On Monday June 10th Mr. Konstantinos Skrekas, the Minister of Development, Mr. Konstantinos Skrekas, Deputy Minister of Development, Mr. Maximos Senetakis, and Secretary General of the ΓΓΕΚ | GSRI, Prof. Athanasios Kyriazis, visited the ATHENA RC in Maroussi for the signing ceremony of the contract for the functional and energy upgrade of the Research Center’s main building.
Τhe special guests were welcomed by the Professor Phoebe Koundouri, as head of the Sustainable Development Unit – Athena RC.
This contract marks a crucial step in ATHENA’s development journey, modernizing the facilities to meet green transition policies. Congratulations to Athena Research Center President Prof. Ioannis Emiris!
During the visit, took place a meeting where each unit head presented their flagship initiatives. Prof. Koundouri presented the UN SDSN Global Climate Hub, which she chair, and it is headquartered in Greece—a great honor—at the Athens University of Economics and Business, Athena Research Center, and the Academy of Athens. Under the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, the Global Climate Hub is an international research-led initiative for tackling complex sustainability challenges.
The GCH mobilizes nine research units covering a wide range of expertise in digital applications, climate science, water, food, biodiversity, and marine systems, energy and decarbonization, land and maritime transport, public health, policy, finance, labor markets, participatory approaches, education, and training. The coordinated work of these 9 units provides a unique approach of holistically addressing all levels of the human-environmental interface, for providing truly sustainable solutions, tailored per case study or region.
Prof. Koundouri referenced UNSDSN Global Climate Hub latest on report on Decarbonization Pathways in the Energy Sector, focused on sustainable pathways for the EU-27, UK, and the Balkans. This report is now extending to the Americas, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region. Additionally, it presented the results of collaborative report with Huawei on “Twin Skills for the Twin Transition: Defining Green Digital Skills and Jobs,” (https://lnkd.in/dxFJN4G2) both reports launched during #COP28.
She proposed a detailed report for the #Balkans, suggesting a #SkillsHub in each Balkan country to identify skills gaps and invest in relevant upskilling and reskilling. Greece could lead this skills network for the Balkans under the auspices of the Prime Minister and the Minister of Development, driving regional development and innovation.
