About GRASS

In January 2021, Uppsala University established a new multidisciplinary graduate school in sustainable development. The main mission of the graduate school is to conduct research based on key social challenges. The research will include subjects such as changed energy systems, sustainable consumption, destinations development.

Uppsala University - Campus Gotland, where the graduate school is based, is an important hub in the university’s work towards a sustainable society. Here, the graduate school will be rooted in ongoing interdisciplinary collaborations in research and education, conducted in an international environment.

Focus on multidisciplinarity and sustainability

In the first cohort of the graduate school, 12 doctoral students from eight university departments collaborate across five unique research projects. The second cohort involves ten doctoral students from five departments, working together on five distinct projects.

The doctoral students collaborate with supervisors, international partners, visiting researchers, and local actors, with a particular focus on developing knowledge to support the transition required for living well in a world affected by climate change.

The research environment is characterised by:

1. Local relevance and international excellence

The location will be central to the graduate school. The research projects within the graduate school are all based on local key challenges. The graduate school will, at the same time, be rooted in the existing research environment and network to secure international excellence.

2. Multidisciplinarity and cutting edge

The transformation needed to live in a world with sustainability challenges requires that we within academia move beyond traditional boundaries. We need to be curious, bold and work together on the most urgent issues. Through the questions we raise, the activities we perform and the research we conduct, we aim within the graduate school to work with transdisciplinary approaches.

3. Sustainability now and in the future

At the same time as the graduate school aims for long-term transformation, we are attentive towards’ how we act here and now. This means that we critically analyse how our academic environment contributes to sustainability. We do not take traditional ways of acting for given. Our ambition is to continuously learn how we can act more sustainably within the graduate school, right now as well as in the future.