Global partnerships network week

Session chairs: Eric Jobunga and Wim Deferme

The transition towards sustainable energy and circular resource systems is a key driver of regional development, economic opportunities and societal resilience. Beyond renewable energy generation, this transition encompasses the efficient use of natural resources, the recovery and valorisation of waste streams, and the development of circular solutions that connect energy, materials and local communities. Universities can play a pivotal role by integrating technological innovation with education, capacity building and regional partnerships, enabling sustainable solutions adapted to diverse geographical and socio-economic contexts.

This thematic session explores how universities and their regional and international partners can accelerate the development, implementation and adoption of sustainable energy and circular resource solutions in diverse geographical and socio-economic contexts. Particular attention will be given to the interplay between emerging technologies, locally available resources, energy accessibility and affordability, and the development of skills and infrastructure required for a sustainable energy transition.

Through contributions from academic researchers, international partners and non-academic stakeholders, the session aims to exchange experiences, identify shared challenges and explore opportunities for collaborative research, education and innovation. Contributions may address renewable energy generation, energy storage and conversion, decentralised energy systems, bioenergy and biogas production, waste-to-resource technologies, resource recovery and valorisation, circular material flows, and community-driven approaches to sustainable energy and resource management.

Beyond showcasing technological advances, the session will encourage reflection on how universities can translate research into tangible regional impact, strengthen local capacities and develop long-term, mutually beneficial partnerships.

Ultimately, the ambition is to identify concrete pathways through which international academic collaboration can empower regions and their communities to shape their own sustainable energy futures.

We invite contributions from universities, research institutions, industry, public authorities, NGOs and community organisations that demonstrate or explore how sustainable energy technologies, circular resource management and innovative approaches to resource valorisation can contribute to sustainable regional development.

We particularly welcome contributions addressing one or more of the following topics:

• Renewable Energy Technologies and Systems: Solar, wind and other renewable energy technologies, including energy storage, conversion, decentralised energy systems and smart energy management.
• Bioenergy and Waste-to-Energy: Anaerobic digestion, biogas production, biomass valorisation and other technologies converting organic residues and waste streams into sustainable energy.
• Circular Resources and Waste Valorisation: Resource recovery, waste-to-resource technologies, nutrient recovery, recycling, circular materials and the development of sustainable resource cycles.
• Energy and Resource Access for Regional Development: Affordable and reliable energy solutions, efficient resource utilisation and locally adapted technologies supporting community resilience and economic opportunities.
• Education, Capacity Building and Knowledge Transfer: Innovative educational approaches, laboratory development, skills training and international partnerships strengthening local expertise in sustainable energy and circular resource management.
• From Research to Regional Impact: Demonstration projects, technology transfer, entrepreneurship, community-driven initiatives and collaboration with local industry, public authorities and other societal stakeholders.

Contributions may present research results, ongoing initiatives, practical experiences, lessons learned or challenges for which participants seek international collaboration.

We particularly encourage joint contributions from international academic partners and local stakeholders, highlighting diverse regional perspectives, opportunities for mutual learning and the potential for long-term collaborative initiatives.

Rather than focusing exclusively on technological developments, contributions should reflect on how universities can help translate research and innovation into tangible regional impact, strengthen local capacities and support sustainable and inclusive transitions.

We invite interested participants to submit a short contribution proposal containing the following information:

1. Title and Abstract (maximum 200 words)

Provide a concise description of your research, initiative, practical experience or proposed collaboration. The abstract should highlight the main objectives, approach and expected or achieved outcomes, with particular attention to their relevance for sustainable energy, circular resources and regional development.

2. Regional Challenge or Opportunity (maximum 75 words)

What regional challenge or opportunity does your contribution address?

Briefly describe the regional context, local needs or societal challenges motivating your contribution.

3. Role of Universities and Partners (maximum 75 words)

How does your university or organisation contribute to addressing this challenge?

Explain the role of research, education, innovation, capacity building or collaboration with regional stakeholders.

4. Opportunities for Future Collaboration (maximum 75 words)

What expertise, collaboration or partnerships are you looking for?

Identify potential opportunities for joint research, educational initiatives, knowledge exchange, demonstration projects or other forms of international collaboration.

Contributions can be submitted by email to networkweek@uhasselt.be.

Deadline of submission: 6 December 2026.

