Driving and advancing the university’s socio-ecological transformation
The University of Strasbourg is making socio-ecological transformation a central pillar of its strategy and applying it to all its activities. For example:
- Integrating environmental and social considerations into all undergraduate programmes
- Implementing a carbon strategy across laboratories
- Developing research through networks, partnerships and programmes, such as the League of European Research Universities (LERU), the European Partnership for an Innovative Campus Unifying Regions (EPICUR) and the Switch Interdisciplinary Thematic Institute (ITI Switch)
- Transforming campus management to reduce environmental impact and promote biodiversity
- Raising awareness of eco-responsibility among staff and students
Putting our commitment to socio-ecological transformation into action
To uphold its commitment to socio-ecological transformation, the University of Strasbourg has created a Vice-Presidency and Office dedicated to socio-ecological transformation. The Sustainable Development and Social Responsibility Office (mission Développement durable et responsabilité sociétale – DDRS) leads transformation projects, supports other university services, faculties, schools, institutes and laboratories in their own projects and raises awareness of sustainable development issues among the university community.
Almost all university services, faculties, schools, institutes and laboratories have a Sustainable Development and Social Responsibility Officer. This network of dedicated officers helps implement the strategy and address needs as best as possible.
The university has also created a Strategic Committee on Sustainable Development for guidance and support.
Go to the "Sustainable Development and Social Responsibility Office" web page
A recognised commitment
In 2024, the University of Strasbourg received the Sustainable Development and Social Responsibility award (label Développement durable et responsabilité sociétale – DD&RS). Based on the DD&RS famework (référentiel de développement durable et de responsabilité sociétale des établissements d'enseignement, de recherche et d'innovation), it recognises French higher education and research institutions that actively promote sustainability and social responsibility.
The process for obtaining the award helped the university to identify areas for improvement, engage members of the university community and gain national recognition for its socio-ecological transformation policy. The university is committed to sustaining its efforts and supporting other institutions in the continuous improvement of their sustainable development and social responsibility policies.
Driving socio-ecological change in the region
The University of Strasbourg is recognsied for driving socio-ecological transformation in the region. It is a founding member of the Strasbourg Eurometropole Climate Agency (Agence du climat de l’Eurométropole de Strasbourg), a partner of the Sustainable Development Forum (Forum du développement durable), a coordinator of a sustainable development thematic community in partnership with the the French Agency for Ecological Transition (Agence de l'environnement et de la maîtrise de l'énergie – ADEME) and a member of the Upper Rhine Conference (Conférence du Rhin supérieur).
The University of Strasbourg collaborates with seven Alsatian institutions, as well as the Regional Centre for University and Student Services (Centre régional des œuvres universitaires et scolaires – Crous) as part of the Alsace Site Agreement (contrat de site alsacien). This partnership has enabled the development of a shared strategy, namely the Alsace Site Sustainable Development and Social Responsibility Road Map (schéma directeur développement durable et responsabilité sociétale du Site Alsace) and the implementation of concrete collective actions in areas such as biodiversity, mobility and energy efficiency.
For example, a resource efficiency officer has been appointed to help institutions monitor their consumption and implement energy performance strategies and initiatives.
Discover the University of Strasbourg's partner institutions
Reducing our impact on the environment
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions
In 2021, the University of Strasbourg conducted its carbon footprint assesment. The results provided the basis for a low-carbon transition plan. This plan includes 12 actions and sets out a road map to cut the university’s greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2050. The actions focus on the university’s three main sources of emissions: travel, what the university buys and energy.
Managing energy more efficiently
The University of Strasbourg has over 150 buildings, meaning it consumes a large amount of energy. To reduce energy use and related greenhouse gas emissions, the university focuses on improving the energy efficiency of both existing and new buildings, producing renewable energy locally (such as solar panels and geothermal systems), and raising awareness among building managers and users. A number of projects support this approach, for example:
- Centralised technical management (Gestion technique centralisée – GTC) allows the university to remotely control heating, electricity, water and gas in connected buildings. Meters in each building also give a clearer picture of energy use, helping to better manage it
- The university has launched a campaign on eco-friendly habits to encourage sustainable daily practices
- The university took part in the Efficient Building Usage Competition (Concours usage bâtiments efficaces) (École européenne d'ingénieurs de chimie, polymères et matériaux – ECPM and IUT Louis Pasteur)
- Connected to Strasbourg’s district heating network (réseau de chaleur Strasbourg centre) since the 1960s, 70% of the university’s heating now comes from a biomass power plant
- The university has built a datacenter with an innovative heating and cooling management system. Heat from the servers heats the laboratories on the upper floors and six neighboring buildings through an intelligent network. For cooling, cold groundwater is used in a closed loop to cool the datacenter. The water is then returned to the aquifer slightly warmed, free from pollution
Preserving biodiversity on campus
The University of Strasbourg manages around 60 hectares of green spaces across its campuses. To preserve and enhance biodiversity, the university has been taking action since 2007. For example, the university has:
- Stopped using pesticides
- Signed the Tous unis pour plus de biodiversité de l'Eurométropole de Strasbourg charter in 2009
- Reduced mowing and watering
- Limited light pollution
- Planted trees and shrubs on the Illkirch campus
- Installed nesting boxes to support wildlife
Further action is still needed to strenghten biodiversity across the campuses. The university is currently developing an ecological management plan for outdoor spaces. This plan will rethink how green spaces are managed across all campuses, introduce new biodiversity-friendly features and raise awareness among campus users about environmental protection.
