Material footprint and technological innovation: for more sustainable development
Webinar-Discussion | Thursday April 1, 2021 – 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
This webinar-discussion aimed to present, in the form of presentations, the major issues and fundamental concepts linked to sustainable development in relation to the impact of technological innovations. The presentations particularly target researchers in basic sciences, technology and engineering. Discussions will follow allowing participants to question and explore possible solutions.
Program
9:00 a.m. Welcome
9:10 Hardware footprint and decoupling
Thierry Lefèvre (CERMA) | Moderator : Amine Miled (CERMA)
- Material metabolism, global resource use, international disparities
- Ecological crises, Anthropocene, planetary boundaries and shifts
- Resource consumption, flows and stocks, and material efficiency
- Concept of material footprint, limiting environmental footprint
- Material decoupling and responsibility for consumption
- Metabolic transition and potential saturation of resource use
9:40 a.m. Discussion: What role can researchers play in reducing the global material footprint?
10:10 a.m. Benefits and limits of technological innovations
Thierry Lefèvre (CERMA) | Moderator : Élodie Boisselier (CERMA)
- Technological waves and advances
- Jevons paradox or rebound effect
- Potentials and limits of technology for sustainable development
- The question of objective (use)
- Conclusion: systematic industrialization of technology
10:30 a.m. Discussion: What role does technology play in sustainable development?
11:00 a.m. Break
11:05 a.m. A concept: sustainable innovation to make innovations… sustainable
Philippe Genois-Lefrançois (Faculty of planning, University of Montreal) and Thierry Lefèvre (CERMA) | Moderator: Luca Sorelli (CERMA)
- The different types of innovations
- A definition of sustainable innovation (DI), the fields of ID
- Understanding the innovation process: sociotechnical systems
- Mastering the innovation process: transition management and foresight
- Guidelines for promoting and supervising innovations
11:25 a.m. Discussion: Can sustainable innovation contribute to sustainable development? How to put it into practice?
Watch the webinar
Action plan on environmental responsibility in research
On January 26, 2021, the Quebec Research Funds (FRQ) launched the Action Plan on Environmental Responsibility in Research.
Contributing to the protection of the environment is a duty that transcends all sectors of society, including the scientific community. To support members of the scientific community through this responsibility, the Fonds de recherche du Québec (FRQ) are deploying their Action Plan on Environmental Responsibility in Research.
Discover the Action Plan.
See the checklist written by CERMA.
View or review the presentation of the action plan
Sustainable development goals
