There are now 12 new bicycle service stations on the biomedical campus of the University Hospital Cologne, which can be used free of charge and are available to all cyclists on campus around the clock. Further information and a map of the bicycle service stations can be found here.

In future, employees will have the opportunity to test one of 13 bicycles free of charge for a week. There is a choice of folding bikes, city bikes and cargo bikes. The majority of these are e-bikes. The bikes can be booked quickly and easily via an app. The bikes will then be issued and returned centrally at the workshop building on the university hospital campus on presentation of an ID card. The bike pool is expected to go into operation next spring.

Source: UKK Intranet

Maximum for the climate: From August 7, 2023, the cafeteria of the University Hospital Cologne will completely dispense with disposable tableware and will exclusively use the multi-use tableware of the Cologne-based company Vytal for food and beverages that are taken "to go". In doing so, the subsidiary UK Catering (UKC) wants to take the next step toward responsible employee catering of the future. "By completely switching to the reusable system, we save more than four tons of disposable tableware annually in the cafeteria area, which is a lot of waste. In this way, we want to make our contribution to the maximum for climate campaign of the University Hospital Cologne," explains Thomas Schnell, head of guest catering. "With Vytal as our partner, we are not only relying on a company from the region, but on Europe's largest digital provider in the reusable systems segment."

To use the system and continue taking your food home, it doesn't take much: download the Vytal app, register, scan the QR code on the containers handed out and show it at the checkout. Until now, a rental fee of 0.20 euros per filling was still due, but this will be completely eliminated with the complete changeover at the beginning of August. The container can then be returned free of charge within 14 days via one of the numerous Vytal drop-off stations. These can be found on the campus of the University Hospital Cologne in the kiosks of the UKC as well as in the entrance area of the cafeteria or at 5,000 other partners throughout Europe. Only if the fourteen-day period is exceeded will a fee be charged to the user.

Anyone who now thinks that they can use their Tupperware without any problems will unfortunately be disappointed. For hygienic reasons, filling food and beverages into other containers is unfortunately prohibited.

• The Senate of the University of Cologne already established the Sustainability Working Group in October 2020.
• The university was recognized as a "Fairtrade University" in May 2018 and recertified in July 2022.
• There has been a bike station at the university since 2022 with 1,000 bike parking spaces below Albertus Magnus Platz, where you can also charge e-bikes.

        Portal Sustainability of the University of Cologne: Further Information

Since July 01, 2022, the university systematically records whether newly acquired third-party funding projects deal with one of the 17 United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In the future, all third-party funding announcements must indicate whether a third-party project focuses on at least one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. If yes, it is requested to indicate the (up to three) most important goals. Source: https://portal.uni-koeln.de/universitaet/universitaet-auf-einen-blick/nachhaltigkeit/aktuell.

The Youtube channel of Science-Lab Cologne provides many contributions on sustainability topics: https://www.youtube.com/c/ScienceLabCologne/videos

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: In 2015, the United Nations adopted the "2030 Agenda", committing to 17 global goals for a decent life and the conservation of natural resources. Politics, business, science, civil society and each individual should be jointly responsible for the implementation of these goals: https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-de/themen/nachhaltigkeitspolitik/nachhaltigkeitsziele-verstaendlich-erklaert-232174.   

"My Green Lab" initiative: My Green Lab aims to make a fundamental and lasting contribution to greater sustainability in scientific research worldwide. My Green Lab was founded as a non-profit organization to implement the highest standards of social and environmental responsibility in research. This initiative includes the certification of scientific laboratories. The program provides concrete opportunities for scientists and their research groups to make a meaningful change. To date, My Green Lab has supported more than 1000 laboratories in a variety of settings. My Green Lab certification saves money and conserves resources while ensuring a safe, healthy, and pleasant environment to support our scientific work. If your working group would like to apply for My Green Lab certification, click on the link below: https://www.mygreenlab.org/green-lab-certification.html.

