Z-Forum on Sustainability and Innovation

A Call for a dynamic understanding of resilience in times of crisis

On January 15–16, 2026, CCRS co-hosted the Z-Forum on Sustainability and Innovation. It took place at ETH Zurich and Druckerei Baden and was titled “Building Resilience in the Age of Uncertainty”, more than 70 registered participants engaged with over 30 speakers and panelists to discuss how dynamic learning systems can foster innovative local responses to global challenges.

The many inspiring contributions and lively debates underlined the importance of a pragmatic, solution-oriented approach to sustainability that strengthens resilience by acknowledging the growing need to take into consideration security and economic concerns.

There was a general consensus among participants of the conference that resilience should not be guided by the assumption of a presumably lost balance prior to a crisis that has to be restored by any means. Instead resilience is about pro-active responses to external shocks designed to be better prepared for the possible next crisis. It is an evolutionary process following the survival logic of complex economic ecosystems. They are primarily designed to reproduce what has been tried and tested but are also ready to innovate if the existing business model is incapable to respond to crisis. Innovation that also creates social value requires however an effort to move beyond milieu boundaries in business, politics and academia in order to jointly embark on solution-oriented cooperation.

In this context, we hope this conference represents a starting point for a more dynamic understanding of resilience in theory and practice. It is based on the fundamental insight that business and society are two sides of the same ‘human’ coin.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to everyone who contributed to the success of this event with special thanks to the numerous partners and sponsors of the event and the MDPI Sciforum Management Team who ensured the success of the event from the point of view of logistics, administration, communication and representation.

As for the great conference contributions, all keynotes, talks and discussions are available on You Tube. Please click on the programme titles below to watch them…

Day 1 - ETH, Zürich

Day 2 - Druckerei, Baden