My university is doing something

Waste separation

• A color-coded system makes it easier to separate and assign the different waste fractions: Paper (blue), light packaging (yellow), organic waste (brown) and residual waste (black) .

In the offices

• The paper bins in the offices are only intended for waste paper. They are emptied weekly as part of the cleaning process.

In the tea kitchens

• There are bins for lightweight packaging (DSD/green dot), organic waste and residual waste. They are emptied daily as part of the cleaning process.

In the copy rooms

• Larger bins for waste paper are available here. They are emptied daily by the cleaning service provider.

Building entrances/foyers

• Triple collection systems for paper, lightweight packaging (DSD/green dot) and residual waste are available in the foyers and entrance areas of buildings with high fluctuation.

Outdoor areas

• Residual waste containers are available throughout the outdoor area. Bins for lightweight packaging (DSD/green dot) and waste paper are also provided near cafés and lecture halls.

Deposit ring pilot project:

In spring 2024, we will carry out a pilot project with three deposit rings to collect deposit bottles from garbage cans in front of the canteen. The idea is that no deposit bottles end up in the residual waste bin (waste separation principle), but are recycled, which is economical, ecological  and social! Join in!

Drinking water dispenser:

Drinking tap water instead of mineral water also reduces waste and conserves resources. Several drinking water dispensers have been set up in the Campus Center and in the BiB at Hopla, in Witzenhausen and in Wilhelmshöher-Allee for the free use of drinking water. More are planned.

Paper reduction measures(UBA, 2020):

• Digitization of documents and scan-to-email save paper and archive space.
• Information on the internet makes some archiving superfluous.
• Take waste paper to its destination on foot or by bike and save additional costs, e.g. by transporting it by car.
• The same applies to recycled paper: use it sparingly.
• If you have a printer, use the duplex function (double-sided printing) and the reduce function (print 2 pages on 1 page).
• Green printing software removes blank pages and unnecessary information from the file to be printed.

In addition:

• Look out for seals such as Blue Angel for recycled paper
• Use public bookcases

University goals in the area of procurement:

By 2026, the university would like to define binding criteria for sustainable procurement in the procurement regulations and ensure compliance with them through a service directive. Sustainable procurement takes into account the entire life cycle of a product. The focus here is on climate and environmental friendliness as well as compliance with human and labor rights.

Sustainability criteria should be created for the following products, as negative environmental and climate impacts as well as human rights and labor rights violations occur particularly frequently in these areas:

• Office supplies and paper,
• External print jobs,
• Office equipment and office furniture,
• Cleaning and hygiene products,
• cleaning services,
• foodstuffs,
• Marketing and gift items,
• Flowers and plants,
• Building materials (esp. natural stone, paving stones, wood) and construction services,
• textiles,
• workwear and protective clothing,
• carpets,
• electrical appliances,
• information and communication equipment,
• vehicles and vehicle fleet,
• Sporting goods (e.g. balls).

At the beginning of 2024, the Green Office, in cooperation with Fairtrade Deutschland e.V., is organizing a strategy workshop to which, among others, the Department of Central Materials Management at the University of Kassel has been invited.

Saving energy

Together, we reduced our electricity consumption by 6% and our heat consumption by 22% in the winter of 2022/2023 through energy-saving behaviour and targeted technical and organizational measures. We therefore exceeded our savings targets and also made an important contribution to climate protection.

The following checklists and information show how everyone can not only save electricity (e.g. in the office, kitchenette or lecture hall), but also heat, e.g. through correct ventilation. They also show how to make your own mobility more sustainable and thus save energy.

• Saving energy in the office
• Saving energy in the kitchenette
• Saving energy in the lecture hall, seminar and meeting room
• Saving heat and ventilating properly

• Focus on mobility

Energy targets by 2025

• Further expansion of renewable energies by a further 400 kWp
• Further reduce energy consumption, by a further 5% for electricity and a further 10% for heat
• energy consumption should be presented in an easily understandable way and made transparent for all university stakeholders
• the installation of heat pumps in all central water heaters at the University of Kassel should lead to a reduction in natural gas consumption and contribute to heating the buildings

• Give preference to climate-friendly means of transportation (buses and trains are superior to cars and domestic flights in terms of their carbon footprint)
• Prefer telephone and video conferences to business trips

The AStA also has a wide range of offers:

• Use nextbike and borrow a bike free of charge for 60 minutes. 

• Bicycle workshop at Hopla

• Cargo bike rental

Location Witzenhausen:

• RadHaus / bicycle self-help workshop       

• NVV /Mobilfalt

• Werra-Meißner climate protection network / charging stations

Through infrastructure and behavior-changing measures, the university is helping to increase the share of walking, cycling and public transport in the commuting behavior of university members to ideally at least 85% by 2029 (currently 67% for employees, 69% for students). It also promotes an electromobility-friendly design of the campus. When employees travel on business and students travel abroad, awareness should be raised for the choice of sustainable travel options in the interests of greenhouse gas neutrality. Domestic flights should be avoided, and public transport and rail should be preferred for intra-European flights. Awareness is to be raised for the increased organization of and participation in virtual conferences. When purchasing new vehicles, the vehicle fleet is to be gradually converted to cars with electric drives; from 2025, electric drives are to be preferred for all new car purchases. Where reduction is impossible, compensation will take effect.

Get involved:

With our idea workshops and Sustain Groups, we offer participation formats that aim to find innovative solutions for the sustainable development of university operations and campus life in a participatory process from the development of ideas to the conception, planning and implementation of measures.

The university's outdoor areas are to be increasingly developed in an ecologically high-quality and climate-adapted manner. A concept for sustainable open space management is also being drawn up for this purpose. Wherever possible, the microclimate and quality of stay are to be improved and biodiversity increased.

Where possible, areas are to be successively unsealed by 2029 and planted with vegetation with a cooling effect. To this end, an additional unsealing concept with a list of criteria will be drawn up to help reduce the amount of sealed surfaces. This basis is binding and must be taken into account when considering the development and use of land.

Save water and conserve resources, e.g. by drinking tap water instead of buying bottled water and using our drinking water dispensers.

The university wants to reduce its fresh water consumption by using gray water and rainwater and is striving for a rainwater management system that includes a wide-area infiltration of rainwater from general pavement areas.