The prize for Best Idea in our Ideas Competition is sponsored by the SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS & RESPONSIBLE INNOVATION PROJECT of the TU Delft Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management (TPM), funded by the Municipality of The Hague.

Project Description:

Meeting the sustainable development goals through innovation

In the academic year 2017-2018, the TU Delft will explore the viability of a thematic research programme aimed at offering new possibilities for research collaboration to the various parties residing in The Hague.

The theme, ‘Responsible Innovation (RI) for the UN Sustainable Development Goals’ (SDGs)’, is aimed at employing the innovative capabilities of the Netherlands for global sustainable development.

The project covers a great range of goals, but is also directed towards goals that have received less attention from knowledge institutes developing technological innovation for lower-middle income countries is key to reducing global inequalities.

The SDGs will shape the political discourse in the coming decades and Responsible Innovation is an approach that is currently being advanced by the NWO (Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek), in conjunction with the Innovation Policy Mechanism of the Dutch Government (Topsectorenbeleid).

RI has now been adopted on a European Level, where it is a strong influence on the European R&D program Horizon2020. The research theme therefore aligns well with the strategic research agendas of the departments of the Dutch government, the missions of a variety of international organisations in The Hague, as well as with research activities of the six Dutch universities which are active in the city.

A central proposition of the Responsible Innovation approach is that most societal problems and global challenges require a radically interdisciplinary solution, in which contributions from ethics, law and social science are integrated into the development of technical solutions and in which — vice versa — technical developments can also be applied in institutional interventions and governance with ethical, societal, juridical and economical goals.

Innovative solutions to global problems also offer corporate partners, entrepreneurs and start-ups interesting opportunities. Several short-term vanguard projects will demonstrate the viability and relevance of utilising innovation research for the SDGs. The program explores possibilities for cooperation between the universities of Leiden, Delft, Rotterdam, Wageningen, Amsterdam, Groningen and Utrecht.

The competition is being promoted actively by a long list of global universities which tackle issue of sustainable urban development.

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This initiative addresses several of the UN Sustainable Development Goas, but focuses on the following: