Organisation and networks
On this page, you can read about the organisation behind the work with AU's sustainability and about the sustainable networks/collaborations that AU participate in.
AU Green Network
#AUGreen is a FB-group for all students and employees interested in helping to make AU more green.
Working group for climate strategy
Task
A working group consisting of students and staff has been responsible for contributing to the development of a sustainability strategy (later renamed climate strategy) for Aarhus University from 2020 to 2025. The strategy defines a framework for the university’s efforts to promote its environmental sustainability and contains an action plan detailing how the strategy will be realised. The working group had an obligation to consider contributions from an internal sustainability seminar (held on 21 March 2019) and contributions from the AUSustainability network.
Schedule
The strategy was submitted for consultation at the university primo 2020 and was approved by the AU board on 1. April.
The composition of the working group
The working group consists of eight members: four researchers, two students and a technical and an administrative staff member. The researchers were nominated by the four faculties, and the students were nominated by the Green Student Movement and the Student Council, Conservative Students and Free Forum.
Local networks at AU
- The climate team in the Administrative Centre, Arts: The climate team in ACA works on local climate initiatives. "Such local initiatives might seem minor but, taken together, they can create real change", it says on the webpage. This is exactly the point of the climate team’s work – they engage in local issues that they are able to influence and that make a difference to their daily lives.
- Sustainability Committee in the Nat-Tech Administrative Centre: The committee is working to promote a sustainable transition and green behaviour among the employees and units at the Nat-Tech Administrative Centre within areas such as consumption, waste, work processes, catering and transportation. The committee will attempt to inspire and motivate each individual employee, propose specific initiatives to the management, implement local initiatives and organise interesting events and presentations.
- Facebook group: Sustainability at DPU: The network group is for all students and employees at DPU that are interested in and/or work with sustainability, the environment, nature and climate from an educational perspective.
- The Sustainability Committee at Physics and Astronomy: Large or small – everything helps. In the Sustainability Committee at Physics and Astronomy, members are working to promote the green transition in everything from waste sorting to recycling and better, greener habits in everyday life. They also help with implementing sustainable initiatives from above, and they are responsible for proposing initiatives from employees and students to AU’s Green Team.
External Networks
Aarhus University is a participant in the following sustainable networks:
- Climate Alliance Aarhus: AU is head of a working group about circular procurement and is also part of the working group on climate-friendly workplaces and climate-friendly employees. The working groups are two of a total of five working groups under Climate Alliance Aarhus, which was established at the initiative of the City of Aarhus as a new collaboration between some of the largest businesses and organisations in Aarhus.
- Energispring Aarhus-Network for energy, building operations and data
- The SDG network for employees working with sustainability at universities in DK (there is no home page for this).
- ISCN – International Sustainable Campus Network
- Nordic Sustainable Campus Network
- AU is a co-signatory of the Global Universities and Colleges Climate Letter together with a wide range of other networks and institutions all over the world. As a co-signatory, AU pledges to work to address climate challenges by supporting the following three-point plan, in accordance with the criteria in the UN’s Race to Zero:
- Mobilizing more resources for action-oriented climate change research and skills creation.
- Pledge to reach net-zero by 2030 or 2050 at the very latest.
- Increasing the delivery of environmental and sustainability education across curriculum, campus and community outreach programmes.
Questions?
If you have any questions, please feel free to send an email to greenteam@au.dk or contact one of us: