’The techniques for the energy transition are not there yet’

Suzanne Hangx and René van Roij At Utrecht University, interdisciplinary research into a sustainable future comes together in Pathways to Sustainability. To do justice to the natural sciences in this strategic theme, Professor René van Roij  together with several colleagues from the Faculties of Science and Geosciences initiated the community Science for Sustainability  a year ago. "In doing so, we strengthen the enormous potential of the natural sciences to solve sustainability issues. They may not always be about solutions for tomorrow, but definitely about solutions for long-term challenges." A hundred years ago, physicists such as Heisenberg and Schrödinger laid the foundation for quantum mechanics. At the time, it was an academic exercise, and no one could predict whether the research would ever be of use to society. Only decades later, in 1947, it turned out it did, for instance when multinational IBM built the first transistors. These turned out to be the key building blocks for modern computers.