At the end of April, nearly 90 members of staff from the Centre for Climate and Environmental Sciences (CEC), the Department of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science (INES), and the Department of Geology gathered to participate in joint visioning workshops. The workshops were held on two occasions with an identical format to give as many people as possible the chance to participate on one of the occasions. The aim was to explore common goals and visions in the event of a merge between the three departments mentioned above, with a focus on creating an overarching vision and developing proposals for the name of the future organisation.
The visioning workshops were led by representatives from the departments: Yann Clough from CEC, Martin Berggren from INES and Raimund Muscheler from the Department of Geology, with the support of consultants from the University's central administration. All members of staff from affected departments, as well as student representatives, were invited to participate.
After a short introduction, participants were given the opportunity to reflect in small groups on the different themes set for the day, discussing everything from research and collaboration, to administration, based on questions such as "where will we be in five years?" and "what strengths and synergies can we build on?", "what opportunities for cooperation do we see?". The discussions that followed were lively and generated several valuable insights. It is important to mention that the purpose of the visioning workshops was not to plan in detail the organisational structure of the potential department, but instead the focus was on exploring the opportunities and potentials that a merger could offer.
Proposals for the name of the potential department were also discussed, and it turned out that there was a fairly large consensus on what the potential department could be called in English. In Swedish, however, it was not as clear, which means that the department representatives need to continue exploring different options.
The afternoons were characterised by intense discussions and exchange of ideas, resulting in a wealth of creative suggestions and insights. It was an exercise in bringing together thoughts and ideas to shape a common vision for a potential merger. By involving all stakeholders and encouraging openness and participation, the likelihood of creating a solid foundation for future progress and cooperation is greater.
All the input provided by the participants will now be processed by the departmental representatives and discussed with members of staff as well as at upcoming meetings with the heads of departments and the faculty board. The material collected during the workshops will be made available to all staff at the concerned departments.