We are the Nordic chapter of the global United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN).
Visit the global SDSNOur network consists of universities and knowledge institutions in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.
Our membersOur Leadership Council comprises eminent experts on sustainable development from the SDSN Northern Europe member organisations.
To our Leadership Council
To achieve a sustainable society, we need change, and change requires knowledge. SDSN Northern Europe connects Nordic knowledge institutions to go from knowledge to action for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Together, we identify and fill knowledge gaps, provide high-quality education for sustainable development, and provide advice and solutions for the transformation to a sustainable society.
"The Nordic countries are amazing when it comes to making things happen, and because of this you have a fantastic global voice."*
The UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) promotes integrated approaches to implement the SDGs and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, through education, research, policy analysis, and global cooperation. SDSN Northern Europe was launched in 2016 as a regional network to connect the Nordic members.
* Guido Schmidt-Traub, Executive Director of the global SDSN
A Nordic region that brings Knowledge to Action for the Sustainable Development Goals.
The SDSN Northern Europe localizes, teaches and promotes the SDGs, and supports their implementation by facilitating the utilization of knowledge. Together with the private sector, policymakers and civil society, we act as change agents at the local, regional and global level to support the implementation of the SDGs.
The general aim of the network is to enable members to exchange information, insights and experiences, give each other support and feedback, and to collaborate to fulfil the following aims:
• Identify and promote solutions that contribute to sustainable development
• Identify and fill knowledge gaps relating to sustainable development
• Support the implementation of the SDGs, and identify sustainable policy options, at regional, national and sub-national levels
• Suggest knowledge-based pathways to reach the SDGs at all levels
• Stimulate high quality education for sustainable development
• Bring member operations into alignment with the SDGs
To help members fulfil the mission and aims, the SDSN Northern Europe secretariat:
• Provides well-functioning infrastructure for communication among members
• Facilitates collaboration among our members
• Acts as a link between our members and the global SDSN community
• Supports communication and collaboration with the private sector, policymakers, and civil society
• Develops concepts and tools that make it easier for members to fulfill the mission and aims of the network.
Despite a long tradition of research, education and innovation for sustainable development, only a fraction of the results of these activities are utilized to steer society in a more sustainable direction. Therefore, the SDSN was established in 2012 under the auspices of former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to mobilize global scientific and technological expertise to promote practical problem-solving to reach the SDGs.
In 2016, the SDSN expanded its mission with the creation of the SDG Academy. The SDG Academy creates and curates free, open educational resources on sustainable development and offers them as a global public good. In 2019, SDSN published a new framework to mobilize transformative efforts toward the SDGs, the Six Transformations Framework, which now informs our global strategy. With commitments to the SDGs made by nation states, universities, private business, and civil society, SDSN’s research and policy analysis work is helping promote solutions to realize the goals. SDSN continues to synthesize knowledge for sustainable development and will continue to do so for the decade ahead through our work on SDG pathways, data, policies, and financing, producing renowned annual reports such as the Sustainable Development Report (SDR) and World Happiness Report (WHR).
As of 2022, SDSN has over 1,600 members in 47 networks across 137 countries.
The main offices of SDSN are located in Paris, New York, and Kuala Lumpur.
SDSN Northern Europe includes all SDSN member institutions in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The network is hosted by Gothenburg Centre for Sustainable Development at Chalmers University of Technology and the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.
The SDSN Northern Europe Leadership Council comprises 8-10 eminent experts on sustainable development from the SDSN Northern Europe member organizations. The council oversees the direction of the work of the SDSN Northern Europe and acts in an advisory capacity for SDSN decision-making. The council also provide intellectual stewardship, give advice on the network’s strategy, vision and mission, stimulate dialogue within the network, support external communication from the network, participate in network activities, and source and mobilize human and financial resources.
Scroll down to get to know the members in our Leadership Council.
Professor, Network Co-Chair
Jan Pettersson
janp@chem.gu.se
Jan Pettersson is professor of environmental atmospheric science and is Director of the Gothenburg Centre for Sustainable Development at Chalmers University of Technology and the University of Gothenburg.
Professor, Network Co-Chair
Katherine Richardson
kari@science.ku.dk
Katherine Richardson is professor of Biological Oceanography, and director of the Sustainability Science Centre at Copenhagen University.
Council Member
Annik Magerholm Fet
Annik Magerholm Fet is professor of Environmental Management, Systems Engineering and Life-cycle Analysis, and vice rector of NTNU in Ålesund.
Council Member
Katarina Gårdfeldt
Katarina is the Director-General of the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat, affiliated Professor in Inorganic Environmental Chemistry at Chalmers University of Technology, Chair for the National Committee for Environmental Global Change at the Royal Academy of Sciences, and board member of the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research. As the previous Director of the Gothenburg Centre for Sustainable Development, she initiated and Co-Chaired the SDSN Northern Europe.
Council Member
Tarja Halonen
Tarja Halonen is a Finnish politician who was the 11th President of Finland, serving from 2000 to 2012 – the first female head of state in Finland.
Council Member
Kaisa Korhonen-Kurki
Kaisa Korhonen-Kurki, PhD, Senior Research Scientist – Sustainability transformations at the Finnish Environment Institute, Adjunct Professor in environmental policy at the University of Helsinki.
Council Member
Göran Tomson
Prof. Göran Tomson is Co-founder and a Senior Advisor at the Swedish Institute for Global Health Transformation and UN Agenda 2030 counselor at the President’s office at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.
Council Member
Michael Søgaard Jørgensen
Dr. Michael Søgaard Jørgensen is Associate Professor at Center for Design, Innovation and Sustainable Transitions at Aalborg University in Denmark.
Council Member
Thorvaldur Gylfason
Prof. Thorvaldur Gylfason is Professor of Economics at the University of Iceland and Research Associate at Center for Economic Studies at the University of Munich.
Council Member
Åsa Ström Hildestrand
Åsa Ström Hildestrand is the Head of Communications at the International Research Centre Nordregio in Stockholm, Sweden. Her areas of expertise include many aspects of sustainable development: local and regional development; social inclusion/integration of immigrants; green transition (bio economy); gender equality (women’s economic empowerment); and international co-operation.
Council Member
Maria Figueroa
Dr. Maria Figueroa is Academic Director of the Copenhagen Sustainability Initiative and Associate Professor in Sustainability Management at Copenhagen Business School in Denmark.
