🎓 PhD Life

Since August 2021 I am part of NTNU's Industrial Ecology programme, a research group focusing on all things sustainability. I am extremely grateful for having gotten the chance to pursue my PhD here in this amazing environment with so many like-minded people. We are around 90 colleagues, most of who are PhD students. And aside from research we sometimes also do some fun stuff.

In the bigger picture, my PhD revolves around the question of how we can achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - or, put differently: how can we reach the doughnut of respecting planetary boundaries while providing life's essentials? To examine possible pathways, I use methods from the research fields of industrial ecology and socio-economic metabolism, first and foremost input-output analysis (IO). How that looks like in everyday life I try to document here.

PhD topics are generally very narrow in their scope. In that sense, trying to find an answer to the question of how to achieve the SDGs takes so much more than a single dissertation. My contribution to this big question is therefore also rather small and focused. Essentially, I work with IO models and look specifically at their capability to feature technology substitution. Think of renewable power generation methods replacing fossil-based ones; or switching from irrigated agricultural processes to rain-fed ones; or secondary metal production routes substituting primary ones. My PhD covers both theoretical work on understanding and comparing the mechanisms of technology substitution in different IO models as well as applications in the sustainability scenario modelling context.

📚 Inspiration

There is so much fascinating research out there and I would like to share here some of it. A few of my all-time favourite academic publications include:

• the biodiversity threat hotspots paper by my former master thesis supervisor Dan Moran,

• the 2020-paper by Christopher Trisos and colleagues on the projected timing of abrupt ecological disruption from climate change,

• and the EXIOBASE-paper on the global resource footprint of nations.

🎒 Teaching

At NTNU, I have contributed to the graduate course on input-output analysis. I am really happy about getting the chance for doing so - although, in fact, I have to as part of my work agreement. Spring semester 2022 was the first time, and my third round will be in spring 2024. Looking forward to it 🙃

During my time in Freiburg, I contributed substantially to the conceptualisation, realisation, and teaching of two master’s courses, namely one on material flow analysis and one on climate change mitigation and adaptation. In addition, I led a seminar and gave a few lectures in a third course on life cycle assessment.

Before that, while still a master's student at NTNU, I contributed as a teaching assistant in classes on life cycle assessment, life cycle impact assessment, and an introductory course on climate change.

💬 Selected presentations

• On the choice of technique and distribution in a finite world
  Presentation given at: 29th IIOA Conference 2023 in Alghero

• Rectangular technology choices - From Leontief and Sraffa to waste
  Poster presented at: NTRANS Research Festival 2022 in Røros

• The input-output method
  Presentation given at NORSUS' research day 2022

• Of polar bears and plastic bags
  Workshop given at: Summer Campus 2019 at University of Freiburg

• Identifying relevant impact pathways for marine invasive species within Life Cycle Assessment
  Poster presented at: NTNU Sustainability Science Conference 2017 in Trondheim

📝 Publications

• Koslowski M., Hertwich E., Wood R. (in review): From single to joint production under rectangular technology choice.

• Davin K., Koslowski M., Dorber M., Hertwich E. (in preparation): Tailoring application-specific characterisation factors for global biodiversity footprints.

• Verones F., Gjedde P., Koslowski M., Woods J.S., Lonka R., Stadler K. (2023): MarINvaders: a web toolkit of marine invasive species for use in environmental decision-making. Ecosphere 14 (11): e4697.

• Pauliuk S., Koslowski M., Madhu K., Schulte S., Kilchert S. (2022): Informing the Co‑design of Digital Transformation and Sustainable Development Strategies – What Sociometabolic and Industrial Ecology Research can contribute. Journal of Cleaner Production 343, 1-12 (accessible also via ResearchGate).

• Koslowski M. (2021): Climate compensation 2.0: Extending carbon compensation schemes by ownership. White paper, ClimatePoint, accessible here.

• Koslowski M., Moran DD., Tisserant A., Verones F., Wood R. (2020): Quantifying Europe's biodiversity footprints and the role of urbanization and income. Global Sustainability 3, e1, 1–12.