Global Metamorphoses seminar explores societal transformations toward sustainability
On 13 March 2025, researchers and sustainability professionals gathered at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm for the seminar Global Metamorphoses: A Research Seminar on Societal Transformations Toward Sustainability.
The Global Metamorphoses seminar was co-organized by SDSN Northern Europe, Future Earth, and the Swedish National Committee on Global Environmental Change, and aimed to deepen scientific understanding of complex societal transformation processes in line with the 2030 Agenda.
The programme featured keynote talks and perspectives from researchers at Linköping University, the University of Oslo, the Stockholm Resilience Centre, Örebro University, and Umeå University. Topics ranged from conceptual approaches to transformation and key insights from global assessments to challenges and opportunities across sectors and scales.
Martin Eriksson, Network Manager at SDSN Northern Europe, participated in the event and contributed to discussions on how science-based networks can help accelerate sustainability transitions.
Interactive sessions, including group discussions and a final panel, explored how knowledge from diverse fields can support transformative change across social, economic, political, cultural, and ecological dimensions. The seminar highlighted the urgent need for courage, collaboration, and long-term perspectives to address today’s interconnected sustainability challenges.
“It was inspiring to witness such strong engagement with the topic of transformation. The seminar made it clear that transformation is not just a goal, it is an ongoing process where science plays a vital role,” said Martin Eriksson.