By definition, the university helps improve planetary wellbeing. The aim here is to promote those projects with the greatest impact and, especially, to work in an interdisciplinary way. The planet’s problems are global and complex and they require solutions that take a variety of knowledge areas and specializations into account.

‘The planet’s problems are global and complex and they require solutions that take a variety of knowledge areas and specializations into account’

For instance, the field of bioeconomics refers to the economic activity generated from biological processes that improve industrial processes. The exponential increase in the world population will require major improvements in the productivity of crops able to supply this whole population.

Separately, the circular economy concept is gaining ground. We need to find new business models that include the reuse of all materials and waste and to transform those business models that are only viable today due to the built-in obsolescence of the products.

In teaching, sustainability and planetary wellbeing go hand and hand. Next academic year, the university will offer a minor that groups subjects from various studies aligned with the concept of planetary wellbeing: health, human rights, non-profit management and much more. Students who earn 20 ECTS credits for such subjects will have it officially recognized on their transcript.

‘Next academic year, the university will offer a minor that groups subjects from various studies aligned with the concept of planetary wellbeing’

Additionally, teaching content on sustainability issues is being created, primarily to be used online, for anyone interested in acquiring basic knowledge in this field.

We also want to promote bachelor’s and master’s degree final projects and doctoral theses on these subjects.

In the area of research, UPF has created the Centre for Sustainability Studies, which aims to bring together UPF teaching staff who are interested in this subject. Every year, we hold a conference to present the research being conducted on sustainability in all our knowledge areas.

‘In the area of research, UPF has created the Centre for Sustainability Studies, which aims to bring together UPF teaching staff who are interested in this subject’

As for awareness-raising, this year we are organizing campaigns to encourage people to reduce their use of plastic and we will also try to educate people about proper recycling.

There are plenty of examples that show that they need not be mutually exclusive. However, it is true that creating a profitable business is hard enough. Creating one that is both profitable and social is twice as challenging. You need to be entrepreneurial and understand the social need you want to address.

‘There is more and more legislation and social pressure for all companies to take responsibility for their contribution to society’

Calculating the impact of this work also poses many challenges. There are well-established ways to calculate business profit, but there is not yet any consensus on how to measure an organization’s social and environmental impact.

In any case, there is more and more legislation and social pressure for companies to take responsibility for their contribution to society. It is a matter of determining the extent to which they will engage.

Yes, I think that young people who lived through the last financial crisis have asked themselves about the role of companies in society and value having a positive impact, beyond personal profit.

There have always been businesses that have taken better care of their workers and cared more about their impact on the environment. Companies set up as cooperatives are one example. Social entrepreneurship is a bit more recent, insofar as it is a business philosophy that is not necessarily tied to the company’s legal form. You might have a limited company whose articles of association forbid the payment of dividends and establish equitable and transparent wage policies.

Yunus centres exist around the world and tend to be linked to academic institutions that work to promote education and research on social entrepreneurship. The Yunus network created in Barcelona consists of nine academic institutions: all the public universities in Barcelona, including UPF, and two business schools.

Bitcoin is simply the first cryptocurrency to use blockchain technology. The use of this technology, both with cryptocurrencies and for other applications, is still being developed and it is not yet clear what place it will occupy at companies and in society at large. There will be a period of trial and error. That, together with short-term speculation, hardly helps keep prices stable. I think we are more likely to see blockchain technology applied to open and transparent records, such as traditional currencies.

‘I think we are more likely to see blockchain technology applied to open and transparent records, such as traditional currencies’

If you donate to a social institution with cryptocurrency, you have the guarantee of tamper-proof traceability and you can see where your contribution went. I think that is interesting for public records and, also, to know how public funds are spent.

‘If you donate to a social institution with cryptocurrency, you have the guarantee of tamper-proof traceability and you can see where your contribution went’

Sometimes I imagine a time when political parties’ electoral promises or public budgets will be tied to a smart contract and the funds will only be released if they are used for those purposes. We could avoid a lot of the changing discourses we currently hear that way.

Curiously, the changes taking place in accounting and business management are aligned with the concept of planetary wellbeing. Companies increasingly have to take a broader view of their impact on the planet. Making a profit is still the most important thing for investors, but there is growing social pressure for companies also to report on their impact on a social and environmental scale. These changes will need to be incorporated into teaching.

With regard to skills and abilities, in addition to sound technical knowledge, good analytical and communicative skills will be important. Furthermore, it should be recalled that people in this field often work under pressure and in teams.