• that scientists in the U.S. found that rain floods protected national parks with 1,000 tons of microplastics each year – the equivalent of more than 120 million plastic bottles. Microplastic pollution has reached every part of the globe, from the top of Mount Everest to the deepest oceans. It is already known that people ingest and inhale the tiny particles through food and water. Recent studies show that microplastic pollution can even be found in human placenta!
• that fifty years ago this month, meteorologist John Sawyer published a brief but prescient article in Nature. In it, he summarized what was known about the role of carbon dioxide in the greenhouse effect and made one of the first predictions about future global warming: that temperatures would rise by 0.6°C by the end of the twentieth century.
• that 30% of biodiversity loss is related to global trade. This came out of an analysis that linked 25,000 threatened species to 5 billion supply chains and consumption of goods such as coffee, tea, sugar, textiles, and fish (Lenzen, M. et al. Nature 486, 109-112, 2012).
• that rapid urbanization threatens biodiversity in 93% of the top 200 ecoregions to be conserved (Li, G. et al. Nature Commun. 13, 1628, 2022).
• that in many soccer stadiums lawn is heated! When a lawn heating system is in operation, it is assumed that the average electricity consumption is about 4000 kWh per day. For large stadiums, this is around 500,000 kWh per year for 120 to 140 days of use. For comparison: a 2-person household consumes on average between 2500 and 3200 kWh throughout the year!

Scientific publisher: Cell Press

Cell Press is a purely scientific publisher of over 50 scientific journals and provides a website with lots of additional content on the subject of climate and sustainability. The journals work together and with researchers and practitioners from the natural and social sciences.

Article: Civil disobedience by scientists helps demand urgent climate action (2022)

The article by Capstick, Thierry, Cox, Berglund, Westlake and Steinberger argues that civil disobedience by scientists is justified to demand urgent climate action. It emphasises that traditional methods of research and communication may be failing in the face of the climate crisis and calls for new ways of acting. Civil disobedience by scientists is seen as an effective strategy to communicate the urgency of the climate crisis and bring about change.

Climate protection in hospitals: clinics reduce emissions (2022)

The KLIK green project has trained climate managers in around 250 hospitals and rehabilitation clinics to implement various measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The initiative is expected to have saved 200,000 tonnes of CO2Ä by 187 climate managers implementing 1,640 measures. These measures range from energy-efficient lighting to switching to renewable energies and changing nutrition.

Article: Global treaty to regulate plastic pollution gathers pace (2021)

The article describes the growing momentum behind a global treaty to regulate plastic pollution. Due to increasing pressure from environmental activists and governments, the idea of an international treaty to curb plastic waste is gaining momentum. This treaty aims to regulate the production, consumption and disposal of plastic in order to minimise environmental damage.

Article: Motion and sash height alarms (MASH) for efficient use of the fume cupboard in the laboratory (2021)

The article describes a study on the efficient use of fume bonnets in laboratories. The researchers developed a "Motion and Sash Height" (MASH) alarm that notifies lab users when a fume bonnet is open and unused. The installation of these alarms led to a significant reduction in average sash height by over 75%. The financial savings per year per fume bonnet by using the MASH alarm was approximately $1159. 

Article: Microplastics detected in the placenta of unborn babies (2020)

The study has shown for the first time that microplastics have been found in human placentas, suggesting the possibility of transfer to foetuses. This discovery raises concerns about the potential impact of microplastics on human health and reinforces calls for stricter regulations and measures to reduce plastic pollution.

Behaviour change by design: A fume hood closure experiment (2019)

The article reports on a laboratory ventilation programme that considers laboratory safety and sustainability. The study took place on the campus of a large research university and involved two interdisciplinary science buildings. The intervention consisted of placing a sticker on the fume bonnets and then providing feedback based on the closure data. The intervention led to a significant improvement in the closing behaviour of the bonnets.

Article: Active monitoring of extractor bonnets to save energy (2018)

The article looks at the effectiveness of real-time audio feedback to alert users of extractor bonnets when the sash is open and the bonnet is not in use. This method was found to result in significant energy savings. Users reported changes in behaviour after the alarm was installed.

Article: How sustainable change can boost labs' budgets (2018)

This article highlights how labs can reduce energy costs and increase research budgets through green measures such as recycling chemicals and equipment. One example is Hopi Hoekstra's lab at Harvard University, which saved around $10,000 by winning a competition to reduce energy consumption and use freezers more efficiently.

Article: Scientists call for reduction of plastic waste in the laboratory (2015)

The authors of the article call for measures to reduce the five and a half million tonnes of plastic produced worldwide in the course of scientific research. They estimate that life science research is responsible for 1.8 per cent of global plastic production, the equivalent of 67 cruise ships per year. The authors suggest that funding bodies could encourage more environmentally friendly practices by funding laboratory rinsing and recycling facilities and make this a requirement in the application process.