The University of Passau has set the goal of not only contributing to research and teaching in the field of sustainability but also aligning its university operations sustainably in the coming years.
The University, considering itself a role model within the framework of its societal mission, aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. As a European university, the University of Passau establishes its own priorities in this field.
The University of Passau, as a public institution, is ready to take responsibility for climate protection. Therefore, the University established a climate action management, which, in addition to the Representative of the University Management for Transfer and Internal Networking with the cross-sectional task of sustainability and the Sustainability Hub, is responsible for climate protection across the status groups of the University.
Since March 2023, the University has a climate action manager. In collaboration with all University members, she is developing an integrated climate protection concept, which establishes the university's strategic direction in climate protection for the next ten years. The concept includes, among other things, a current analysis, including a greenhouse gas inventory, the University's strategic goals, and a catalog of measures for more climate protection on campus.
The University of Passau takes responsibility for its resource consumption and aims to reduce it. For instance, buildings utilize heat exchangers in ventilation systems and harness waste heat from the cafeteria and data centers. The university draws water from the Inn River for the sports field and uses it for cooling a data center beforehand. Materials procured for research and teaching are, whenever possible, certified to demonstrate their environmental friendliness and sustainability.
Environmental protection and sustainability start on a small scale and should be visible to people in the city or on campus. Therefore, the University of Passau promotes biodiversity on campus through flower meadows and green roofs.
The University of Passau sees itself in a leading role for society and demonstrates implementation possibilities for sustainable transformation through numerous pilot projects. For instance, it operates an urban gardening project showcasing successful plant cultivation in an urban context. With the Bavarian Green Data Center, the University of Passau, in collaboration with the Bavarian State Ministry of Digital Affairs, illustrates how sustainable data center operations can function in the future.
The University of Passau also measures itself against other universities using neutral benchmark data. It has been participating in the global Green Metric ranking since 2021 and is among the top 15%.
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Do you have sustainability-related questions or suggestions? Send us an email at nachhaltigkeit@uni-passau.de.
