DISCOVERY aims to create the collaborative environment and conditions that are necessary to design new demonstration actions that will contribute to the sustainable transformation and management of University campuses. We want students to get involved in actions aligned with the new European framework, which requires to develop multi-disciplinary collaborations. Through these activities, we want to increase the visibility of EELISA Alliance Partners on relevant sustainability issues, such as urban resilience, building’s energy efficiency, the integration of nature in cities, the valorization of waste and water reuse within circular economy principles and changing consumption habits.
Main schools involved: Technical School of Architecture (ETSAM), Technical School of Agricultural, Food and Biosystems Engineering (ETSIAAB), Technical School of Computer Engineering (ETSIINF), Technical School of Telecommunications Engineering (ETSIT), Technical School of Forestry Engineering and Natural Resources (ETSIMFMN), Technical School of Engineering and Industrial Design (ETSIDI), Technical School of Building (ETSEM), Technical School of Civil Engineering (ETSICCP), Technical School of Industrial Engineering (ETSII) and Technical School of Public Works Engineering (ETSIC).
Main external partners involved: We count on more than 22 companies, research centers and foundations interested in our mission.
DISCOVERY proposal focuses on designing a sustainable and decarbonized university, based on the multidisciplinary knowledge of its members, grouped in, but not limited to, the following areas of expertise:
- Urban acoustic contamination
- Energy efficiency retrofitting
- Sustainable buildings integrating nature-based solutions
- Energy self-generation systems
- Environmental data monitorization and analysis
- Open data, IoT and artificial intelligence
- Energy generation through photovoltaic systems
- Energy management and storage
- Urban green infrastructure and biodiversity
- Wastewater recovery and nature-based solutions
- Environmental (carbon, water, biodiversity…) footprints
- Sustainable mobility
Our conviction that the University is called to be the catalyst for change, contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals within our environment, and serving as a model to other activities in our urban areas. We clearly see the need to build a common narrative, a concept of sustainability shared by the entire academic community that will lead us to materialize specific actions. We are convinced that the way to achieve this goal is to offer clear and well-structured opportunities for participation, so that the university community becomes an active stakeholder in those initiatives that seek to promote change, create shared values, and set long-term objectives.
DISCOVERY pretends to work with and for the university community, in order to collaboratively design, develop and implement actions that contribute to the University campuses’ transition towards more sustainable models. On many aspects, campuses are similar to small- town ecosystems, and when used as testing fields for the application of new technologies and practices, they provide access to crucial data at the community scale. In that sense, DISCOVERY seeks to boost urban decarbonization by experimenting innovative solutions on University campuses that could then be scaled up to city level.
