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CLOSING SESSION REMARKS

Eloy Álvarez Pelegry

First, I would like to congratulate the organizers and the Austrian Academy of Sciences, as well as speakers and moderators, for their contributions to this Euro-CASE Annual Conference.
In this closing session, I shall make some remarks, most of them personal. The Conference have addressed how to shape a resilient society and in one of the presentations resiliency was defined as the “ability of a system to absorb shocks, adapt and transform, while continue functioning”.
I found the conference very interesting and challenging, putting the focus on complex systems and resilience. In this context a variety of issues were addressed, among others health, societal change processes, policy making, energy, the role of soil in energy transition, the world energy transition, water cycle, climate prediction, and multilateral environmental diplomacy. Given the scope of the conference and the topics covered, I believe, that we have appreciated the complex nature of human systems and processes.
I followed the sessions, presentations and debates with growing interest and mainly form the point of view of an engineer.
Engineering and technology were, in my view, the basis, explicitly or implicitly, in most of the presentations. For me were evident in health, soils, energy transitions and storage.
Quite a few disciplines or branches in engineering were covered. For example, information systems, science computing, agriculture, various types of energy technologies, chemical engineering, hydrology; as well as those sciences that are fundamental to different engineering areas.
I understand that a valuable approach to today ‘sessions is the engineering CDIO approach. That is Conceive, Design, Implement and Operate, as this approach may also be applicable to complex systems.
My perceptions are that there is a reasonable hope that complex systems have solutions and that engineering and technology play a key role contributing to solutions. Furthermore, as engineers we are educated to look for different disciplines to solve problems.
As I said at the beginning of this conference, Euro-CASE has the advantage of gathering 23 academies of engineering, technology, and applied sciences across Europe. So, we have access to a very substantial number of fellows and experts, in almost all areas of engineering and technology.
For sure the number of issues that this Conference have addressed and the knowledge and insights that we have got, are going to give us food for thinking and for examining potential studies or projects at Euro-CASE.
To finalize I would like to welcome the next Annual Conference organized by the Irish Academy of Engineering and the Royal Academy of Engineering of UK, and to convey my sincere thanks to both organizers.
To conclude, I would like to reiterate our gratitude to the Austrian Academy of Sciences for organizing, in collaboration with the Euro-CASE staff, this outstanding Conference.
Thank you very much for your attention.

Photos: ©OeAW, Daniel Hinterramskogler

Opening session

•1/ Heinz Fassmann | President of the Austrian Academy of Sciences
•2/ Eloy Alvarez Pelegry | Euro-CASE Chair
•3/ Dimitra Simeonidou | member of the group of Chief Scientific Advisors at Scientific Advice Mechanism (SAM) of the European Commission
•4/ Günter Blöschl | Conference Chair, Austrian Academy of Sciences

Session HEALTH

•5/ Andreas Bergthaler | Academy of Sciences and Medical University of Vienna
•6/ Stefan Thurner | Complexity Science Hub Vienna and Medical University of Vienna, Austria
•7/ Al Ozonoff | Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, USA
•8/ Maja Schlüter | Stockholm University, Sweden
•9/ Barbara Prainsack | University of Vienna, Austria

Session ENERGY

•10/ Georg Brasseur | Graz University of Technology
•11/ Reinhard Hüttl | EEI Eco-Environment Innovation and acatech – National Academy of Science and Engineering, Germany
•12/ Robert Schlögl | Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany
•13/ Stefan Freunberger | ISTA – Institute of Science and Technology Austria
•14/ Louis de Fontenelle | Université de Pau et des Pays de l‘Adour, France

Session ENVIRONMENT

•15/ Iris Eisenberger | University of Vienna
•16/ Alberto Montanai | University of Bologna and ITATEC – Italian Academy of Engineering and Technology, Italy
•17/ Jürgen Kurths | PIK – Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and Humboldt University, Germany
•18/ Sean Downey | The Ohio State University, USA
•19/ Alice Vadrot | University of Vienna, Austria

Closing session

•20/ Günter Blöschl | Conference Chair, Austrian Academy of Sciences
•21/ Tom Leahy, Sean Finlay and Sane McHugh | The Irish Academy of Engineering (Ireland) and The Royal Academy of Engineering (UK), Co-Hosts of the 2026 Euro-CASE Annual Conference
•22/ Eloy Alvarez Pelegry | Euro-CASE Chair

The 2025 Euro-CASE Annual Conference
Summary

CONFERENCE GOAL

Real-world systems – whether environmental, societal or technological – are inherently complex. They involve nonlinear interactions, feedback loops, delays, and emergent behaviors that challenge traditional, siloed approaches. Our goal is to explore how we can better understand and manage these systems to increase societal resilience.

ADDRESS TODAY’S MOST PRESSING CHALLENGES

From climate instability to healthcare system shocks and energy transitions – modern problems are deeply interconnected. This symposium tackles these challenges through the lens of complex systems, offering new ways to understand and act on them.

THINK BEYOND THE SILOS

Complex problems don’t fit neatly into disciplines. This event brings together voices from science, engineering, policy and society to build cross-disciplinary insights and solutions, encouraging new connections that mirror the interwoven nature of the challenges we face.

EXPLORE HIGH-LEVEL, ACTIONABLE IDEAS

We’re not just dissecting problems – we’re imagining bold, conceptual strategies that can lead to real-world impact. Expect big-picture thinking grounded in practical applications.

BUILD A MORE RESILIENT FUTURE

Learn how resilience can be designed into systems – from ecosystems to infrastructure – and how that mindset can help society adapt and thrive amidst uncertainty.

CONNECT, COLLABORATE AND INNOVATE

Meet leading thinkers, practitioners and change-makers. This is a unique opportunity to form meaningful partnerships and spark innovative projects that extend well beyond the symposium.

PROGRAMME

SPEAKERS

Heinz Fassmann
President of the Austrian Academy of Sciences

Eloy Alvarez Pelegry
Euro-CASE Chair

Günter Blöschl
Conference Chair, Austrian Academy of Sciences

Günter Blöschl
Conference Chair, Austrian Academy of Sciences

CV

Reinhard Hüttl
EEI Eco-Environment Innovation and acatech – National Academy of Science and Engineering, Germany

ABSTRACT

CV

Louis de Fontenelle
Université de Pau et des Pays de l‘Adour, France

© Bénédicte Lamothe, Université de Pau et des Pays de l’Adour

ABSTRACT

CV

Stefan Freunberger
Institute of Science and Technology Austria

ABSTRACT

CV

Jürgen Kurths
PIK – Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and Humboldt University, Germany

ABSTRACT

CV

Alberto Montanari
University of Bologna and ITATEC – Italian Academy of Engineering and Technology, Italy

ABSTRACT

CV

Al Ozonoff
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, USA

ABSTRACT

CV

Barbara Prainsack
University of Vienna, Austria

ABSTRACT

CV

Robert Schlögl
Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany

ABSTRACT

CV

Sean Downey
The Ohio State University, USA

© The Ohio State University

ABSTRACT

CV

Maja Schlüter
Stockholm University, Sweden

ABSTRACT

CV

Dimitra Simeonidou
member of the group of Chief Scientific Advisors at Scientific Advice Mechanism (SAM) of the European Commission

ABSTRACT

CV

Stefan Thurner
Complexity Science Hub Vienna and Medical University of Vienna, Austria

ABSTRACT

CV

Alice Vadrot
University of Vienna, Austria

ABSTRACT

CV

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