Green Talks sociological dialogues on Clima, Environment and Society

The Green Talks: Sociological Dialogues on Climate, Environment, and Society is an academic seminar series embedded within the undergraduate course Sociology of the Environment at the University of Milano-Bicocca. 

It is coordinated by Prof. Monica Bernardi, EU Climate Pact Ambassador, and is designed as a structured cycle of guest lectures and dialogic sessions engaging scholars and practitioners working on key dimensions of ecological transition. The format of the initiative is that of a multi-session seminar series, combining invited lectures, interactive discussions, and critical reflection. 

Each session focuses on a specific thematic area and is led either by academic experts or practitioners, allowing students to engage with diverse epistemic perspectives and applied experiences. 

The pedagogical approach is explicitly dialogic: lectures are conceived not as one-directional transmissions of knowledge, but as spaces of exchange where students are encouraged to question, debate, and connect theoretical frameworks with empirical realities. Thematically, the series addresses a wide spectrum of issues at the intersection of climate change, environment, and society. 

These include: territorial inequalities in risk mitigation, governance and policy mainstreaming of climate change, circular economy and ecological footprints, environmental justice and postcolonial perspectives, European environmental policy frameworks (from planetary boundaries to the Green Deal), energy transition and renewable resources as territorial assets, environmental movements (e.g., Extinction Rebellion), food systems and health, and the transformation of cities towards smart, biodiverse, and sustainable models. 

The talks of April 8 is lead by the Italian Country Coordinator, Gianni Tartari. The main objectives of the activity are threefold. 

First, it aims to deepen students’ understanding of environmental sociology by exposing them to contemporary debates and interdisciplinary approaches to ecological transition. 

Second, it seeks to bridge theory and practice, highlighting how governance, policy instruments, and social movements shape environmental outcomes across different scales. 

Third, it promotes critical and reflexive competencies, enabling students to interpret environmental challenges through lenses such as justice, inequality, and socio-ecological transformation.