The Aviram Sustainability and Climate Program offers a year-long, state-of-the-art curriculum designed for 20 exceptional undergraduate students in their last year of studies from across all schools on campus. The Program addresses the pervasive and most consequential challenges of our time: keeping humanity within the Planetary Boundaries and making the just transition to a zero-carbon future.
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The Aviram Sustainability and Climate Program
About Aviram Foundation
Dr. Asaf Tzachor
About the Program
- The Program aims to equip current and prospective thought-leaders, decision-makers and aspiring entrepreneurs with rigorous academic knowledge and applied skills needed to understand and accelerate the transition to a zero-carbon, environmentally sustainable world.
- Students will engage with diverse and pressing issues including climate change, extreme weather events, plastic and chemical pollution, water scarcity, food insecurity, deforestation, and biodiversity loss.
- Students will participate in a study-tour to Europe where they will visit leading scholars, scientists, entrepreneurs and business leaders.
- In the second semester, students will participate in the program’s Sustainability Workshop, a term-long capstone course where they will work in teams to develop a tangible solution, technological or otherwise, to an open-ended, real-world sustainability challenge.
- Student teams will be guided by industry experts and academic mentors.
- Graduates of the Aviram Program will join our network of alumni and associates working across all sustainability disciplines and domains.
Program Structure and Schedule
- The Program consists of three core courses, including The Planetary Boundaries, Environmental Change and Human Behavior, and, Environmental Change and Emerging Technologies, all taught in the first semester.
- Upon completion of the three core courses, students will participate in a study tour to Europe.
- In the second semester, students will participate in the program’s Sustainability Workshop, a term-long capstone course where they will work in teams to develop a tangible solution, technological or otherwise, to an open-ended, real-world sustainability challenge.
Schedule
Apr.-Jun. Admissions
Application. Interviews. Case studies and simulations.
Jun. Acceptance
Sept.-Oct. Study tours
Exploring sustainability ‘problem environments’
Oct.-Jan. First semester
Core courses. Planetary boundaries. Environmental change and human behavior. Environmental change and emerging technologies. Team formation.
Feb.-Mar. Study tour
Visiting enterprises, entrepreneurs, and thought-leaders in Europe
Mar.-Jun. Second semester
The Sustainability Workshop. Skillset sessions. Effective communication.
Year-round Complementary content
Mentor meetings. Faculty guidance. Industry visits. Presentations.
Three Core Courses
Final Project
Master Classes and Workshops
Study Tours
Professional Development
Core courses and workshops
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This course provides participants with a comprehensive overview of the nine Planetary Boundaries identified by scientists as critical to maintaining a habitable planet: climate change, biodiversity loss, land use change, freshwater use, ocean acidification, stratospheric ozone depletion, atmospheric aerosol loading, chemical pollution, and nitrogen and phosphorus cycles. We will explore the science behind each boundary, the interdependences between boundaries, and the human activities and systems that are driving their transgression. As part of the course, participants will work in self-selected teams, choose a boundary, and a system driving its breach – for which they will explore, analyze and develop innovative interventions in the following core courses and the Sustainability Workshop.
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The objective of this course is to develop a critical understanding of the drivers of environmental breakdown across natural system from the technological perspective, considering past, present and prospective technologies as both sources of- and solutions to- sustainability challenges. Additionally, the course provides participants with a comprehensive overview of emerging environmental technologies, including clean-tech, climate-tech, energy-tech. water-tech, agri-tech and food-tech. Participants will acquire knowledge and skills to perform multi-disciplinary due diligence and feasibility assessment of emerging technologies.
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The objective of this course is to develop a critical understanding of the drivers of environmental degradation, resource overexploitation, and climate change from the behavioral perspective, considering human behaviors and habits, choices, and decisions as both sources of- and solutions to- environmental predicaments. The course provides students with analytical frameworks, tools and techniques from across the behavioral sciences, behavioral economics, and marketing, and provides participants with the opportunity to apply them in case studies and real-life settings.
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The study tour aims to expose participants to state-of-the-art enterprises at different scales, entrepreneurs, and thought leaders who are at the forefront of sustainability and climate innovation in Europe. It will provide students with a unique opportunity to learn, first-hand, about wicked-problems and emerging solutions in these domains. Students will have the opportunity to learn from experts and understand how sustainability principles are applied across sectors, industries and institutions. The study tour is a highly interactive and immersive experience, with students engaging in workshops, seminars, and discussions with experts and peers.
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Submitting your application
The deadline for submitting your application is May 19th, 2023.
The program is open for exceptional students in their last year of studies from across all schools on campus.
Participation in the program requires fluency in English and working knowledge of Hebrew, specifically listening, and basic reading comprehension.
Please send your application materials to the program’s email: aviram.program@runi.ac.il
In the subject line of your email please write “Application for the program”.
In the body of the email please indicate your full name, school and study track, and your current GPA.
Please enclose the following documents:
- A personal statement of no more than 300 words outlining an emerging sustainability challenge of particular interest for you.
- A personal statement of no more than 300 words outlining your fit to the program.
- Your CV (no more than one page)
- Your GPA on a 100 point scale, and most recent grade report.
- In addition, applicants should provide names and details of two referees.
After application vetting, a limited number of students will be invited for case study interviews to determine their creative and problem-solving abilities.