“The Exploratory Workshop „Progress in
Environmental Engineering, Biotechnology and
Management in The Frame of Knowledge-Based
Sustainable Economy” took place in the context
when worldwide research shows that the current
industrial system supports a population that use
resources and generates waste, consuming the Earth's
supply, but who’s biocapacity is far outweighed by
the increased demand of products for a development
system that often works on unsustainable bases.
Today’s challenge is the integration of
environmental sustainability with economic
growth and prosperity, by decoupling
environmental degradation from economic
growth, to do “more with less”.
Economic growth in the last 3-4 decades
generated a double environmental impact on the
planet. In 2000, the end of the twentieth century,
humanity's ecological footprint was 1.3 times greater
than its biocapacity, and the prognoses showed that
by keeping the current model of production and
consumption, in 2050, the ecological footprint will be
equivalent to needing 2.4 planets.
Estimates show that each year, the Member
States produce approximately 2 billion tons of waste,
which annually increases by 10%, while CO2
emissions from domestic and mobile (transport)
sources also increase as a result of “non-green
energy” consumption. Experts showed that more than
30% of greenhouse gas emissions derived from
industrialized countries. Business community,
governments and consumers respond in a different
way to this issue, but the complexity and variety of
approach angles increase the difficulty to identify and
implement coherent action programs to diminish the
impact of industrial systems on environmental
quality.
In this context, the main goal of the
workshop was to address major concerns for the
future of ecological systems and economic policy in
a very populated world, characterized by major
social and economic disparities. In this context it is
intended to generate a framework for
understanding and formulation of actions meant
to develop feasible solutions, taking into account a
variety of institutional, social and international
perspectives.
The workshop covers the following thematic
directions:
- sustainable industrial production and
consumption, process integration
- integrated management of waste throughout
the whole lifecycle, in order to reduce the
environmental impact
- clean technologies in correlation with the
best available techniques
- integration of pollution prevention
alternatives with economic and social issues in
industrial systems
- integrated management of water resources,
treatment and management of industrial and
municipal effluents
- biotechnology in environmental protection
and sustainable industrial systems
Editorial/Environmental Engineering and Management Journal 12 (2013), 8, 1529-1532
1532
- climate change, reducing greenhouse gas
emissions and alternative energy
- education and knowledge, environmental
policy, environmental awareness and attitudes in the
context of sustainable development of a knowledge
society.
To cover these issues, invited plenary keylectures,
as well as invited conferences (keylectures)
within three roundtables were presented.
Each roundtable began by a PhD thesis defense,
with a presentation held by a PhD student, who
prepared and defends her thesis in accordance
with the roundtable topic, and then, the keynote
speakers and the other participants discussed on
the roundtable and workshop topics (even asking
question to the PhD student).
Eight plenary lectures were presented, held by
Professor Akos Redey, from University of Pannonia,
Hungary; Professor Carmen Teodosiu from
“Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iasi,
Romania; Professor Hans Bressers, from University
of Twente, The Netherlands; Professor Antonio
Marzocchella, form University of Studies of Naples,
Frederico II, Italy; Dr. Cheryl de Boer, from
University of Twente, The Netherlands; Associate
Professor Igor Cretescu from “Gheorghe Asachi”
Technical University of Iasi, Romania, Associate
Professor Carmen Catalina Ioan from “Gheorghe
Asachi” Technical University of Iasi, Romania.
Also, it was revealed and analyzed the
contribution of the Environmental Engineering and
Management Journal
(http://omicron.ch.tuiasi.ro/EEMJ/) edited by the
Department of Environmental Engineering and
Management of the “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical
University of Iasi and that of the series of the
International Conferences on Environmental
Engineering and Management [(www.iceem.eu),
(both celebrating 10 years after their launch in
2002), to the advances in environmental
engineering, biotechnology and environmental
management in the context of a knowledge based
sustainable economy.
Therefore, the lectures presented by invited
keynote speakers, together with discussions, analyzes
and proposed roundtables held in the workshop with
the active participation of doctoral students,
postdoctoral researchers and students revealed the
worldwide latest research and achievements, as well
as on European, regional and national levels,
considering some changes in the current model of
development and consumption. Also, all these
involvements highlighted the existing link between
development and knowledge and made public the
actual and potential contribution of Romanian
researchers to develop knowledge-based society.
This scientific framework motivated and
demonstrated that science and technology can provide
the necessary support to make decisions more
efficiently in the use of resources, minimize material
and energy flows to and from the environment and
closing of substance cycles and energy.
