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Daniele Chinello’s PhD adventure is one of connection and separation – separating charged ionic particles while connecting with people and building lasting friendships. His contagious positivity and perseverance brought a small brick of knowledge as he puts it, but he hopes will inspired many others to get to that great achievement.
With great hand gestures and a smile on his face, Daniele Chinello – PhD candidate in the Desalination & Concentrates theme – reflects on his past four years. His proudest accomplishments extend beyond the lab, shining instead in the moments that highlight the deep bonds he built with his students over time. Discovering his love for coaching and experiencing personal growth emerged as the true achievements of his research. Never mind his advancements in membrane making technology. As he describes his book, it is merely one brick in the tower of worldly knowledge. A start of knowing more, and no close chapters. Yet it is quite the thesis.
In the Italian river Po, intensive rice farming and floodings has resulted in too high concentrations of nitrogen-based molecules. Good news for exotic crab, but the local wildlife has seen a rapid decline. And, not unsimilarly, when it comes to agricultural or horticultural water recycling, we are facing a major challenge. Conventional technologies are a plenty to separate ionic particles from water, but making a distinction between similar particles is far from easy. Daniele was tasked to split chloride from nitrate – two equally-charged ionic particles with similar physicochemical characteristics.
Comparable problems, such as separating potassium and sodium ions, have been studied in the past, but no universal solution exists. For his PhD, Daniele developed a novel membrane designed to leverage the subtle differences in ion properties to achieve separation. Specifically, his research focused on ion dehydration energy, the energy required to remove the water shell surrounding an ion before it passes through the membrane. This subtle difference in dehydration energy between nitrate and chloride became the key to his separation strategy.
Developing the membrane was no simple task. Daniele likens the process to making pancakes: combining different ingredients and using heat to make small yellowish “pancakes”, but these were no ordinary meals. Each “ingredient” had to be meticulously chosen to optimize the membrane’s structure and performance, resulting in a recipe for innovation rather than breakfast.
With the help of interaction modelling, many practical dilemmas solved, and various additives in the membranes, his secret recipe was complete. To sum up the past four years: PVC shows a promise, next it needs to be tested with real wastewater. Yet the researcher learned an arguably even better lesson: “What I like best about Wetsus is that it is close and personal. We are bringing so many people together. Every day, I came into the lab and just had a brief chat with others. It always made my day. We built human relationships, empathy and joy!” Daniele’s PhD was an adventure he would undergo again, without a doubt.
Abstract
The realisation of a circular economy has thus far unfolded under the assumption that it would fit within existing economic arrangements. In practice, we witness many circular initiatives struggling to give shape to their ambitions, let alone develop to maturity. These past months, various material recycling organisations terminated their activities, seeing virgin alternatives from other parts of the world flooding the market at prices against they cannot compete. If the transition towards a circular economy (i.e. an economy of value preservation) is to be taken seriously, a new perspective on value in our economic system seems unavoidable, as the rewriting of the rules of the economic game. At this moment, current perceptions of value stand in the way of this transition both at micro as well as macro levels. Several contours for a collective exploration of new directions of value and economic configuration that foster circular transition will be addressed.
Abstract
In his key note he will conclude after a life of innovations that it is impossible that humanity will stay within the save planetary boundaries with innovation only. We should be more critical about the behaviour of the rich population in the world and more critical about new innovations that prove to be dangerous, like the PFAS crisis shows at this moment. In his keynote he will investigate how to look at the world that can stay within the save planetary boundaries, how should we change ourselves? It is clear if we only talk about the words of science and systems we miss the essential words of how we should cooperate and change ourselves. And his search for coherent save innovations. Which innovations will be save and will lead to a fair and sustainable world? And will lead to a world we want to live in.
Abstract
There is a growing number of new sustainable, inclusive, cohesive, participatory, just and humane economic models. A possible next step in the discourse about them is the comparative analysis in order to find out key commonalities, potential synergies, and “requirements” for a future-fit economic model. The author and initiator of the Economy for the Common Good provides an overview of these „new sustainable economic models“ and compares them according to underlying values, principles, and practical ways of implementation. The keynote addresses the cooperative spirit of the conference and prepares the ground for its public highlight on the eve of June 3rd, the round table with representatives of diverse future-fit economic models.
Abstract
The scientific debate on whether economies should always continue to grow increasingly becomes a political and societal debate. On the one hand further growth for the most affluent countries seems neither possible nor valuable, but on the other hand there is still lack of understanding and knowledge what a non-growing economy should look like and could best be governed. In this lecture we discuss various policy measures that can be realistically implemented, take into account government finances and aim at a higher quality of life despite a non-growing economy.
Abstract
Democracy is under pressure, and less and less able to stir the economy into a sustainable direction. Therefore, to stabilize democracy and to make possible the socio-ecological transformation of the economy, democratic principles need to be implemented directly in the economy. This is not only a matter of morality, but also has practical advantages. Democratizing the economy can increase legitimacy and take advantage of the “knowledge of the many” to accelerate the transformation. Democratic practices, especially deliberation, allow bringing together different forms of knowledge, which is crucial for the local implementation of principles of social and ecological sustainability. This talk explores what this idea means in more concrete terms, from democratic participation in the workplace to the democratization of time.
Abstract
Over the past decades, markets have conventionally been seen as the best instrument to stimulate economic growth and enhance prosperity and well-being. The automatic link between markets and economic growth is increasingly questioned, however, as well as the automatic link between economic growth and enhancement of well-being. This has led to attempts to capture well-being development more directly than through GDP per capita figures and has produced a more variegated picture of well-being growth. Also, this has led to a shift of focus to other coordination systems than the market, as primarily the state but increasingly also the association. Analyses of the historical record suggest that especially the latter could be a vital component in future well-being.
