Session
WE.2.D || Business Life Cycle Networks
Authors
Palander, Sara; Wikström, Anna; Rydberg, Maria
Abstract
Swedish Life Cycle Center, hosted by Chalmers University of Technology and founded in 1996, is a center of excellence and joint collaboration platform for academia, research institutes, industry and government agencies – fostering competence building and knowledge exchange in the advance and application of the LC-field. The center is a recognized player within the field with its multidisciplinary methodology and collaboration between researchers, practitioners and decision makers. By gathering Swedish LC competence and front running companies, it has been instrumental in development and adoption of LCP in society, making important contributions to international initiatives. Joint efforts and harmonization have lately involved economic valuation of environmental impacts, LCA data and EU Environmental Footprint process – all of which the center has given a large contribution to. The scientific performance of the center is characterized by close collaboration with academia and research institutes, but also by long experience in collaborative research with business and public actors, and expertise in the development of common practice and use of models and tools. With increasing interest in the field, the center finds it important to take a bigger responsibility to answer to different needs – from an individual behavioral level to businesses top management or public policy level to SMEs. In this presentation, learnings from a 25-year long journey of collaboration will be shared with the importance of this network for business partners as an arena for e.g., sharing best practice, common strategic intelligence, discussion on hands on issues, education and learnings from different business sectors. Results from a survey that was conducted to provide an overview of the center’s contribution to partners and society based on how partners perceive benefits and effects from the network have been applied and utilized by business and other parts of society, will also be shared.