Conference // Making the Planetary Boundaries Concept Work

Environmental pressures are rapidly increasing worldwide, with mounting risks for sustainable development. To allow future generations to live in dignity and peace, humanity needs to operate within a safe operating space delineated by the planetary boundaries. Developed by a group of international researchers led by Johan Rockström, the concept has increasingly gained prominence internationally, regionally and nationally. But challenges remain: From the perspective of the German Federal Environment Ministry, the German Environment Agency and the German Federal Environmental Foundation, the core task and opportunity is to politically, socially and economically shape the safe operating space. For this purpose, fundamental changes towards a sustainable economy and society are necessary. In order for the planetary boundaries concept to assume a guiding role in such a transformation, important questions need to be addressed: How can we further improve the scientific justification of the internationally recognised concept? How can we apply the concept to national environmental and sustainability policies and policy-making? Which opportunities provided by the concept arise for technical, economical and social innovations, for corporate risk and corporate environmental management, for environmental education and communication? This international conference will address these aspects. Its goal is to bring together central actors of a sustainability transformation to generate an agenda for the concept’s further application in academia, for governments, the private sector, civil society and media.

Where and when

Steigenberger Hotel
10789 Berlin
Germany 24-25 Apr 2017

Audience

The conference addresses academia, governments, civil society, the private sector and media engaged in sustainable development, the socio-ecological transformation and the implementation of the sustainable development goals, the green economy, sustainable businesses and green finance, corporate risk and corporate environmental management, environmental communication and environmental education. To allow for an intensive dialogue, the event will gather a targeted group of 400 international and national participants and has already confirmed expert speakers from Germany, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Finland and Sweden.

Speakers

Selected confirmed speakers are

• Dr. Barbara Hendricks, Federal Environment Minister, Germany
• Dr. Heinrich Bottermann, General Secretary, German Federal Environmental Foundation
• Prof. Johan Rockström, Director, Stockholm Resilience Centre

Targets

In particular, the international conference will:

• Synthesize and discuss the current status of the planetary boundaries concept, recent developments, linkages with social and economic dimensions of a safe operating space (the space delineated by planetary boundaries in which societies can develop safely) and future research needs;
• Synthesize and discuss the operationalization of the planetary boundaries concept in specific contexts, for economic, social, and political applications, societal learning at different geographical scales, policy contexts, and for different actors (governments, civil society, the private sector and media);
• Generate agendas for the further development and application of the planetary boundaries concept for governments and regional and local policy-making, the private sector, civil society, media and academia to establish a safe operating space for a sustainability transformation.

More Information

You can find further information including the conference registration form on our conference website: www.pb-conference2017.de