FACULTY OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES IN SPLIT
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Center for Transdisciplinary Promotion of Sustainable Development

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Center for Transdisciplinary Promotion of Sustainable Development OdRaST

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

Poljička cesta 35
21 000 Split

Head of the Center

Asst. Prof.  Ivana Restović, Ph.D.
irestovic@ffst.hr 

Deputy Head of the Centre

Josipa Jurić, Lecturer

jjuric@ffst.hr

 

ABOUT THE CENTER OdRaST

The green transition is one of the strategic priorities of the EU in the coming period, and sustainability is one of the key development principles. In order to contribute to the achievement of the sustainable development goals, to implement the knowledge and develop the need for life in the only possible acceptable way, the idea of ​​establishing the Center for Transdisciplinary Promotion of Sustainable Development - OdRaST was born.

The OdRaST Center will promote the global sustainable development goals by connecting its three fundamental components: society, the environment and the economy, encouraging processes of awareness, reflection and efforts aimed at modern economic and social development in a protected environment.

 

CENTER OdRaST TASKS

The basic task of the OdRaST Center is to enable the promotion and realization of sustainable development goals not only through education, but also through the implementation of various activities of lifelong and socially useful learning, a transdisciplinary approach research, innovative and original projects, high-quality interactive forums among students and teachers of the Faculty , including employees of the University of Split. Special attention will be given to cooperation with local and wider community stakeholders, as well as experts of various profiles at the national and international level, with an emphasis on international cooperation with related centers and/or other institutions and faculties, which creates a basis for intellectual exchange and accumulation of contributions from different actors, disciplines, activities and institutions that see a certain problem from their own perspectives.

The establishment of the Center OdRaST is in line with the goals of the Development Strategy of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Split 2021-2025. and with the Strategy of the University of Split 2021-2025.

 

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The aspiration of modern society is to live in prosperity with economic development, respecting the needs of all people and preserving the environment, in other words to live in a sustainable way. The concept of sustainable development can be interpreted in different ways depending on the viewing perspective, therefore there are numerous definitions of sustainable development in literature and everyday speech. However, each definition has in common the term balance, which refers to "satisfying the needs of the present generation, without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to satisfy their needs."

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are an urgent call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership. They recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests.

Ciljevi održivog razvoja

    

    Members of the Centre Council:

  1. Assoc. Prof. Ivana Restović, PhD, Head of the Centre
  2. Prof. Zorana Šuljug Vučica, PhD, Vice-Dean for Teaching and Student Affairs, ex officio member
  3. Assoc. Prof. Nikša Varezić, PhD, Vice-Dean for Research and International Cooperation
  4. Josipa Jurić, Lecturer, Deputy Head of the Centre
  5. Assoc. Prof. Bruno Ćurko, PhD
  6. Prof. Marita Brčić Kuljiš, PhD
  7. Assist. Prof. Mila Bulić, PhD
  8. Prof. Snježana Dobrota, PhD
  9. Assist. Prof. Marijo Krnić, PhD
  10. Assist. Prof. Toni Popović, PhD
  11. Assist. Prof. Ivana Jadrić, PhD
  12. Assoc. Prof. Dubravka Kuščević, PhD
  13. Josip Guć, PhD, Senior Assistant

 


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05.10.2026

OdRaST Centre at CMC2026: Invited Lecture on the Impact of Intensive Cage Farming on Fish Development

Assoc. Prof. Ivana Restović, PhD, a researcher at the OdRaST Centre of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Split, gave an invited lecture at the 5th Croatian Microscopy Congress with International Participation (CMC2026), held in Osijek from 16 to 18 September 2026. Organized by the Croatian Microscopy Society together with the Faculty of Agrobiotechnical Sciences Osijek and the Faculty of Medicine Osijek, the congress brought together experts in microscopy in the life sciences and materials sciences.

The lecture, entitled Ultrastructural Characterization and Molecular Modelling of the Renal Parenchyma in Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) under Intensive Cage-Farming Conditions, presented the results of several years of research into how intensive farming conditions affect fish development.

Aquaculture is today one of the fastest-growing food production sectors, supplying more than half of the fish we eat. This growth, however, raises the question of the limits of sustainability of farming itself. Fish in cage systems are exposed to high stocking density, confined space, fluctuating water quality, artificial feed and prophylactic treatments. None of these factors is dramatic on its own, but together they act as a constant burden that accompanies the fish throughout the entire production cycle.

The study followed the kidney of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) across four developmental stages, comparing fish from intensive cage farming with a wild control group from their natural habitat. Using light and transmission electron microscopy together with immunofluorescence and biochemical methods, the research showed that damage to renal tissue appears as early as the earliest stages and accumulates progressively, whereas wild fish maintain balanced tissue homeostasis throughout their life cycle. A particularly important finding is that farmed fish lose the ability to resolve cellular stress: in wild fish, the stress response is switched on transiently and then switched off, whereas in farmed fish it remains permanently active.

The study described the protein dendrin in fish renal tissue for the first time, in a location that differs from the known mammalian model. Together with fibronectin, dendrin proved to be a sensitive marker that responds while damage is still developing, opening the possibility of earlier monitoring of fish health and welfare in aquaculture.

The results have direct applications in sustainable aquaculture management. They point to the developmental stage at which the burden of farming exceeds the limit the organism can tolerate without lasting consequences, which is also the stage at which interventions in farming practice are most effective. The welfare of farmed organisms is not only an ethical issue but also a prerequisite for long-term sustainable food production.

The research is the result of a collaboration among seven institutions from Croatia and Spain. It was carried out within the PIKBIO project (IP-UNIST-33) of the University of Split, funded by the European Union—NextGenerationEU through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan 2021–2026, and within the OdRaST Centre.

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