Across the globe for research

The local and global impacts of USC’s Sustainability Research Centre over the past decade have been outlined by academics, research students and graduates and community partners.
The centre recently marked its 10-year anniversary with its annual advisory board meeting and an alumni dinner for 70 people who travelled from as far as the United States.
USC Professor of Sustainability Tim Smith, who was director of the centre from 2007 to 2017 said students and staff had travelled to environments across the globe, from Mooloolaba Beach to the Equator to the Arctic Circle.
“Our goal remains to help regions transition towards sustainability,” he said.
“We focus on understanding the relationships between people, place and change, using collaborations and multiple disciplines such as human geography and environmental management.
“In the past 10 years, the SRC has generated $7 million in external research income to the local region, produced 500 research publications and graduated 26 PhD students. It leads USC’s sustainability-related teaching programs.”
Professor Smith said the centre was making substantial knowledge contributions to complex sustainability challenges in 25 countries – “but there’s still a long way to go.”
Highlights of the centre’s first 10 years included completing the first sustainability indicators assessment for the Sunshine Coast in 2012, co-leading the first integrated climate change adaptation project for the Sydney region and developing international partnerships with world-leading researchers in sustainability.