"Everyone must contribute to a sustainable campus"

Sustainability is part of the EUR Strategy 2024. What is the focus?

EUR's philosophy is that sustainability should become part of our DNA. In order to embed this philosophy in our business operations as much as possible, we set targets to reduce our CO2 emissions, because we want to work towards a CO2 reduction and ultimately a CO2-neutral campus in 2030. By the way, it is good to know that EUR does not have a sustainability department. There are a few things to note about that: one department alone cannot solve the CO2 reduction. It is about how we are as an organisation and that it should become part of our DNA, is why everyone is made co-responsible for more sustainability in business, research and education. We did recently appoint a programme manager for sustainability, Mariecke van der Glas, and she works EUR-wide.

How exactly will CO2 reduction be achieved?

Physical sustainability concerns business operations on the Woudestein campus, but also for the EUC and ISS in The Hague. From the Real Estate & Facilities (RE&F) department, we try to give substance to this in as many ways as possible, because many of the things that happen in business operations are related to RE&F. Many things are not organised centrally for the entire university, but rather by a faculty or department. If we look at physical sustainability, it is about a cleaning contract, the collection of waste, a new building or its maintenance, among other things, and in this we try to achieve our goals as much as possible. So more central policy is needed (not only for CO2 reduction), so the faculties have a guideline when making their own decisions.

So on the one hand, I think it is important that as many people as possible realise that sustainability does not come down to one person, faculty or service, but that we stand for this together and we have to work on CO2 reduction together. After all, we as EUR must also want to set a good example to our students.

Can you tell us about some of the projects you have done in the past year?

In addition to business operations, there are also individual projects that we do, such as the 'solar panel project' and the 'separate waste collection'. Last year, we installed solar panels on three buildings and separated waste bins on the campus and across all buildings. In addition, we had two major projects: to draw up a roadmap for a sustainable campus, in which we indicate the ways in which we can directly influence the prevention and reduction of CO2 emissions. And this has now been translated into a concrete implementation plan. The other project that is very exciting is the construction of a new multifunctional educational building next to Polak Building: MFOII. It is scheduled for completion in September 2022. We have selected a beautiful design that really demonstrates sustainability. A lot of greenery will be brought in to make the experience for students much more natural, which has a positive effect on their well-being. We are also applying a very innovative concept for heating and cooling the building, so that these processes require less energy.

And which project are you most proud of?

I am very proud of the roadmap, that we have anchored sustainability so well in the new building where we bring the green in. It is very nice that we have now reached a point in the field of sustainability in buildings, that we are actually going to put this into practice. But actually I am very proud of all the projects.

EUR seems to be doing a lot already in the field of sustainability. What could be even better?

That is always a difficult question. What I find important is that it is seen as a joint task and not as something like 'Oh, that's from Jan-Cees or Mariecke, or a sustainability coordinator, they just have to solve it'. You have to ask yourself the question every time: "What can I contribute to making the campus more sustainable? In what way can we do it a little better?" I often notice that when I talk to colleagues, they don't really know what's going on behind the scenes. So what could be better: we could tell the story better, be more visible.

And what else is in the pipeline?

We are further developing the implementation plan for the roadmap and we are starting new projects. We want to make sure that sustainability is more visible on the campus, so we are going to work on that too by making provisions; perhaps more nesting facilities for small animals and more trees, or doing more with water collection, making the campus garden bigger, etc. We are also working on the catering; making it easier for staff and students to buy vegan or vegetarian dishes or products and also making it clear what the carbon footprint of that ham sandwich is, for example, so that you can make a more conscious choice.

And finally, I would like to mention that in recent years we have been busy implementing energy-saving measures in buildings. And that all universities in the Netherlands have co-signed the Climate Accord: the Dutch agreement to emit only 49% CO2 by 2030 compared to 1999. This means that we are constantly looking for energy-saving measures in buildings, which is one of the ways in which we contribute to the climate agreement.