The next virtual meeting of the Innovating for Sustainability Salon will be held on October 1, 2019, 10:30 am – 12:00 pm Eastern Time. The theme for the session is: From Local to Global: The study of sustainable innovation at various systems levels.
The study of sustainable innovation at various systems levels. Solutions to grand challenges are being addressed at different levels in the system. Increasingly, many sustainability approaches advocate the implementation of local solutions to tackle global challenges. This approach presents both advantages and limitations. For instance, district levels are seen as critical to effectively innovate small-scale infrastructures for renewable energy upgrades such as mini-grids and local energy communities, enabling neighbourhood sustainable grid configurations. However, for policies such as those intervening on climate change, this approach might compromise their effectiveness, since they address environmental damages extending beyond local jurisdictions. The systems nature of grand challenges calls for systems solutions. While a local approach to grand challenges comes with limitations, a holistic approach to sustainable innovation presents many challenges. The next salon seeks to explore the study of sustainability innovation at different levels in the system.
