Category: Archive

IGCS Winter School 2023 Concludes

The Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS) is dedicated to researching current sustainability challenges and disseminating the knowledge generated while facilitating exchanges of students and researchers.

Our bi-annual flagship international student exchange program, the Winter School at IIT Madras, was recently held from February 20th to March 3rd, 2023, on the topic “Microgrid – A Key Contribution Towards A Carbon Neutral Society”. Our participants assessed the accessibility to affordable, reliable, and sustainable forms of energy in the Indian and German context through an interdisciplinary set of lectures and workshops conducted by our Indian and German academics and practitioners. Based on the three main trends shaping the current and future global energy landscape – defossilization, decentralisation, and digitalisation – this iteration of our exchange program focused on the idea that promoting renewable energy systems, primarily through microgrids, is a potential approach and an innovative and viable solution towards a clean energy future, especially in areas not served by centralised electrical infrastructure. IGCS also provides a platform for participants to engage in peer learning through Group Work. These activities are designed to allow group members to gain hands-on experience in multidisciplinary collaborations to develop a set of research ideas. The collaborations also enable our participants to engage in intercultural exchange and travel.

Image

We are delighted to announce the upcoming Summer School at TU Berlin, which will take place from 24th July to 04th August 2023. Arising from the idea that energy security, economic benefits, and clean energy integration are the main drivers of microgrid development and deployment worldwide, the Summer School aims to build on the success of the Winter School. Like the Winter School, this year’s Summer School in Berlin will comprise interdisciplinary lectures, Working Groups, Panel Discussions, Excursions in Germany and many other intercultural exchange opportunities. Our objective is to continue exploring the sustainable use of energy, a primary global concern.

We cordially invite Indian and German students to jointly and interactively develop their skills and knowledge about sustainable energy use in our upcoming Summer School in Berlin. Stay tuned for more information about the program and how to apply!

Photo Credits: Dr. Daniel Rosado, IGCS

IGCS participates in K-Show in Düsseldorf

This week the IGCS Project coordinators visited the K-Show in Düsseldorf, Germany. The K-Show is the World’s biggest trade fair for plastics and rubber. Focus topics were Circular Economy, Digitalisation and Climate Protection.

IGCS emphasises the importance of collaborations with industries to address sustainability through joint initiatives. It was beautiful to engage with companies from India and Germany on a mission towards #Sustainability & #circulareconomy.

Lisa Van Aalst, IGCS Project Coordinator, Visits Chennai India

The IGCS team in Germany had the opportunity to visit IIT Madras in Chennai last month, where they were engaged in research and exchange teaching programs. Lisa Van Aalst, IGCS Project Coordinator at RWTH Aachen University, shares their experience in Chennai:

IGCS Team in Chennai
IGCS Team in Chennai

After more than two years of working remotely, I finally had the chance to visit the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras campus, on a project management visit with the Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS).

Together with the IGCS Postdocs Christoph WoiwodeDaniel Rosado, and Khulud Alsouleman, we have had fruitful meetings strategizing on joint research projects addressing the Urban Water-Food-Energy-Waste Nexus in the Perumbakkam resettlement area as well as introducing hybrid teaching modules at IIT Madras in the field of sustainability.

Besides finally meeting face-to-face with our IGCS colleagues, we have also had the chance to interact with new faces and met our wonderful colleagues from DAAD India to discuss scholarship opportunities for Indian students and researchers.

In New Delhi, I had the chance to meet with RWTH Head India Office Benjamin Pfrang. Together with the Goethe Institut Indien and the German Embassy in New Delhi, we attended the inauguration of the Mayoor Public School Noida as a PASCH school. This initiative connects more than 2,000 schools worldwide where the German language is particularly important.

Do you want to conduct your research with IGCS and our focus areas? We offer research grants to students interested in the field of sustainability. Visit our Grants page for more information.