First steps taken towards new Green Lab Network

Two years ago, the laboratories at SDU became the first in Denmark to receive sustainability certification from Green Lab , and now the desire for a Danish Green Lab Network has arisen.

The first step towards such a network in Denmark was taken on 4 October at the University of Southern Denmark’s Campus Odense in auditorium O100, where researchers from SDU, DTU and KU attended together with 115 participants from over 25 companies.

Sustainable laboratories

Marianne Due, Green Lab Project Manager at SDU, opened the conference and explained, among other things, why this certification is important for not only SDU, but everyone who works in the labs on a daily basis.

- We must make the laboratory work as sustainable as possible, without compromising the work being done there, she says.
This is where the Green Lab certification comes into play. The certification allows the individual laboratory to employ the measures that make sense at the site in question.

Working on the green transition together

Jens Ringsmose, Rector at SDU, also spoke about the importance of SDU’s Green Lab certification in his opening speech.

- Old habits die hard, which can make the green transition more difficult. It is therefore important that we shake up our habits, and that is what the team behind SDU’s Green Lab has done. As a university, we have a special responsibility to contribute to the green transition, and we cannot do this alone, said Jens Ringsmose.

Therefore, it is essential that SDU is not only Green Lab certified, but also welcomes the establishing of a network that can contribute to its continued development.

Susan Christina Nøttrup, who has helped organise the conference on behalf of the Danish Life Science Cluster and Life Science Fyn, also emphasises the importance of collaboration in the green transition.

- For the two organisations, the exchange of knowledge is paramount. Through events such as this and knowledge sharing in the Green Lab network, companies gain access to the knowledge produced by the University – and laboratory staff can gain new input on how to work with sustainability in practice. We can inspire and motivate each other across the board, she says.

Great value for participants

Emma Simonsen is a laboratory technician and Sustainability Coordinator at FKF (the Department of Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacy). She participated in the conference, and her high expectations beforehand were more than realised.

- My expectations for the conference were to take away some tools, especially from Ann Starbæk’s presentation about communication. She talked a lot about the complexity of communicating about sustainability, as it is a fluffy concept that is understood differently from person to person, and it was very rewarding, says Emma Simonsen.

Emma Simonsen is also particularly preoccupied with the need for a Danish Green Lab network.

- It is in these very forums that fruitful discussions, as well as frustrations, often arise from the different laboratories around the country, and the more people we have collaborating and communicating with each other across the board, the easier it will be for all of us.

To learn more about SDU Green Lab, visit their website or find contact details for Our Green Universe to share any ideas that can contribute to the sustainability of SDU’s laboratories.