New sustainability objectives for KTH
Sustainable, equal and climate neutral. These three words summarise KTH’s new sustainable development and climate objectives.
These objectives consist of five university-wide sustainable development and climate objectives - with different time horizons. The sustainable development objectives concern the next five years, while the climate objective stretches to 2045. The objectives are broken down into sub goals, action plans and measures – where it is set out who should do what and by when.
“What is new compared to our previous goals is that we have merged our climate and sustainable development objectives, added some new headings and we talk about sustainable resource management with regard to our own activities. Gender Equality is also now included, as we feel this makes the work we do more effective and coordinated,” says Kristina von Oelreich, Sustainability Manager.
The first three objectives are about ensuring KTH is a leading university of technology with regard to sustainable development integrated into education, research and collaborations.
“We are already doing a great deal at KTH. Work linked to our core activities is what has the biggest impact on sustainability,” says von Oelreich.
The fourth and fifth objectives concern our own activities, to manage resources on an everyday basis and ensuring sustainable development and gender equality are an integral part of day to day life.
As previously, the sixth objective concerns KTH as a university of technology providing the lead for the climate reset and climate neutrality in society.
“We have come a fair way in this direction, when it comes to integration with education, and even in the case of research, we are well advanced within areas such as energy, materials and life science, for example. But we must not rest on our laurels,” says Sigbritt Karlsson, President, who adds:
“I am also going to recruit a new vice president for sustainable development in the near future.”
Will KTH be able to meet its objectives and can society in general succeed in the transition to climate neutrality?
“It’s a challenging situation, but I am an optimist. By working in a systematic and structured way with these issues both internally and externally, KTH has an incredibly important role to play in the development of society and for future generations, not least via our students,” says Karlsson.
“Yes, I think so. The reset as a consequence of Covid-19 shows that it can be done. When it comes to survival and a critical situation we, together with the surrounding society, can adapt,” says von Oelreich. “Ultimately, what is most important is that managers and employees take ownership of these issues in their day to day work. Adapting to a more sustainable society will take both leadership and courage.”
Text: Jill Klackenberg