Searching for Responsible Answers: New #ConnectingMinds Projects Set to Launch

The EU has set itself the goal of making its economy more climate-friendly and circular. But how will this change the demand for raw materials? What consequences will this have for countries in the Global South that export many of these raw materials? And how can changes be made to give these countries fair chances for development and organization?

The CIRCEUS (A Circular Low Carbon EU Economy and the Global South) research project is investigating these questions. It creates a scientifically sound basis for aligning the debates and strategies in the EU and in resource-exporting countries of the Global South – and for jointly developing solutions that promote strong global partnerships and the fair use of resources.

In the CIRCEUS project, the Austrian Foundation for Development Research (ÖFSE), WU Vienna, BOKU University, and the Austrian Academy of Sciences are pooling their research expertise with the internationally networked practitioners DKA Austria and Global 2000. The result is a transdisciplinary research process, bringing together scientific expertise, practical relevance, and the perspectives of all regions involved. CIRCEUS wants to help ensure that the transformation of the EU does not come at the expense of other regions, but instead opens up new opportunities worldwide.

Young people are at the heart of the climate crisis, as they will feel the long-term consequences of climate change the most. Marginalized young people in particular, who are disadvantaged due to socio-economic inequalities, often have the fewest opportunities to prepare for the coming changes or actively participate in shaping a climate-social future. At the same time, they lack political representation and access to knowledge, while young climate activists are helping to shape the discourse. However, both groups share a common concern: the fear of an uncertain future. This is where FUTURES comes in, making their points of view visible and working with them to develop visions for a fair and sustainable future.

FUTURES combines art education, political ecology, and climate science with practical social work, activism, education, city administration, and art. Through participatory research and art education interventions, the project will create spaces for young people where they can design alternative future scenarios and identify ways to implement them.

A key component of FUTURES is putting these visions into practice. In cooperation with the City of Salzburg, the young people’s ideas will contribute to informing political decision-makers and driving climate-social transformations. At the same time, the envisioned scenarios are linked to climate models to help understand their impact on the population – for example in the event of extreme events such as heat or heavy rainfall.

The project will not only focus on the perspectives of young people, but also has the potential to create new approaches for practitioners, like social workers and educators. They could use the newly developed methods to actively involve young people in shaping visions for the future and strengthen their agency. The results of FUTURES will be transferable beyond Salzburg and can serve as a model for other cities and regions to shape a fairer and more sustainable future.