assured that "the solution is to create a basic project that makes the most of the synergies."

Professor Mariona Graell led an ecological awareness workshop through which, in heterogeneous groups, all the participants of the day analyzed their own degree of awareness and coherence in integral ecology. Also participating in the event were Ferran Casamitjana, from Cáritas Diocesana of Barcelona; Pedro Losantos, climate action technician, responsible for the UPC Sostenible program and Elena Boadas, doctor in Education, specialized in environmental entities at the Ramon Llull University. All of them have shared experiences of good practices in sustainability, in many cases invisible and difficult to measure, that they carry out in the entities in which they work.

At the beginning of the event, the vice-rector for Research, Innovation and Knowledge Transfer of UIC Barcelona, ​​Conrado Aparicio, highlighted the importance of holding conferences like this one, which "promote transversal actions towards global sustainability with the involvement of citizens in science ".

This day is one of the knowledge transfer activities of the SGR in Sustainability and Comprehensive Education (SEI) with the project Measure the positive impact of the actions taken to mitigate climate change. Climate education at the University and from the University, financed by the Agency for the Management of University and Research Aid (AGAUR). The "Doing science with conscience" conference represents a tip of the iceberg of UIC Barcelona's commitment to continue working in this direction, promoting collaboration between researchers, institutions and citizens.

About UIC Barcelona.

The International University of Catalonia (UIC Barcelona) was founded in 1997 with the aim of offering quality university education and promoting research as a service to society. Linked to the business world and with a marked international character, it teaches 16 degrees, 8 double degrees, around thirty international double degrees and a wide range of postgraduate programs on its two campuses, located in Barcelona and Sant Cugat del Vallés. As part of its commitment to society, UIC Barcelona also has three university clinics located on the Sant Cugat Campus: the University Clinic of Dentistry, Support - University Clinic of Psychology and Psychiatry, and Cuides UIC Barcelona, ​​focused on patient care. with advanced illnesses and palliative care.

For more information:.

Irene Pérez Martínez.

T. 34 932 541 800 ext. 4251.

iperezm@uic.es.