Oct 28, 2026
EU-wide Impact of Research
The first Erasmus+ SALTO conference titled ‘Knowledge into Practice’ took place at the Maison de l’Europe in Paris in October 2027. Dr. Ilka Weissbrod was invited to give the keynote on Day 1 on the subject of ‘Change Agents for Sustainability in Organisations’. Building on her academic journal editorial and research content work,
Ilka provided the audience with insights on organisational change processes to aid transformation, types of Change Agents for Sustainability, and their competences. An interactive element showed that most of the 100+ change agents in the room had very little dedicated time and almost half had no financial budget for green organisational transformation projects. In acknowledging this, Ilka showed that even a small official time allowance and budget help to legitimize the activities of Change Agents, and how individual beliefs can become real superpowers. For example, Change Agents with a well evolved individual belief system see ‘conflict’ as necessary part of change processes and, hence, do not shy away from uncomfortable but necessary conversations in their organisation.
Erasmus+ is the European Union programme to support education, training, youth, and sport in Europe. There are more than 50 Erasmus+ programme agencies across Europe and all these agencies are looking to prioritise the necessary ecological transition. The SALTO (Support, Advanced Learning & Training Opportunities) resource centre on ecological transition covers all the Erasmus+ programmes. It contributes to meeting the challenges posed by climate change, in line with the Green Pact for Europe. During the conference, there were youth-led protest about national educational resources in Paris. This highlights the importance of Erasmus+ with its focus on providing opportunities to young people across Europe.
At the Chair of Sustainability Management and Assessment, we research organisational change processes as part of sustainability management, performance, and assessment. Ilka’s time during the SALTO conference 2026 was funded by the DFG Cluster of Excellence ‘Responsible Electronics in the Climate Change Era’ (REC2); travel and accommodation costs were funded by the SALTO.