Promoting an open dialogue for a sustainable future

Some conversations flow easily, while others require more effort to bring them to the open forum. In this second category may land sustainability: a complex and multidimensional topic that is often confined to expert circles. Yet, these are precisely the discussions that can benefit most from and open debate.

At the same time, sustainability cuts across all disciplines of the ENAC School. Architects and environmental and civil engineers share the view that sustainability should remain at the core of their projects. To help bridge this gap and foster an open dialogue between academia and society, ENAC professors showcased their research with the public that gathered at the Rolex Center during the EPFL Sustainability Days. “These events are important to open these discoveries to the population,” says Mirko Musa, tenure-track assistant professor in sustainable river engineering, energy, and morphodynamics. During the event, Mirko Musa showed how river engineering and renewable energy from water can meet in an integrated and sustainable way.

“Sustainability means having a future where we improve our quality of life,” says Rizlan Bernier-Latmani, professor at the Environmental Microbiology Laboratory. “During these days, we had the opportunity to present our research and demonstrate what we do in the field.” Her research focuses on how bacteria and other microorganisms can help solve environmental problems.

For Aziza Chaouni, tenure-track assistant professor at the Laboratory South-North Sustainable Construction and Conservation, this event helped approach academia and society around a key subject. She thinks that a sustainable architecture is an architecture that better integrates natural environments in our everyday lives, and one that envisages the challenges and the needs of the future. “Perhaps our happiness would increase if we shrink the distance between our homes and nature,” says Aziza Chaouni.

Today, open dialogue between researchers and society is an essential bidirectional exchange that benefits both parts, and that helps build trust and understanding to solve complex global challenges.