On October 12, 2024, the Club of Rome – Austrian Chapter held two exciting workshops in collaboration with Léna Belly Le Guilloux, Participation Adviser for the Earth4All initiative. The workshops were titled “Earth4All in Austria: Policies for Change” and were part of the Local Conference of Youth Austria (LCOY). The aim of the conference was for young people and students to exchange ideas and network around future issues.

In our workshops, participants had the opportunity to engage with Austria’s position within the global challenges discussed in the Earth4All Austria report.

Léna Belly Le Guilloux gives students an overview of the Earth4All initiative and the workshop.

Our General Secretary, Martin Hoffmann, provided an overview of the national engagement project and the key insights of the report. The discussion focused on the 5 key turnarounds necessary for a sustainable future: poverty, inequality, food, energy, and empowerment.

Léna led the workshop, guiding participants through a deeper engagement with a systems thinking approach. In the first part, the students collaborated to identify intersections between the individual turnarounds.

Anna Balashova, a student of Ecological Sciences and a participant at LCOY 2024, summarized her experience as follows:
“As a student of Ecological Sciences, participating in the Earth4All workshop during LCOY was an enlightening experience. Learning about the Earth4All report and the Giant Leap scenario highlighted the complexity of designing sustainable policies. It was challenging to develop policies for the 5 turnarounds, even in smaller groups, but it deepened my understanding of the connections between ecological, social, and economic factors. The workshop reinforced the urgency for systemic change and the value of interdisciplinary collaboration. I hope to contribute to a more sustainable future through research or advocacy.”

Group work on one of the turnarounds.

In the second part of the workshops, the students participated in a collaborative discussion, choosing the points they considered most important for a better future in Austria and discussing them with the whole group. The questions included: What already exists that we want to keep? What should disappear? What can change?

Luca Vincent, an ecologist and marine biologist from Vienna, reflected during the closing discussions:
“I was extremely impressed by the interdisciplinary work the Club of Rome is doing to find solutions for our triple planetary crisis. It was enlightening to discuss the trickle-down effects of political decision-making with the entire group and to recognize how many of the issues we are trying to solve as a society are closely interconnected.”

One of the final posters on the interactions between the turnarounds. Here, global poverty.

The energy and engagement of the participants were palpable throughout the event. Thank you to everyone for your participation and lively discussion. We are proud to have fostered an inspiring dialogue that connected youth empowerment with the necessary systemic changes for a sustainable future.