6 Lessons on Impact & Innovation from Europe’s Largest Sustainability Event

This year, I had the chance to dive into the Planetiers World Gathering in Aveiro, Portugal - a global event focused on sustainable innovation that brought together changemakers from policymakers to students. With TWO days of open-access conferences, hands-on workshops, and inspiring exhibitions, Planetiers offered an ideal space to explore new solutions for a sustainable future. Here are six of the most impactful insights I took away from this incredible gathering!

1. Cross-disciplinary collaboration is key!

Planetiers broke the mould of most conferences I’ve attended as it brought such a diversity of attendees and speakers! Policy makers, entrepreneurs and indigenous leaders rubbed shoulders with academics, sustainable business developers and school students. The result? An eclectic atmosphere and dynamic conversations from across the spectrum. Nowhere was this more apparent than the fashion panel, where a Sports sustainability brand strategist, a Human behavioral researcher  and a chemist/biotechnologist discussed the future of sustainable fashion!

2. Sustainability education is for all ages!

Education was a huge part of this years planetiers. I was joined by Tim Vieria of Brave generation academy  and Caroline Zanta VieTech founder and robotics educator to discuss the challenges and opportunities in creating disruptive entrepreneurial education for sustainable impact. While the conference delivered some excellent key notes, panels and presentations and pressing sustainability topics, these were complimented by a series of practical skills workshops for students from the Salesianos do Estoril School in Lisbon. While the style and execution of all sessions varied, the focus was the same: educating for impact is the future!

3. Innovation happens by doing!

Seeing the diversity of speakers, structure of the topics and execution of workshops, I assumed the planetiers team would be made up of hardened event organizational veterans with decades of experience in sustainable development. But Planetiers started as a sustainable product platform and began these events for promotion! After the success and reach of these events the team focused full time on the planetiers world gathering. The result? A dynamic, multi-disciplinary environment for sustainable innovators.

4. Multi-solving: multiple challenges with one Solution!

A standout theme across panels was “multi-solving”: creating solutions that address several issues simultaneously. Here’s how it played out:

• Renewable Energy & Inclusivity: The “Accessible Energy Transition” panel showed how green electricity and biofuels can cut fossil fuel use while also promoting social equity.
• Food & Forest Conservation: The “Forest, System, and Land Use” panel explored how biodiversity and food security go hand-in-hand.
• Circular Economy Across Borders: Led by Landbell Group, this discussion highlighted the role of extended producer responsibility (EPR) in global recycling solutions.

These sessions demonstrated the power of multi-solving solutions to make a broader impact - a principle Tomorrow University instills in our students as they learn to tackle sustainability from multiple angles.

5. Small innovations with huge impact

One of the most exciting innovations at Planetiers was the paper microchip by Barna Soma Biro and his team at Pulpatronics. These laser-engraved paper price and security tags replace plastic tags and are fully recyclable, addressing a massive waste issue—18 billion plastic tags are discarded annually. This innovation shows that even small design changes can have a massive environmental impact, inspiring Tomorrow University students to reimagine everyday products for a sustainable future.

6.Nature-based solutions are essential!

How can green infrastructure, from green roves to parks address the human health challenges of the urban jungle? How can forests support our food systems to ensure a climate change resilient food supply? The power of nature to solve our most pressing social and environment problems was a central theme at this years planetiers world gathering, and the message was clear: Nature-based solutions must be integrated into our socio-economic system if we want to create sustainable impact.

In a nutshell…

Planetiers World Gathering showed that sustainable change happens through community-driven innovation, diversity of thought, and practical action. It reminded me that sustainability isn’t a solo endeavor; it’s a shared mission across fields, ages, and backgrounds. At Tomorrow University, we’re proud to equip the next generation of leaders with the expertise and mindset to drive this change, creating a regenerative future for all.

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