Reducing the carbon impact of travel
The University of Strasbourg benefits from France’s largest cycling network and an extensive public transport system of buses, trams and trains that connects all its campuses. Travel accounts for almost half of the university’s greenhouse gas emissions. To reduce this impact, the university actively promotes sustainable ways to get around, for example:
- Organising bike sales and self-repair workshops for students and staff
- Offering staff an incentive-based remote working scheme and developing shared remote working spaces
- Improving campus facilities to make bicycle parking easier and more accessible
- Providing bikes for professional travel on and between campuses
- Encouraging staff to travel by train rather than by plane for long-distance business trips
- Preparing a Sustainable Mobility Plan to reinforce these measures and further reduce the environmental impact of university travel
Discover how to get around the University of Strasbourg campuses and beyond
Recycling, composting and reducing Waste
For several years, the University of Strasbourg has worked to reduce waste on its campuses through practical measures and raising awareness. For example, the university:
- Has installed waste sorting points and recycling stations in some of its buildings
- Has set up composting sites in partnership with CompoStra
- Runs awareness activities during welcome days and campus events
- Includes waste-reduction requirements in its contracts, such as the use of reusable tableware for catering services
- Organises the donation of ageing IT equipment to charities
- Has reduced the number of promotional items it distributes
Adopting responsible digital practices
In 2024, the President of the University of Strasbourg signed the INR Sustainable IT Charter (charte de l'Institut du numérique responsable de l'Institut du numérique responsable – INR). In line with this charter, the university has implemented a range of practical actions, including:
- Raising awareness through campaigns and workshops on eco-friendly digital habits, run by the Digital Culture Centre (Centre de culture numérique – CCN)
- Extending the lifespan of IT equipment by increasing warranty periods (up to seven years)
- Implementing a responsible digital procurement policy that includes environmental and social criteria
- Designing software and websites with sustainability in mind
- Reusing heat from the datacenter to warm nearby buildings
- Cooling the datacenter using groundwater in a closed loop before returning it to the aquifer
- Replacing desk phones with a computer-based phone system, giving thousands of fixed handsets a second life
- Reassigning computers within the university or donating them to organisations that support social causes
Go to the Digital Road Map (Schéma directeur du numérique) page on the intranet (Ernest)
Buying responsibly
Since September 2020, the University of Strasbourg and its partners in Alsace have adopted a Sustainable Procurement Charter (Charte des achats durables). When renewing public contracts, the university gives priority to suppliers that demonstrate a strong commitment to sustainable development. In particular, the university has committed to:
- Centralising procurement
- Using eco-certified cleaning products
- Buying refurbished or easily repairable electronic equipment
- Reducing the number of promotional items
- Phasing out disposable tableware and offering more vegetarian options, as well as locally sourced and organic food in catering services
Raising awareness of socio-ecological tranformation across the university
The Sustainable Development and Social Responsibility Office (Mission développement durable et responsabilité sociétale – DDRS) works to raise awareness of socio-ecological challenges across the university community and encourage more sustainable everyday practices, both individually and collectively. Working with other internal university structures, as well as external partners such as student associations, it organises and supports activities throughout the year, including:
- Communication campaigns
- An annual spring programme dedicated to ecological transition
- Collaborative workshops
- Hands-on workshops such as cooking and bike self-repair
- Talks and conferences
Sustainable transformation in teaching and training
At the University of Strasbourg, all Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes include teaching on ecological transition for sustainable development (transformation écologique pour un développement soutenable – TEDS). The Institute for Educational Development and Innovation (Institut de développement et d'innovation pédagogiques – IDIP) supports teaching staff with guidance, resources and practical tools.
The Sustainable Development and Social Responsibility Office is also developing a dedicated learning pathway for staff, helping them understand sustainability challenges and adopt more eco-responsible practices in their daily work.
Guiding researchers towards sustainable research practices
The Sustainable Development and Social Responsibility Office helps laboratories embed socio-ecological practices into their work. Its actions include:
- Supporting laboratories in carrying out greenhouse gas assessments (bilan d'émissions de gaz à effet de serre – BEGES) and developing their transformation plans
- Coordinating a network of researchers to bring together initiatives and share experiences
- Guiding laboratories in identifying actions tailored to their specific transition needs
Useful resources
Legal texts and references
- Document d’orientation stratégique 2030 (French version)
- Strategic Road Map 2030
- University carbon footprint
- Sustainable Development and Social and Environmental Responsibility Road Map
- Digital Road Map