Beside the much talked of establishment of the Northvolt battery factory in Skellefteå, the planned fossil-free steel production in Boden and Gällivare has also contributed to North Sweden being associated with green industries and the transformation to a sustainable society. Subcontractors, businesses and service companies are now following in the footsteps of these industries. And even in Umeå and Örnsköldsvik, new industries are currently being built. The ongoing development requires an educated workforce and new knowledge, and is leading to a far-reaching transformation of society.
Dieter Müller, Deputy Vice-Chancellor
Photo: Mattias Pettersson
An important question for Umeå University is hence what role the university wants to play in all this. There are huge expectations on the university as an education provider to deliver that sought-after well-education workforce. Technical and social challenges that our transforming society is facing also increase an interest for the university's research. Umeå University has always played an important role in community development in North Sweden and even the university's vision and objectives establish that this legacy is something worth cherishing.
Based on that perspective, I find it important that the university acts proactively, taking a leading role in the ongoing process of change. As a knowledge-producer, the university can mobilise creativity and expertise to contribute with new solutions and ideas that can be utilised also beyond the northern parts of Sweden.
It is my desire that many of the university's researchers feel tempted and inspired to study various aspects of the change we are seeing, from a range of perspectives, independently and critically. I am convinced that the university's northern position in Sweden brings forth important knowledge about the region. It forms a strong foundation for conducting research on community transformation in the local region.
In that way, community transformation in North Sweden provides a unique opportunity to conduct research and analyse an exciting transformation process that many regions need to go through, for everything from technical, social and financial aspects to environmental ones.
Through strategic partnerships with municipal and regional authorities, the university wishes to create good conditions for stimulating research activities together with the university's partners. For that purpose, a number of partnership days are being held this autumn to provide places to meet and places to establish new contacts with various stakeholders. The Research Support and Collaboration Office also works, beyond the partnership days, on establishing networks between the university and various organisations in society.
Current research policy puts increasing emphasis on such collaborations and several research funding bodies even expect research to result in public welfare, in the short or long term. However, that must not be the primary reason behind committing to those types of collaborations, in my mind. I believe that the challenges reflected in the sustainable development goals motivates research to be committed, solution-oriented and contribute to a better world. That is how universities build relevance, using reliance on knowledge and education as important keys for a sustainable community development.