The project is jointly coordinated by SLU Urban Futures, Think Tank Movium and Uppsala Municipality. It will map, monitor, and support ongoing and future collaborations between SLU and Uppsala Municipality as set out in the Cooperation Agreement 2020-2022 signed by leadership at SLU and the Municipality.
Joining forces
The project asks: how can we best use the skills and expertise from practice and academia to address key sustainability issues in Uppsala? How can we work together to address shared goals and ambitions?
Uppsala Municipality is expected to grow by up to 100,000 inhabitants over the next few decades. Tens of thousands of homes are to be built and significant infrastructure investments made. At the same time, the municipality has the ambitious goal is to be fossil-free by 2030 and climate positive by 2050. However, major challenges still exist in areas such as climate adaptation, integration, skills supply, transport, construction, energy, digitalisation and food. By bringing together researchers from multiple academic fields, practitioners, students, and interested parties, the collaboration will drive forward innovation to address complex sustainability problems and achieve our common sustainability goals in Uppsala.
An interplay between academy and practise
Through the project, Uppsala Municipality can engage with researchers from across the whole of SLU and apply some of the cutting-edge research happening at the university to urban development processes in Uppsala. Similarly, SLU is given opportunities to collaborate with practitioners in research, degree projects, and student engagement in connection with ongoing urban development projects. The project will track and monitor the ongoing collaborations between SLU and Uppsala Municipality through the activities of working groups, as well as hosting seminars, and regular meetings with project participants and the steering committee to facilitate dialogue. The online hub will raise awareness of ongoing collaborations, projects and discussions to attract interested researchers from across SLU to contribute to the issues set out in the signed agreement; and coordinate further engagement.
A Cooperation Agreement
The Cooperation Agreement signed between SLU and Uppsala Municipality aims to foster transdisciplinary collaboration between SLU and Uppsala Municipality that has mutual benefits for the participating organisations and society at large. The collaboration harnesses SLU’s world-leading research in sustainability in realizing Uppsala Municipality’s ambitious targets in terms of social, environmental and economic sustainability.
The agreement, during the period 2020-2022, focuses on four collaborative projects, which each have respective coordinators at SLU and Uppsala Municipality:
- Research and urban planning
SLU and Uppsala Municipality collaborate on research and urban planning in the areas that are relevant through dialogue meetings. Particular focus is on the development of the Southern City in Uppsala and the city-area dynamics. The project is coordinated by SLU.
- Sustainable local food security
A collaborative project for increased regional self-sufficiency in the food supply chain. The targets are reduced transport needs, local production of fuels and efficient and resource-efficient distribution.
- Green innovation park
Collaboration on business establishment at Green Innovation Park to increase sustainable entrepreneurship in Uppsala in collaboration with SLU's research.
- Skills
SLU and Uppsala Municipality collaborate in mutual competence development, for example through Uppsala climate protocol and the annual essay scholarship.
Research and Urban Planning
The hub hosted by SLU Urban futures will monitor and support the work of five research areas within the project ‘Research and Urban Planning’, which also have coordinators at the respective organisations, SLU and Uppsala Municipality:
- Ecosystem services and biodiversity in urban environments
Contact at SLU: Marcus Hedblom
- Water resource management and aquatic ecosystems
Contact at SLU: Jens Olsson
- Nature reserve formation and nature reserve development
Contact at SLU: Sebastian Sundberg
- Urban farming
Contact at SLU: Andrew Gallagher
- Testbeds in urban development research
Contact at SLU: TBC
