Sustainable Cities PhD Programme in Collaboration with Fudan University
The University of Turku and Fudan University, Shanghai, have started a new joint doctoral training programme. Its goal is to train specialists who can integrate knowledge and theories from several fields in order to find solutions that promote a sustainable change of cities.
The programme consists of two multidisciplinary courses and is arranged by the UTU Faculty of Social Sciences together with the School of Architecture at the Tampere University of Technology and the School of Social Development and Public Policy at Fudan University.
– A cross-disciplinary and collaborative approach is required to train experts who can rigorously examine the interactions between urbanization, environment and welfare to find new pathways to sustainable cities. This means considering environmental issues as well as the fields of governance, society, culture and economy, tells Outi Luova, Senior Researcher from the East Asian studies of the University of Turku.
The collaboration started with a one-week course, arranged in Shanghai late October. Another one week course will be held in Turku in June 2014. The teaching is in English.
Research Director Sampo Ruoppila is one of the teachers of the programme.
– Since the co-operation has only begun, the most interesting issue is to learn about the similarities and differences in Doctoral training between the two countries. This way we can focus on the joint-education in a manner that benefits both parties and can deepen further co-operation for instance in research, says Ruoppila.
– During the first course week, the focus was on seminars in which the students’ papers were discussed in the context of how to frame them to get them published. This is usual in the Finnish context and was much appreciated by the Chinese students.
Doctoral Candidate Titiana Ertiö was selected to the programme and she has just returned from Shanghai.
– I applied to the programme hoping to experience a different scale of urban planning and Shanghai delivered on that expectation. One of the highlights of my stay there was the visit to the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center because it connects to my research straightforward, tells Ertiö.
– The cooperation with the Fudan University was a unique learning opportunity. Our discussions continued well into the breaks and even after the official seminar programme and we worked together in workshops. I look forward to welcoming our hosts in Turku and continue the collaboration we began in Shanghai.
Text: Henna Borisoff
Photograph: Centre for East Asian Studies