We invite all those interested in the topic of social sustainability to submit articles for issue 3/2020 of the UAS Journal. The theme for the issue is ‘Universities of applied sciences promoting social sustainability’.
Sustainable development was first defined by the UN Brundtland Commission in 1987. The work of the commission initiated a process that has continued to develop at both the international and national level, involving both governments and different sectors of society.
In Finland, sustainable development has been promoted since 1993, at which point Finland became the first country in the world to establish a national commission on sustainable development. This commission defined sustainable development as follows: ‘Sustainable development is a globally, regionally and locally ongoing process of continuous and targeted change in society. It aims at safeguarding opportunities for a good life to current and future generations. This requires that the environment, people and the economy are equally taken into account in decision-making and activities.’ (Ministry of the Environment, https://www.ym.fi/fi-fi/ymparisto/kestava_kehitys/mita_on_kestava_kehitys).
Finland is committed to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which was approved at the UN Sustainable Development Summit in 2015. The 2030 Agenda includes 17 sustainable development objectives of which many relate to social sustainability (https://um.fi/agenda-2030-sustainable-development-goals). These include in particular goal 1: no poverty, 2: zero hunger, 3: good health and well-being, 4: quality education, 5: gender equality, 8: decent work and economic growth, 10: reduced inequalities, 11: sustainable cities and communities, 16: peace, justice and strong institutions, 17: partnerships.
Universities of applied sciences promote social sustainability through their education, projects, cooperation with employers and other practical measures. These methods for promoting sustainability can also connect with and support each other in many ways, and their scope and scale can vary from globally-orientated actions to very local ones. We also very much hope to receive articles that relate to the international projects (including educational, RDI projects etc.) of universities of applied sciences and their stakeholder groups, (e.g. associations and companies). We will give priority to articles that tell of projects and trials that have already been carried out and which offer valuable lessons for universities of applied sciences and their stakeholders. Furthermore, we are interested in hearing both about successful projects and unsuccessful ones!
The maximum length of a specialist article is 10,000 characters, a review 4,000 characters and less formally structured texts about 3,000 characters (incl. spaces). Detailed instructions for authors can be found on https://uasjournal.fi/in-english/instructions-for-writers/
The editors for this themed issue are Tove Holm from the City of Turku, Silja Kostia from Tampere University of Applied Sciences and Kaija Saramäki from Karelia University of Applied Sciences.
Tove has worked for 18 years in universities of applied sciences and adult education centres in the areas of quality management, environmental management, and promotion of sustainable development. She completed her PhD in environmental science at the University of Turku in 2014. The subject of her research was cross-disciplinary: enabling change in universities and enhancing sustainable development education. In recent years, she has been working for the Baltic Sea Challenge project initiated by the cities of Helsinki and Turku, which has cast a vision for a clean, productive and shared Baltic Sea.
Silja works as a principal lecturer at the Tampere University of Applied Sciences, and before that she was a principal lecturer and Dean of the Faculty of Technology at Lahti University of Applied Sciences. During her career, Silja has participated extensively in the promotion of sustainable development through educational and R&D activities involving both national and international networks. She completed her PhD in biology at the University of Helsinki in 2000.
Kaija works as a Senior Lecturer at the Karelia University of Applied Sciences and is actively involved in the activities of the ENO online school. Her areas of expertise include sustainable development, cooperation and networks, sustainable use of natural resources and internationalisation. By training, Kaija is a Forestry Engineer (BSc) specialised in marketing and communications, and she is also a Master of Science in Environmental Forestry who has specialised in the social questions relating to the use of natural resources.
Please send your proposed articles to the editors at kaija.saramaki(at)karelia.fi no later than week 34 (23 August 2020). Use the following subject for your email: UAS3 article. Please remember to follow the writing instructions and title your article according to the lead author’s surname.
- Article proposals to be sent to the editors by 30 August 2020 at the latest.
- Feedback on the articles will be sent to the lead authors by week 37.
- The revised version of the articles should be delivered by week 39 at the latest.
- The themed issue will be published in week 41.
