Establishing a cross-disciplinary, multi-partner, international centre for research and education on climate in Pisa

Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Scuola Normale Superiore, and Iuss Pavia are working to establish a new centre for research on climate change named “Earth-System and Sustainable Development Initiative”. This research institute jointly located within Pisa and Pavia newly formed consortium of Higher Education Institutions will translate Sant’Anna School academic knowledge (in agriculture, healthcare, economic impact of climate change, and sustainable development), Normale’s scientific knowledge (in biology, chemistry, astronomy and mathematics) and Iuss academic expertise (in risk management and prevention) into innovative solutions for sustainable development.

The first workshop on May 10-11 at Sant’Anna School will set out objectives, strategies, and projects to address biodiversity, ecosystems, human well-being and sustainable development issues. Professor Sir Brian Hoskins, meteorologist, the first director of the “Grantham Institute for Climate Change” founded in 2007 at Imperial College London, is the key speaker of the event as his Grantham Institute is established as an authority on climate and environmental science. Professor Hoskins will give his seminar on ‘The Challenge of Climate Change’, presenting his vision for a sustainable, resilient, zero-carbon society, and looking ahead to challenges the next ten years could bring.

The rectors of Sant’Anna, Normale and Iuss -  Pierdomenico Perata, Vincenzo Barone and Michele Di Francesco, will encourage collaboration across their institutions bringing together the different scientific communities which together address a wide perspective on climate change adaptation. “Scientists will develop fruitful relationships to other disciplines than their own – they said – The new research centre will provide the high value added knowledge needed to understand the links between science and sustainable human development. International and multidisciplinary environmental research can help address global challenges”