Another objective of the workshop was to
highlight the important role of stakeholders in
maintaining and improvement of the quality of the
anthropogenic global system in bi-univocal
relationships with the natural environment in a
harmonious concert, in which academia, research
poles and actors in the technical-economic system
must cooperate to develop and apply the best
available techniques in production systems and
services. In this generous context, young researchers:
students, PhD students, postdocs found a fertile
training ground for the implementation of sustainable
development principles, to monitor the progress of an
economic system based on knowledge.
Some key findings were highlighted:
- Science, technology and industrial policies
should be integrated to maximize performances and
well-being in knowledge-based economies – directly
based on the production, distribution and use of
knowledge and information.
- In addition to knowledge investments,
knowledge distribution through formal and
informal networks is essential to economic
performance.
- The lectures presented by invited keynote
speakers, together with discussions, analyses and
proposed roundtables held in the workshop with the
active participation of doctoral students, postdoctoral
researchers and students revealed the worldwide
latest research and achievements, as well as on
European, regional and national levels,
considering some changes in the current model of
development and consumption. Also, all these
involvements highlighted the existing link between
development and knowledge and made public the
actual and potential contribution of Romanian
researchers to develop knowledge-based society.
- The scientific framework generated during
the whole workshop motivated and demonstrated
that science and technology can provide the
necessary support to make decisions more efficient
in the use of resources, minimize material and
energy flows to and from the environment and
closing of substance cycles and energy.
- One of the most important outcome of the
workshop is that in the knowledge-based economy,
the science system contributes to the key functions
of: i) knowledge production – developing and
providing new knowledge; ii) knowledge
transmission – educating and developing human
resources; and iii) knowledge transfer –
disseminating knowledge and providing inputs to
problem solving.
- It was agreed that the sustainability of a
process or product should be assessed not only based
on environmental requirements for eco-innovations,
because any research should look at all innovations
offering benefits compared to relevant alternatives,
not just environmentally motivated, but also from
Progress in environmental engineering, biotechnology and management in the frame of knowledge-based sustainable economy
1533
technico-economic perspectives (frequently there are
multiple aims). Therefore, a multicriterial analysis
could be recommended for the evaluation of any
scenario or alternative which address a new process
or products.
- The discussions have shown that
university/industry collaborations bring with them
opportunities to amplify the weight of the
educational mission of the University and to
stimulate new research directions.
- The upcoming idea and possible future
development in different countries, sectors and
industries, given empirical evidences of the case
studies applied in several European countries, are able
to motivate the importance of insight workout to
design policies, prevent uncontrolled risks and
anticipate alternatives.
- The relevant role played by the
Environmental Engineering and Management
Journal and the series of International Conferences
on Environmental Engineering and Management
(ICEEM) Conferences must be enhanced, since both
bring new and added values to the teaching and
research activities within the field of Environmental
Engineering and management, contributing to the
enlargement of cooperation in Romania and in
Europe.
- A network was established among three
Romanian Universities (“Gheorghe Asachi”
Technical University of Iasi, Romania, University
Politechnica of Bucharest, University Transilvania of
Brasov) and The European Universities represented
by Vienna University of Technology, Austria,
University of Twente, The Netherlands, University of
Studies of Naples Frederico II, University Pannonia,
Hungary.
- This network will be active in the following
areas of activities:
 extension of the Joint Doctoral Supervision
Agreements;
 extension of Erasmus agreements in terms of staff
and students mobilities, as well as within Erasmus
Mundus framework
 a COST network and development of an
application according to the workshop thematic
issues for a call in 2013
 participation in regional and European
programmes
 cooperation within the frame of Environmental
Engineering and Management Journal on short,
medium and long terms
 collaboration for organizing and support in
scientific terms the 7th edition of the International
Conference on Environmental Engineering and
Management
It is therefore increasingly important to think
about knowledge-based sustainable economy, based
on the progress in environmental engineering,
biotechnology and management in a long term, to
build policies and strategies that address the nature of
rapid and continuous changes in science and
technology, as well as in the daily life. In this sense,
forethought training become crucial as tools to
visualize possible futures, emphasizing and
highlighting the benefits and constraints that present
policies can have in a near or a more distant future.
The Exploratory Workshop was financially and
logistically supported by the grant of the Romanian
National Authority for Scientific Research, CNCSUEFISCDI,
Project PN-II-ID-WE-2012-4-062,
contract 60/2012.