The 7th International Summer School on Life Cycle Approaches for Sustainable Regional Development - August 25, 2018

“Life cycle tool box for bio-economy initiatives” is the theme of the seventh International Summer School on ‘Life cycle approaches for sustainable regional development’. The summer school will be held in Leipzig, Germany, on 25-28 August 2018, organized jointly by the FSLCI and the Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research, UFZ.

This Summer School is an opportunity for professionals and regional managers to learn how to extend evolving life cycle management tools into new application areas in sustainable development – in this instance in the fast-changing field of circular bio-economies. The objective is to encourage use of promising LCM tools by social partners who have not so far employed these techniques extensively. This includes regional institutions, research teams and industrial associations that wish to enhance the effectiveness of their sustainability initiatives. It is also aimed at life cycle professionals and academics interested in broadening their client base by offering new applications.

This Summer School – the 7th in the current series – addresses the growing interest in bio-economy policies as a means of promoting circular economies at regional level. In particular, it examines the influential role of life cycle methodologies in promoting a bio-economy in a holistic fashion, without producing unwanted side-effects on other societal goals such as social fabric, environment, biodiversity, industry and energy, for example. The summer school draws inspiration from a recent book “Life cycle approaches to sustainable regional development (Routledge, 2017)”. A number of the summer school faculty are authors of important chapters in this publication.

The 2018 edition of the summer school will explore topics such as materials flow analysis (MFA) and other LCA proedures that improve the planning and implementation of regional bio-economy initiatives. These include eco-footprinting, life cycle costing, social LCA, technology assessment, use of LCA in procurement of bio-matrials, and building a life cycle management toolbox for SMEs.  These instruments will be examined in the context of the current vision of circular economy and the building of a bio-based industry, using appropriate mixes of innovative policy instruments, R&D, and financial incentives. The summer school uses an interactive programme of lectures, workshops, cases studies and role-plays to explore these key issues.  Key experts will provide keynote lectures.

A preliminary 1-day refresher course in Webinar format on life cycle assessment and bio-economy will also be offered. Please check out this flyer for a preliminary overview of the planned program.

Registration Details

The Summer School is funded through students’ fees.  Lecturers and organisers are giving their time free of charge.  Fees are being kept to a minimum, covering essential meeting costs, course materials, lunches and coffee breaks, and expenses for selected international experts.  Students pay their own travel to Leipzig, budget accommodation (UFZ is negotiating preferential hotel rates in Leipzig) and meals (other than lunches). We would like to highlight that  all candidates are responsible for their own travel arrangements and insurance while in Leipzig.  Candidates from outside the EU are also responsible for their own visa (if applicable).  

Registration is open to undergraduate, doctoral, post-doctoral students and young professionals, including researchers under 35. Officials from regional institutions are also encouraged to register.
The registration fee includes admission to:

• All courses, focus groups and workshops
• A short course (webinar) on 21 August
• A social event on 26 August
• Downloadable course material
• Access to lecturers, experts, and tutors

The full registration fee is 380€ for the 4-day Summer School.

• Students applying ahead of the 15th of May are eligible for the Early Bird Rate of 350€
• FSLCI members are eligible for an additional 30€ rebate on the registration fee!

Please note that whether or not ECTS points are awarded for the Summer School depends on the acceptance of our syllabus by your institution / tutor. We suggest that you check with your tutor at your home university, how many points you would get based on our published program. Given our program, we are estimating that 2-3 ECTS point could be awarded, depending on the ECTS calculation ratio that your home university applies.