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We are delighted to announce the 1st UNIC Thematic Conference, which will be held from 7-9 May 2025 at Malmö University.
In an era marked by rapid urbanization and the pressing need for sustainable development, cities face unprecedented challenges and opportunities. The UNIC Thematic Conference aims to address these critical issues by fostering multidisciplinary dialogue and innovation. Drawing on contemporary inter-disciplinary scholarship and engaged research, the conference will explore sustainability and urban resilience within postindustrial settings.
The event will bring together leading scholars, practitioners, and policymakers to share insights, develop collaborative solutions, build bridges between research and innovative education and chart pathways toward more resilient and sustainable urban futures.
Another key objective of the conference is to develop these thematic streams with an emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion in governance networks and social dynamics. Topics include but are not limited to:
Professor MARWA DABAIEH is a full Professor of Architecture and urban sustainability at Malmö University, renowned for her expertise in sustainable architecture, vernacular design, and climate-responsive building techniques. With a career spanning over 20 years in both academia and practice, her work focuses on integrating low-tech, passive design strategies and ecological solutions into modern architectural frameworks.
Professor Dabaieh specializes in participatory action research, where she employs urban living labs and community-driven design to co-create sustainable solutions with local populations. Her research addresses pressing global challenges, including climate adaptation, environmental justice, and the representation of marginalized human and more-than-human ecologies in urban contexts. She is particularly known for her innovative use of vernacular knowledge, coupled with modern computational tools like parametric design and machine learning, to design resilient, low-energy buildings. Throughout her career, Professor Dabaieh has led and contributed to several international research projects and has published extensively on sustainable building practices and urban resilience. At Malmö University, she is promoting research on architecture and urban sustainability, guiding doctoral candidates and spearheading interdisciplinary projects that bridge the gap between academia, practice, and community engagement.
ROBERTO SAN SALVADOR DEL VALLE holds a BA in History, a PhD in Philosophy and Educational Sciences and a MA in Leisure Studies. He is currently Professor at the University of Deusto, where he teaches at the Bilbao and Donostia-San Sebastián campus. He is Director of the Deusto Cities Lab Katedra, a trans-disciplinary ecosystem pursued through research projects, learning programs and actions open innovation, transforming cities through 360 city governance. He has been Director of the Institute of Leisure Studies (2000-2007) and Vice-Rector for Communication, Multilingualism and Social Innovation (2007-2015).
He teaches BA courses on Tourism and MA courses on Leisure Management, MA courses on Congress, Event and Trade Fair Management Specifically, he teaches the following subjects: Leisure and Tourism Policies (BA), Tourism Law (BA), Leisure Policies (MALM), Leisure, City and Event Policies (MACETM) and Leisure Theory (PHD). His publications mainly focus on leisure phenomenon, cities and policies. During the past few years he has carried out research on governance and social innovation.He is part of the Leisure and Human Development research team. It is an official recognized research team by Basque Government. Other research interests include social trends, city and development, time and space evolution.
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