Selected contributions may be presented through different formats, depending on their content and objectives:

• Research & Impact Pitch (8–10 minutes): Presenting research results, technological innovations or practical applications with potential regional impact.
• Partnership Experience (10–15 minutes): Sharing experiences, challenges and lessons learned from existing collaborations, preferably jointly presented by academic and non-academic partners.
• Collaboration Challenge Pitch (5 minutes): Presenting a regional challenge, research question or emerging initiative for which international partners and complementary expertise are sought.

Contributions will serve as a starting point for interactive discussions and networking activities aimed at identifying shared interests and concrete opportunities for future collaboration.

We particularly welcome contributions from partners representing different regional contexts and encourage early-career researchers, educators and non-academic stakeholders to participate actively.

Subtopic co-leads: Maarten Vanhove, associate professor UHasselt & Fortunate Phaka, senior lecturer NWU

The logic and need to consider health and disease of people, wild and domestic non-human animals and plants, and their environment together receives substantial traction in research, policy and practice. Such integrated approaches are widely adopted; they are diverse in their underlying concepts and constitutive disciplines, and include One Health, EcoHealth, and Planetary Health. Many aspects of global change negatively affecting health amply illustrate how non-human organisms and environmental correlates cannot be ignored for society to optimize human health outcomes: antimicrobial resistance, chemical pollution, and zoonotic emergences like Ebola Virus Disease and COVID-19, just to name some. We have the impression that, unfortunately, the objective to extend our understanding of health risks beyond humans is often still underpinned in a rather anthropocentric way, with nature as a perceived potential antagonist. This may create a focus on systems closely interacting with society, losing most of our planet’s biological diversity out of sight. Yet, given the often very direct influence of ecosystem (dis)services on sustainable development in the Global South, with many of these (dis)services being health-related, we posit that the current unprecedented biodiversity crisis urges us to avoid this oversight in global academic partnerships. For this subtopic, we invite contributions that explicitly zoom in on the link between biodiversity and health outcomes, at any level of biological or societal organization. We are especially keen to learn about regional contexts that invite synergies between different scientific actors and disciplines, and/or collaborations between academia and other societal sectors.

For the call for contributions, we currently remain open to various formats that best suit the presenters, including talks, posters, discussion topics, and interactive workshops to share best practices and lessons learnt.

For the call for contributions, we currently remain open to various formats that best suit the presenters, including talks, posters, discussion topics, and interactive workshops to share best practices and lessons learnt.

For the call for contributions, we currently remain open to various formats that best suit the presenters, including talks, posters, discussion topics, and interactive workshops to share best practices and lessons learnt.

Title and abstract: max. 500 words

Contributions can be submitted by email to networkweek@uhasselt.be.

Deadline of submission: 6 December 2026.

For the call for contributions, we currently remain open to various formats that best suit the presenters, including talks, posters, discussion topics, and interactive workshops to share best practices and lessons learnt.

Academic lead: Liesbeth Huybrechts (UHasselt), Heike Winschiers-Theophilus (Namibia University of Science and Technology)

During the 2027 Networking Week we will focus on how  universities can cocreate socio-environmental impact with regional contexts. We will tackle how our international exchange  projects can support such collaborations in-between universities, and in-between universities and their regional contexts. What types of exchanges emerge? Are they equal? Who has the most agency in the collaboration?  How can these processes become more collaborative, and socially and ecologically just? How do these exchanges become more than extractive from a scientific position and cocreate socio-environmental values? We welcome your reflections on these topics.

For the call for contributions, we currently remain open to various formats that best suit the presenters, including talks, posters, discussion topics, and interactive workshops to share best practices and lessons learnt.

For the call for contributions, we currently remain open to various formats that best suit the presenters, including talks, posters, discussion topics, and interactive workshops to share best practices and lessons learnt.

Title and abstract: max. 500 words

Contributions can be submitted by email to networkweek@uhasselt.be.

Deadline of submission: 6 December 2026.

For the call for contributions, we currently remain open to various formats that best suit the presenters, including talks, posters, discussion topics, and interactive workshops to share best practices and lessons learnt.

On April 20, 2027, there will be a poster presentation during lunch.

Share your research, project or partnership initiative through one of two formats:

1. Show your poster: Present your work through a poster and engage in informal discussions with fellow participants during the lunch break.

2. Pitch & Win: Take the challenge and pitch your poster in just 180 seconds! Compete for the best pitch and win the audience's appreciation (and a prize!).

Both formats offer an opportunity to showcase your work, exchange ideas and connect with potential collaborators.

Show your interest in participating in one of the two formats by sending an email to networkweek@uhasselt.be, by December 6, 2026.