Conference programme 2025

Panelists: Sofya Ignatenko, Accounting and Corporate Finance- portal.research.lu.se, Andreea Neagu, Accounting and Corporate Finance- portal.research.lu.se and Abigail Starkey, Centre for Environmental and Climate Science- agenda2030graduateschool.lu.se

The panel discussion, followed by audience Q&A, aims to examine how sustainability accounting and reporting (SAR) does not merely mirror corporate performance but channels external and institutional pressures into the firm, reshaping strategic priorities and organizational capabilities. Building on SAR scholarship about the purposes and consequences of disclosure (Gray, Kouhy & Lavers, 1995; Bebbington & Larrinaga, 2014) and its role as a mechanism for information governance and decision support (Bebbington, 2004; Schaltegger & Burritt, 2010), the session seeks to evaluate SAR as a sensing and coordinating tool that translates societal demands, regulatory shifts, and investor expectations into corporates’ internal reallocation of attention and resources.

At a broader level, SAR, supported by with robust metrics and measurement systems, can enhance meaningful performance management and decision-making for sustainable development by clarifying objectives, informing targets and trade-offs, guiding resource allocation, and strengthening accountability across various fields, including biodiversity. The discussion will touch upon diverse perspectives on how sustainability accounting, measurement, and reporting can inform business models, biodiversity management, financial decision-making, and the reshaping of strategic priorities.

Organiser: Margherita Miccio, Fluid Mechanics - portal.research.lu.se

Is Our Research Sustainable? is a one-hour interactive workshop designed for doctoral candidates from all disciplines. The session invites participants to critically reflect on the sustainability of their research, considering environmental, social, economic, and personal dimensions. Through group discussions, brainstorming activities, and provocative guiding questions, participants will map the potential impacts of their research projects, exploring both positive contributions and unintended challenges. The workshop begins with a short introduction to key concepts of sustainability and their relevance in academia. Participants then work in small groups to identify the environmental footprint of their research practices, the societal beneficiaries and potential inequalities, the economic implications of their projects, and the ethical or personal costs involved. 

A plenary exchange will highlight common themes, tensions, and contradictions across disciplines. In the second half, participants engage with scenario-based challenges designed to push their critical thinking further, such as imagining research practices under strict resource constraints or aligning projects more directly with societal needs. The session concludes with a collective synthesis and individual commitments to concrete actions, ensuring that reflections translate into practice. By combining active learning and peer-to-peer exchange, this workshop encourages early career researchers to broaden their understanding of sustainability and to integrate it into their scientific identity and everyday research choices.

Organiser: Minor Field Studies grant programme- lunduniversity.lu.se

Moderator: Max Åhman, Environmental and Energy Systems Studies- portal.research.lu.se 

This event aims to share insights from Minor Field Studies conducted by Lund University students, highlighting sustainable international development cooperation. It primarily targets Lund University PhD students and researchers but is also open to other external stakeholders. There will be short presentations followed by a panel discussion. The presenters are the following:

• Johan Stertman, Faculty of Engineering, Master of Architecture, Sri Lanka – ”Rainforest Protectors – Conservation & Education Centre: Sustainable Development in Sinharaja, Sri Lanka” - https://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/search/publication/9206728
• Ludvig Malmquist, Faculty of Social Sciences, Master of Science Programme in Development Studies, Bolivia – “Understanding youths’ contributions and perspectives in ecotourism. A pathway to achieve development? A qualitative case study of the indigenous community San José de Uchupiamonas, Bolivian Amazon, exploring youths’ contributions and perceptions of ecotourism’s impact on learning and culture.” - https://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/search/publication/9209492

Organisers: Amanda Burman Rimstedt, Lund Disability Research Hub- portal.research.lu.se and May Phyu Sin, Lund Disability Research Hub- portal.research.lu.se

This interactive session aims to discuss how disability inclusion can and should be embedded across different disciplines to achieve sustainable outcomes. Too often, disability is considered a niche concern, rather than an essential dimension of sustainability research and practice. Framed within this year’s theme of “Sustainability Pluralism”, the presentation will highlight how disability is related across diverse sectors or disciplines such as health, education, technology and linked to the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. It will also emphasize that within each sector, multiple actors must be engaged for meaningful change.

