For one morning, the campus of Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) was even more international than usual. President Prof. Andreas Timm-Giel welcomed two high-ranking guests from the United Nations University (UNU): Prof. Tshilidzi Marwala, UN Under-Secretary-General and Rector of the UNU, and Prof. Edeltraud Günther, Director of the Institute for Integrated Management of Material Fluxes and of Resources of the United Nations (UNU-FLORES).
The UNU is the academic arm of the United Nations. It consists of 13 research institutes on five continents, is headquartered in Tokyo, and addresses a range of global development challenges through joint research and education.
In his lecture at TUHH, Prof. Marwala discussed the opportunities and challenges of using AI as a tool for sustainable development – especially in relation to the defined UN sustainability goals, the so-called SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals). „AI offers extraordinary opportunities to catalyse progress across the SDGs, from optimising climate strategies to improving healthcare delivery and agricultural resilience“, said Marwala. „However, these opportunities are accompanied by ethical concerns that we cannot afford to ignore, including the deepening of the digital divide, the environmental footprint of AI systems, and the risks of bias and misuse if governance mechanisms are inadequate. The United Nations and UNU are committed to ensuring that AI is developed and deployed ethically, inclusively, and equitably.“
Exploring New Paths of Cooperation
In her lecture, Prof. Edeltraud Günther presented the work of UNU-FLORES and emphasized the shared goals: „TUHH and the UNU Institute for Integrated Management of Material Fluxes and of Resources share a strong commitment to advancing sustainable solutions through science, innovation, and collaboration, a commitment reflected in TUHH’s role as a UNU Hub. My visit offered a valuable opportunity to deepen our engagement, explore new avenues for cooperation, and further promote the Resource Nexus approach. I am pleased to build on the growing partnership between TUHH and our Institute under the Hub. We have already hosted visits from TUHH, and the University has meaningfully presented at our flagship Dresden Nexus Conference.“
Edeltraud Günther's UNU colleague Tshilidzi Marwala had visited TUHH in 2024. At that time, the UNU Hub "Engineering to Face Climate Change" was inaugurated here, which is led by the two founding directors, TUHH Vice President for Research Prof. Irina Smirnova and Prof. Nima Shokri, Director of the Institute for Geo-Hydroinformatics. Prof. Tshilidzi Marwala: „I am grateful for the outstanding leadership of TUHH and the research contributions of the UNU Hub ‚Engineering to Face Climate Change‘. I am particularly encouraged by the continued progress in developing the Hub’s educational programmes.“
Following their lectures, Prof. Marwala and Prof. Günther visited the CampusLab "Circular Economy," which opened in 2025, as well as the "Agile Design Lab," which is scheduled to be officially opened next week.
