oikos Newsletter
August '15

be informed - get involved - make a difference

Dear Reader,

It doesn't matter what subject you studied or took a course in, you will be realising the signals our world is giving: we must improve our leadership, behaviour and education. Therefore, this October join us at the FutureLab where all we are going to talk about is how education matters. You may already start using the hashtag #MakeEducationMatter to build up momentum with us. Also, take a look at all the open opportunities to join oikos with a specific role. Check out our initiative COMMIT, get ready for the launch of oikos LEAP (if you are a chapter president, especially), the alumni event in Zurich and participate in our co-campaign #KnowYourGoals! Like they say, it is once in a blue moon, like the one we saw on 31st of July.

Happy reading!

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New Opportunities to Join the oikos Team! 
Love writing, numbers, strategizing, taking photos? We have something for everyone! Read more to take a look at all the open calls. Amongst others, we are looking for reporters, external auditors, new members for our Newsteam and even Executive Board Members. 



oikos LEAP Has a New Partner!
We are are very pleased to be partnering with the ch foundation for the Presidents' Meeting 2015 where we will be kicking-off oikos LEAP. Barbara Schmidt, Head of European Union Youth in Action wrote to us "thank you for your commitment!". Read more about what, as chapter representative, you can expect. 

#KnowYourGoals - oikos and SDSN Campaign for SDGs

In September, world leaders will come together in NYC to adopt the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is everyone's right to accurately know about these goals. Read more and participate in our campaign!

Updates FutureLab 2015 - Not just a conference!

FutureLab registrations are open all throughout August and we have another confirmed speaker for the #CallToAction session: Ed Gillespie! Ed is co-founder of Futerra, one of the world's only communications consultancies to specialise solely in sustainable development & CSR.  Check out his TedTalk here. Apply and #MakeEducationMatter with us! 

Starting an oikos Chapter?
Interested in our mission and vision, want to empower your fellow young leaders and faculty to achieve change? Join the oikos journey! Read more to learn about our culture and your benefits. 

 

oikos Alumni

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oikos Alumni Debates in Zurich: the Future of Food!

The global population is predicted to reach almost 10 billion by 2050. How can all of these people be fed, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions, protecting biodiversity and developing rural economies? Join us for the oikos Alumni Debates where we begin to untangle the challenge and taste (literally) the food of the future. Mark your calendars: 12 October 2015 at 18.00 in Zurich, Switzerland!

 

Get involved!

Being actively part of the oikos alumni network offers plenty of opportunities! Check the oikos Alumni Kit  for learning how to get involved. We are looking forward to hearing from you! Moreover, your ideas, remarks and questions are very important to us, so please take a few minutes to answer our questions. Click on the following link to start the survey.


 LinkedIn for Alumni
Are you an alumna/alumnus? Keep in touch via Linkedin.
 


 

oikos Academic

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It’s the complexity, stupid! Young researchers discuss how to transform the energy system
The oikos Young Scholars Energy Academy, in June 2015, was hosted by Tel Aviv University. Researchers all over the world are eager to show that an energy transition is possible, manageable and happening already for a long time. Read more about what went down throughout the 7 days. 



The oikos Case Competition 2015 has come to a close and the winners have been announced!

Whether you are a lecturer teaching courses in management, entrepreneurship or finance, or a student wanting to explore current sustainability challenges in your studies - these cases will provide fresh input to your classroom experience! This year, out of 11 finalists, a record of 6 cases are now available for free as part of our oikos Free Case Collection. 'Read more' to download them!


 

30 seconds with...

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Nikolay Ivanov, oikos Copenhagen and representative at the GRLI and PRME Conferences in NYC in June 2015

Who would have thought that out of the oikos Learning Circle on management education in St. Gallen in November 2014 the COMMIT initiative would end up on the spotlight at two major events in New York in June 2015 – the GRLI AGM and the UN PRME Global Forum. I certainly know a few people who not only thought about it but also dedicated a lot of their time to make it happen. My experience in New York was set to be outstanding thanks to numerous conference calls with the COMMIT team beforehand. It has been a privilege to work with Julia Weber, Chris Taylor and Anita Negri. Together, we had the great opportunity to plan and facilitate a COMMIT workshop as part of the GRLI event where we asked faculty to critically reflect on the qualities they aspire to and the qualities taught in their educational institutions. We asked them to think of new methods of teaching students to be more responsible decision makers and to elaborate on what a ‘dream university’ would look like, and how could they contribute to getting there. COMMIT was further presented at the UN PRME Global Forum during a students perspective session where we asked faculty and students to discuss and come up with ideas of how can students be more engaged in developing the curriculum, teaching methods and the environment at university. During both events, I was pleasantly surprised to see that many faculty and deans from different schools around the world not only acknowledged the need for change in management education but also were very interested in hearing what students have to say on this matter. Many faculty members were thrilled to hear our, somewhat, radical ideas of disrupting the current ways of teaching management education and it seemed like they are more open to consider students’ perspectives than ever before. I believe this was a great step forward for oikos and the COMMIT initiative, and I am so excited to continue being part of a movement that aims at transforming management education worldwide.