Questions for the group: How might you include disability perspectives in your research? How can we promote interdisciplinary disability research? How do we communicate between different sectors to actually reach sustainable development? Can we as disability researchers collaborate with a totally different sector so that we in the long run have a more positive effect on sustainable development? How can that communication look like when we are not at a conference like this one?

• Anny Matamoros, Faculty of Law- agenda2030graduateschool.lu.se
  Rethinking international law through post-national orders: pluralist and emancipatory pathways beyond the state-centered system.
• Muluneh Getachew Garedew, Planetary Health, Faculty of Medicine- portal.research.lu.se
  Exploring pregnant women's perceptions of reducing exposure to air pollution and its adverse health effects in the four cities of Ethiopia.
• Yury Erofeev, SQUAKE, Germany- linkedin.com
  Comparative analysis of GHG calculation methodologies in aviation.
• LU Innovation- innovation.lu.se
  Support on how to generate impact from your research by innovation.

Paper presentations by:

• Ali Jahangiri, Machine Learning- portal.research.lu.se
  Empowering Sustainable Development with low-power AI.
• Georgios Tsiakiris, Environmental Pshychology- agenda2030graduateschool.lu.se
  The restorative potential of urban forests during daylight and head torch conditions.
• Philipp Jonas Kreutzer, Economic History- portal.research.lu.se
  The strength of the global socio-technical pulp and paper system and its consequences for forestry diversification.
• Martina Gnewski, Communication- portal.research.lu.se
  The suppression of conflict through the illusion of consensus.
• Open questions to all presenters.

Organiser: Helene Ekfors, Occupational and Environmental Medicine- portal.research.lu.se

Confronting different challenges for healthy workplaces, as present or future leaders, employers or employees, we must form a foundation for sustainable and healthy workplaces interprofessional. Such healthy workplaces and work teams contributes in the long run to economic growth, productive work and decent work (ILO 2025) and contributes to several of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 concerning decent work and employment and are integral elements for good health and wellbeing (SDG3), quality education (SDG4), decent work and economic growth (SDG8) and reduced inequalities (SDG10) (UN 2015).

This workshop will start with a short kick-off, followed by interprofessional discussions in smaller groups. It is a possibility to meet in collaboration to engage in joint reflection and develop new knowledge for sustainable workplaces. The workshop ends with a discussion in whole group and take-home messages.

Panelists: Amanda Kron, Faculty of Law- portal.research.lu.se, Sofie Elise Quist, Norwegian Centre for the Law of the Sea, The Arctic University of Norway- uit.no, Anny Matamoros, Faculty of Law- agenda2030graduateschool.lu.se, Mahesh Menon, Faculty of Law- agenda2030graduateschool.lu.se 

Moderator: Markus Gunneflo, Faculty of Law- portal.research.lu.se

This panel examines the complex and often paradoxical relationship between law and sustainability, exploring how legal frameworks simultaneously enable and constrain sustainable development across different scales and contexts. Drawing on recent landmark legal developments and critical analysis of sustainability discourse, the panel interrogates fundamental tensions within the law-sustainability nexus, across different legal contexts and scales, contributing to scholarly understanding of how legal frameworks shape sustainability discourse and practice.

The relationship between law and sustainability is marked by tensions and contradictions. While law provides essential frameworks for environmental protection and sustainable development, it also legitimizes activities that may undermine these very goals. This panel brings together critical perspectives on how legal systems interpret, implement, and sometimes subvert sustainability principles.

Organiser: Natalya Amirova, Psychology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology- ntnu.edu

Plastic pollution remains a pressing sustainability challenge, yet dominant responses—both globally and in Norway—continue to emphasize downstream interventions such as recycling, beach cleanups, and microplastic removal and fail to address the root causes of plastic pollution. Plastic pollution primarily falls under SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG 14 (Life Below Water).

Scholars argue that more radical and transformative solutions to plastic pollution are needed to confront the deeper socio-economic drivers of plastic pollution, such as consumerism and capitalism. Through expert interviews and workshops with students, our ongoing research explores the co-development of visions for alternative plastic futures, barriers and opportunities. The findings aim to translate these insights into local actions.

Methodologically, the study plans to use thematic analysis, specifically thematic networks, to examine texts, images, and recordings. By sharing insights during the discussion of this activity, the intention is to contribute to qualitative analysis methods in sustainability research projects and potentially explore options for collaboration based on the ongoing work.