“The Strategy Paper on Sustainability is a real landmark achievement,” explains Professor Annette Scheersoi, Vice Rector for Sustainability. “With it, the University of Bonn is embracing its responsibility to society.” The document brings together strategic objectives, operational measures and quantifiable successes in the sustainable transformation and will serve to drive this process forward right across the University. “Our underlying vision is to establish sustainability as the key guiding principle and help to solve some of the global challenges,” Scheersoi says.
The strategy focuses on five action areas: 1. Research; 2. Teaching; 3. Operations; 4. Participation and Student Engagement; and 5. Communication and Transfer.
5 action areas
The University of Bonn is relying in particular on transdisciplinary approaches in its research. Across six Transdisciplinary Research Areas (TRAs)—among them Innovation and Technology for Sustainable Futures—researchers are working together across faculty boundaries to tackle issues of future relevance. The “SDG to go” scholarship program, meanwhile, funds research visits that benefit the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The University of Bonn is also stepping up its international collaboration on research, including with its partner university St Andrews in Scotland. These partnerships are boosting the global exchange of knowledge and innovative approaches for solving sustainability-related challenges.
Examples of successful achievements in the “Research” action area:
- Establishing the Klein-Altendorf Sustainability Campus, including a center of expertise for renewable raw materials
- Setting up the Beyond Slavery and Freedom Cluster of Excellence on asymmetric dependencies in pre-modern societies
- Founding the Bonn Alliance for Sustainability Research
Fitness for the future begins in teaching, and the University of Bonn has set itself the goal of preparing students for the challenges involved in shaping a sustainable society. To this end, it is developing and introducing a certification program for sustainability that will give them a targeted grounding in this issue. The University is also expanding its service learning offering, which combines university study with social engagement. Dedicated advanced training is showing teachers how to integrate this concept into their courses.
Examples of successful achievements in the “Teaching” action area:
- Establishing a UNESCO Chair for Human-Water Systems
- Creating a “CampusAckerdemie” (“Campus in the Field”) to show trainee teachers how to teach a successful in-school gardening class
- Winning the “Education for Sustainable Development 2023/24” national award
The University of Bonn is taking action in its day-to-day operations to reduce environmental pollution and consume less resources. One priority is to raise awareness among staff and students about sustainable energy and waste management and climate-conscious mobility. It is also pursuing a strategy of adding greenery to University spaces to promote biodiversity.
Examples of successful achievements in the “Operations” action area:
- Using 100% green electricity
- Introducing a University-wide concept for separating and avoiding waste
- Making processes digital (e.g. invoicing and travel expenses)
Getting all members of the University—students especially—actively involved is a key element of its Sustainability Strategy. For instance, a funding pot has been set up to support sustainability-related projects and initiatives. The University also intends to provide a service offering advice to anyone interested in sustainability, while new and innovative formats such as (cultural) events are creating alternative ways to access the world of sustainability.
Examples of successful achievements in the “Participation and Student Engagement” action area:
- Establishing a student-run Green Office
- Having a dedicated funding pot to support sustainability engagement
- Holding quarterly campaign months and the annual Sustainability Day
The University of Bonn is engaging in transparent, constructive communication in order to achieve its sustainability objectives. Employing a wide range of formats, from social media campaigns and newsletters through to sustainability and networking events such as a World Café, it regularly shares information with its members about sustainable initiatives, research findings and practical courses of action that they can take. There are also plans for a “BOOST Box,” a physical contact point holding material on sustainability in an easy-to-access form.
Examples of successful achievements in the “Communication and Transfer” action area:
- Nominating dedicated sustainability contacts in all seven faculties
- Joining regional, national and international sustainability networks (e.g. Humboldtn, DG HochN, ISCN and the Green Office Movement)
- Launching two Instagram channels (nachhaltige_unibonn and greenofficeunibonn) and a dedicated sustainability web page
One particularly important aspect according to Scheersoi was for the Strategy Paper on Sustainability to be compiled in a participatory bottom-up process in cooperation with all areas of the University. “Over 250 members of all status groups—students, researchers and other staff—had a hand in writing it. So it’s clear that the issue is not only important to a great many people but is also already of great topical relevance in many parts of the University.”
One of the students who worked on the Strategy Paper was Thorben Thieme, who runs the Environmental Department of the General Students’ Committee (AStA) at the University of Bonn. Explaining his motivation for getting involved, he says: “It’s very important to us on the AStA to put in the effort ourselves when tangible sustainability measures are being developed at our University—many of our students would expect nothing less of us. We thought that the dialogue we had with all status groups was conducted in the spirit of trust and was very useful. We’re also pleased that we were able to get issues that mean a lot to the student body embedded in all areas of the strategy. And we’re particularly delighted that participation and student engagement has been given its own action area.”
University members from all status groups and areas are called on to keep contributing, because the Strategy Paper on Sustainability will be regularly updated and revised in the future. “We’re looking forward to developing our objectives and measures even further to promote the sustainable transformation of our University,” Scheersoi explains.