It’s hard to believe that the 2018 Global Sustainability Fellows (GSF) program took place just over a year ago – it feels like the program was yesterday! The fellows have been busy since the 2018 session concluded, engaged with exciting professional opportunities across a variety of industries, new courses of study, and various personal projects.
We caught up with the 2018 cohort, who updated The Sustainability Laboratory on the most recent developments in their lives, and how their participation in the GSF program has shaped their work and lives moving forward. Here’s what some of the fellows have to say:
“Even after one year I still feel the GSF program was yesterday. Not just because I had an interesting experience but because the structure of the program has allowed me to explore different aspects of sustainability which I didn’t previously consider. The five domains of sustainability have been particularly useful in my postgraduate studies. As part of my research objectives, I was examining how urban green spaces can be used to increase sustainability in developing cities. In carrying this part of the research, I applied the systems approach taught during the GSF and mapped up variables using causal loop diagrams.” -Valentina Nyame, fellow from Ghana
“The knowledge acquired on systems dynamics and modelling during the GSF really helps to try to map better a variety of scenarios (especially in my work in conservation, as a journalist, and as an entrepreneur). It has influenced the way I approach some problems, and the overall mental pathways and analytic approach I use to understand and address challenges.” -Sergio Rejado Albaina, fellow from Spain
Fellows participating in a classroom exercise on systems modeling during the 2018 GSF session
“As time goes by, I find more and more opportunities for the GSF’s systemic sustainability framework to be applied, particularly to complex problems that may be well assessed by this framework. But I do not have enough stakeholders that understand nor support this framework. To operationalize solutions in this regard, we need more people on our side…” Adrián Lozano Garza, fellow from Mexico
“The program was a profound experience that has been resonating with me throughout many aspects of my life since our time in Israel. Although it is easy to get caught up in everyday life, I am reminded of what it means to link the everyday to the broader picture, daily, particularly in the interpersonal connections that were made, and the importance of empathy within everyday interactions. I would say that the GSF program has instilled the importance of interdisciplinary approaches, as well as the need for cooperation and willingness to see in multiple perspectives. I hope to keep this way of seeing the world in future collaborations within my teaching pedegogy.” -Rachel Marne Jones, fellow from the United States
Fellows learning about sustainability innovations on a field trip during the 2018 program
We look forward to the many exciting continued and future developments in the lives of the fellows. For more information about the program and any updates, be sure to follow the GSF on Facebook and Twitter.