The International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics, Lund University

http://www.iiiee.lu.se/

An understanding of pollution prevention, waste minimisation, design for environment and environmental management has been absent from many organisations making decisions about policy, production and environmental protection. In 1994, as a response to this situation, the Swedish Parliament established the International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics at Lund University. It is funded by a Foundation and governed by a Board appointed by the University and the Government.

The IIIEE now has an international program reaching over sixty countries through its Master's Degree in Environmental Management and Policy and an extensive and significant research program. Education and research at the IIIEE has focused on the conceptual development and practical testing of innovative tools, methodologies and approaches which support preventative solutions to environmental problems. As a recognition of the success of preventative approaches has grown within government and industry, attention has shifted from production, to products and to consumption - to new systems and strategies for sustainable production and consumption. Such systems have to integrate a complex set of ecological, economic, technical, social, and cultural issues if they are to provide direction for new businesses, new investment and innovation.

Preventative approaches mean more than just addressing problems before they arise. The identification of viable strategies for future development represents a challenge to established modes of thinking, with existing economic, technological and social systems being open to question. This demands new forms of analysis, multidisciplinary research and innovative and creative visions able to expand the range of future possibilities.