Another round is coming for the first, worldwide Young Academy for Sustainability Research (YAS). The Eva Mayr-Stihl foundation is extending 1.26 million euros of support for the programme until December 2027. Even greater internationalisation is one of the primary goals of the funding phase that runs from October 2024. YAS was established in 2021 at the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies (FRIAS). International and interdisciplinary in its orientation, the Academy is for post-doctoral students. Sustainability is the Academy's area of focus. YAS will again have sixteen members in the coming phase. The communal projects of current YAS members range from workshops and conferences to the investigation of the use of urban green spaces and their significance for adaptation to extreme heat, or to the creation of a graphic novel, aimed at easing access of school pupils in particular to the topic of sustainability. Half of the YAS members come from the University of Freiburg. The remainder come from other universities and research institutions in Germany and other countries.
Interdisciplinary sustainability research with societal relevance
"Sustainability research must be interdisciplinary, because the challenges do not limit themselves to the bounds of academic disciplines," says Michael von Winning, chairman of the Eva Mayr-Stihl Foundation. He continued, "The programme is particularly ambitious for junior researchers because specialisation is a trump card for research careers. We're impressed with how those taking part in the Young Academy deal with this interplay, how they use the Academy's offering, and how the resonance of the format has developed at the university and beyond. That's why we're so pleased about the continuation into phase two."
The Vice President for Internationalisation and Sustainability at the University of Freiburg, Prof. Dr. Daniela Kleinschmit, emphasises, "We're very pleased we can build on the successful founding of the YAS and go into the next round. With increasing internationalisation of the Academy, we'd like to further expand the field of young experts and innovators, as well as increase the radiance of the beacon project. We are incredibly grateful to the Eva-Mayr-Stihl Foundation for making this possible, and that we can use the programme to strengthen further our emphasis on sustainability at the university level. Sustainability research needs young perspectives that are networked globally - that's precisely what we'd like to achieve with the YAS.
Greater internationalisation in the second support phase
Sixteen postdoctoral students will again be members of the YAS in the second support phase of the Academy from October 2024 to December 2027. Researchers may apply to take part until 4 March 2024. Four associate member positions will be announced in the second support phase to ease access of international researchers to the YAS. These are planned one-month stays in Freiburg each year. They are open to those at partner institutions of the University of Freiburg, such as North Carolina State University in the US or Nagoya University in Japan. The YAS focus will be continuing to promote interdisciplinary research proposals.
