Environmental Lecture Series of TUM's Student Coucil provides impulses for transformation

Paths to a sustainability university

At the fishbowl discussion on the role of universities in the climate crisis, Vice President for Sustainable Transformation Werner Lang, undergraduate student Elias Singer, and doctoral candidate Lucia Layritz exchanged ideas on how TUM can be made climate-friendly. They debated how sustainability can be embedded in all areas of teaching and how students and staff can be empowered to actively shape change. Another focus was on the transformation of the campuses, as TUM aspires to be climate-neutral in terms of its energy consumption by 2028 – an enormous challenge. But only if universities themselves become sustainable can they act as credible agents of sustainability transformation beyond the academic field.

TUM is already taking very concrete steps towards this goal. With the Sustainable Futures Strategy 2030, the university, in collaboration with its staff and students, has developed a strategy that is committed to sustainability in all areas: from the promotion of research alliances on the topic and sustainable start-up initiatives, to resource-conserving campus operations and the expansion of Green Offices, to involvement in the countries of the Global South. This is how TUM's sustainability vision is to become reality: “Through responsibility, talent, scientific excellence and innovative strength, we are shaping a sustainable transformation of societies to ensure health and prosperity in harmony with nature and the environment for future generations.”