At the office

Although the portion of renewable energy in Danish energy consumption as a whole has been growing steadily since 1990, there are still good reasons to save energy. This is mainly because we are still dependent on black energy and thus emit greenhouse gases. Below are suggestions on how through small everyday actions you can help reduce emissions.

• You can switch off the lights every time you leave a room.
• You can make sure that nothing is on stand-by overnight (including computers, height adjustable desks, printers, etc.
• You can minimise your use of hot water when washing your hands.
• You can wait until the dishwasher is completely full before starting a programme.
• Instead of switching off your computer when you leave it for a short period of time, you may want to put it into hibernation/sleep mode, which uses less power.

Sustainability is emphasised in SDU’s regulations for catering for meetings. Vegetarian menus and water are therefore standard in catering for meetings. Meat and other beverages must therefore be actively chosen.

The way we organise and use our buildings and premises has a significant impact on their carbon footprint. One way to reduce the carbon footprint could be to create open-plan or shared office environments. 

However, there are a number of factors that are important to take into account to avoid noise nuisance, concentration problems, etc. leading to a poor working environment and cooperation problems. 

The less that is stored on SDUs servers, the less CO2 is emitted. It is therefore a good idea to tidy up your email inbox, computer or phone.

• Delete old documents that you no longer use or that are no longer relevant.
• Delete old emails, documents and programmes that you no longer use or that are no longer relevant.
• An easy way to delete data-heavy emails is to sort your inbox by size instead of date.
• Instead of sending data-heavy files by email, share them in your department’s Microsoft Teams group or another drive that you and your recipient can both access.
• Unsubscribe from newsletters you do not read.

• First consider whether you need to have the material in printed format.
• If printing is necessary, set your computer and printer to print on both sides by default.
• Then consider whether it is relevant to print in colour or whether you can print in black and white.

In 2019, the Citizen Science project, SDU Moves, was launched. A sustainable working day is not only about the reduction of CO2 emissions, but also about the health and well-being of employees. SDU Moves has been initiated to promote movement and culture in a hectic daily life.

In particular, the project focuses on promoting active meetings as a means of preventing and alleviating any pain caused by a sedentary working day.

SDU Moves encourages walking meetings and has compiled a number of tips on how best to organise them. In addition, they have also compiled an overview of walking routes in each campus city.

Simple exercises during the working day can prevent pain and injuries in the back, shoulders, neck, etc.