Overline: Potsdam Summer School

Headline: THE SKIN OF THE EARTH - THE EARTH SURFACE SYSTEM

This year’s Summer School will take place from 10 to 19 September 2018 in Potsdam, Germany. It will address these central questions:

• Why is the earth surface system dynamic?
• What are the triggers for dynamic processes?
• What are possible societal adaptation strategies for sustainable land management?

The fifth summer school event will explore the terrestrial earth surface system, which is driven by geological, biological and climatic forces. They form a complex system of closely coupled processes and feedbacks that are not yet sufficiently understood. Knowledge of these interactions is essential, since the Earth´s surface is the foundation for all human activity. Its dynamics have an impact on all facets of life, habitability and sustainability.

With its overarching theme - “THE SKIN OF OUR PLANET – THE EARTH SURFACE SYSTEM” - the Potsdam Summer School will continue the transdisciplinary and interactive event series that has been held annually in Potsdam since 2014. The intense ten-day, multi-faceted programme will help participants to acquire transdisciplinary knowledge and understanding of the processes that are shaping the Earth´s vulnerable skin – our habitat. They will be engaged in discussions and group works on these key issues.

The aim is to bring together talented early-career scientists and young professionals operating in the private sector, governmental agencies and non-governmental organisations from many different parts of the world to discuss frontier (research) questions on future sustainable development. Participants are expected to form part of a new generation of researchers and practitioners with the necessary background and tools to evaluate and mitigate the effects of present-day and future environmental change. In this context, the Potsdam Summer School provides a unique opportunity for all participants to foster international cooperation and an interdisciplinary exchange of ideas.

The Potsdam Summer School 2018 will be conducted at the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS), the Albert Einstein Campus and the University of Potsdam.

In partnership with GeoX and the City of Potsdam, the 2018 Potsdam Summer School will be jointly organised by the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), the Helmholtz-Centre Potsdam – GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS), the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), and the University of Potsdam.

For further information and to download the application form, please visit the Potsdam Summer School website or contact Angela Borowski.