“Using our broad international contacts, we aim to offer a unified front, fighting for the goals of sustainability across borders and cultures. The stable and vast scientific network is urgently needed because the political networks failed so far and are increasingly becoming more fragile,” says Prof. Jürgen Rödel from the TU Darmstadt in Germany, who is the initiator and chairman. SFS is committed to a world that is sustainable and balanced, where the wellbeing of all biological species and the natural environment is upheld. The alliance works towards preparing all generations to face and overcome the challenges of sustainable living.

The SFS Alliance was established through the collective efforts of four prominent societies, namely the German Society for Materials Science (DGM) the German Ceramic Society (DKG), the European Ceramic Society (ECerS), as well as the American Ceramic Society (ACerS). Dr. Stefan Klein, the managing director of DGM, highlighted the formation as an ideal setup for effectively disseminating and expanding the alliance's activities on a global scale.

The next steps will include approaching scientific societies outside of natural sciences and engineering. “It takes all scientific disciplines to clearly explain the sustainability crisis to the global public. This should not be limited to climatologists or biologists alone but must be supported by all scientific societies and research institutions in a continuous dialogue,” Rödel points out and adds “It is important that the communication must not be driven by self-interest or financial benefits.”

More information on the International Alliance of Societies for a Sustainable Future is given on the SFS’s One-Pager and the SFS website. The alliance also offers free webinars. The first talk “Sustainability Crisis and the Scientific Societies” by Prof. Rödel is available on YouTube. The next talk “Is Sustainability Utopian? Complex Challenges and Concrete Action Principles” will be given on 24 April 2024, at 5 pm by Prof. Dr. theol. Dr.-Ing. Christian Berg, a member of the Club of Rome.