It will demonstrate leading edge research and sustainable design, products, systems and decision making, in three ways:

- A state-of-the-art “living laboratory" to study current and future sustainable building systems and technologies.

- Advanced visualization, simulation and community engagement giving new approaches to interacting with citizens in exploring sustainable lifestyles.

- Partners from the private, public and NGO sectors will share the research facility, to identify areas in which this region has a competitive edge in sustainable technologies and services, helping to implement these on the ground.

CIRS´s goal is to contribute to market transformation with regard to sustainability technologies and services, and to larger societal change in the direction of sustainability. This talk will describe the CIRS program and process and provide some preliminary views about how such change can be accomplished.

About John Robinson
Prof. John Robinson works at Sustainable Development Research Initiative (SDRI). He directs research programs in climate change and sustainability; visualization, modeling and citizen engagement around sustainable futures; sustainable buildings and urban design; and creating private/public/NGO and research sector partnerships for sustainability.

He is a member of the Advisory Council of the David Suzuki Foundation, on the Board of the Sustainable Cities Foundation, and on the Editorial Board of the journals Integrated Assessment and the Journal of Industrial Ecology.