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UIC Summer Institute on Sustainability & Energy
July 5, 2021 - July 16, 2021
About SISE
The Summer Institute on Sustainability and Energy (SISE) is usually described as an annual two-week “boot camp” on energy and sustainability — but it’s much more. SISE is a “we,” a community invested in broad issues related to energy, the environment, and sustainability, and a space that values diverse people, disciplines, perspectives, and experiences. Within this space, we engage with future and current thought leaders and societal influencers. Through conversation, critical thinking, and community engagement, we create and share knowledge to shape the future.
SISE 2021 Theme: Finding Ecosystem
Since March 2020, the idea of staying within one’s “bubble” has been a necessary part of daily life. But bubbles are not new, and individuals have been in “bubbles” their whole lives. Some are elected, such as political or ideological affiliations, and some are assigned due to race or gender. We can move freely between some bubbles, and sometimes we can exist in two bubbles simultaneously.
Bubbles. Silos. Ecosystems. Depending on one’s frameworks, and whether we consider the micro or the macro levels, perspectives gained can be focused or broad, restrictive, or all-encompassing. So when we talk about “energy” and “environment” and “climate change,” what do we include and exclude in our individual and collective definitions, our “bubbles”? And what do we not know (that we don’t know) that would impact our personal opinions and collective choices?
In SISE 2021: Finding Ecosystem, we will consider the broad ecosystem of energy, how that fits into the response to climate change, and how a broad strategy inclusive of science, culture, and environmental justice can be catalysts for creating change. Selected Fellows will be asked to hone their critical thinking skills throughout as they engage experts and each other through rigorous discussion and debate.
SISE is free for everyone, participating Fellows and virtual attendees. When in-person, SISE also covers the cost of lodging in Chicago and often assists with transportation to and from the program, thanks to the Alvin H. Baum Family Fund’s kind contributions.