TU Dresden´s exhibition booth at the Global Sustainable Development Congress (GSDC) was highly frequented during the three-day event which took place from 10 to 13 June 2024 in Bangkok, Thailand. TU Dresden representatives Dr. André Lindner, Maike Heitkamp-Mai and Dr. Claudia Müller engaged with a truly international academic community.

The team was enthusiastic about the diverse exchange on the sustainability strategy and the educational portfolio of their university and discussed not only issues and best practices, but also potential partnerships of academic institutions aimed at enhancing joint efforts to contribute to sustainable development. They also used the opportunity to provide insights into the diverse ongoing efforts in research and transfer in order to justify TU Dresden’s claim of a globally oriented and at the same time regionally anchored University of Excellence for the 21st century.

During a bilateral meeting with representatives of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation of Thailand the possibilities of further cooperation within the framework of the Global Water and Climate Adaptation Centre - ABCD-Centre were examined and the CIPSEM TU Dresden was presented as an opportunity for Thai environmental experts.

At the end of an eventful day at the congress, the TU Dresden team enjoyed a dinner with TU Dresden alumni. With their specialization in fields such as engineering, vocational education and environmental management, they truly reflected the broad spectrum of subjects at TU Dresden.

As if all the engaging conversations and interesting sessions were not already sufficient to declare the GSDC a successful contribution to TU Dresden´s quest for sustainable development, the prestigious THE University Impact Ranking in the category UN SDG 9 “Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure” was the icing on the cake. Among more than 1.000 participating institutions of higher education from 101 countries TU Dresden was ranked 1st (among 7 further universities globally). However, sustainable development is not a competition, but rather a joint global challenge, and TU Dresden’s ambition is not limited to focusing on just one goal.

One expression of further efforts and ambition is the TUD|Excellence Center for Innovation, Transfer and Entrepreneurship (TUD|excite). TUD|excite is experimenting with new ways to make innovation and transfer management even more efficient, and at the same time generate enthusiasm for new ideas. It is not only an acronym for a new institutional platform, but also expresses the passion and motivation that TU Dresden brings to the table: Enabling innovation through enthusiasm for a worthwhile future.

To conclude the engaging week, Dr. André Lindner and Maike Heitkamp-Mai visited TU Dresden’s partners, the Asian Institute of Technology (School of Engineering and Technology, Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering).There, they got a glimpse at the new digital classroom, an outcome of the Global Water and Climate Adaptation Centre - ABCD Centre collaboration, and discussed initial ideas for expanding the cooperation. They will meet again at the DAAD Global Centres Conference 2024 in Germany in September 2024.