In the lead-up to COP27 in November, and with the imperative climate emergency, we thought we would speak to some of the talented minds at Lancaster about their areas of research within sustainability, and what they would like to see focused on in this wide-reaching topic.

This week, we spoke to Dr Carlos Lopez-Galviz, a Senior Lecturer in Social Futures, founding Director of the Institute for Social Futures, and as of September 2022, Associate Director for Research in the Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts (LICA).

What areas of sustainability are you currently focused on in your work?

Through the UKRI-GCRF-funded project GREAT, we look at sustainability in informal settlements in Colombia and Cuba. Learning from the experience of communities whose participation in consumer society and civic democracy is limited is essential to devising the solutions and supporting the processes that will ensure urban sustainability in future. One of the foci of the GREAT project is zero waste, working with communities in Cali and Havana to reduce, repurpose and redefine the uses of organic and non-organic waste.

What has been your biggest achievement this year?

Personally, I recovered from a bike accident which involved radial fractures in both arms. I continue to cycle and use public transport. Professionally, two publications have been well received: of the Routledge Handbook of Social Futures (2022), which I co-edited with Emily Spiers, Saskia Sassen (Columbia University and one of the ten most influential sociologists alive) said: ‘The originality and the daring set of issues here proposed make this Handbook a must read.’ Also, the chapter The Paris boulevard autrement (Routledge, 2022), which argues for the importance of connecting the urban past to our ideas of sustainable urban futures, will be translated into Russian and French.

What do you think is the biggest challenge in the work that you do?

Conceptually, integrating the different timescales related to what makes things, processes, practices sustainable in particular places and times. Practically, having enough time to digest and where relevant connect what different people in different places do to be or become sustainable.

Did you always want to work in the area of sustainability?

Not really. Sustainability has been implicit in my work, gradually becoming more central, especially through the GREAT project. In my teaching, I invite our Design students (LICA) to reflect on ways of rethinking the UN SDG’s (Sustainable Development Goals) through theories such as French philosopher Jacque Derrida’s monolinguism of the other.

COP27 is in November 2022 in Egypt, what area(s) would you like to see being talked about more in order to help the climate emergency?

Specific ways in which G7 countries support green-economy alternatives in less industrialised nations and significantly reduce their funding of extractive industries in them.

What do you think is the role of Universities in sustainability and addressing the climate emergency?

Do research and teach in ways that integrate various approaches to sustainability. Disciplinary depth is important and necessary but not sufficient if we are to face the climate emergency effectively. Integrating approaches and ways of framing environmental change from the natural, physical and social sciences, and the arts and humanities is a significant challenge and should become a key area where Lancaster can make a difference.

To find out more about Lancaster University's work in this area, explore our sustainability pages.