INSTITUTIONAL ACTIVITIES
The University of Trieste contributes to the aims of Goal 12 with policies aimed at sustainable production and consumption and the circular economy. Specifically, these include:
- the Acqua di Rete di Trieste (Trieste Water Network – AreTS) project to install 11 distribution points on the main University sites providing micro-filtered water to encourage users to drink tap-water and reduce the invasive and excessive use of plastic;
- distribution to first-year students of re-usable water bottles with a low carbon footprint supply chain;
- an energy efficient building plan, to limit energy consumption and increase energy production from renewal sources (solar energy);
- a University system of differentiated waste collection of paper, glass-plastic-cans, batteries, plant waste, and undifferentiated material;
- actions to de-materialise administrative processes in order to reduce the amount of material consumed (above all paper and plastic) and waste produced;
- initiatives to encourage sustainable mobility and the use of local public transport through special season-tickets for staff and students;
- rigorous application of Criteri Ambientali Minimi (Minimum Environmental Criteria – CAM) and attention to Acquisti Verdi nella pubblica amministrazione (Green Public Procurement – GPP);
- participation in the Rete delle Università per lo Sviluppo Sostenibile (Network of Universities for Sustainable Development - RUS) workgroups:
- Resources and waste, concerned with management (collection, temporary storage, transport and treatment) of all waste produced in universities, implementing legislative norms and techniques. In terms also of the “circular economy”, the group further collects and disseminates practices to raise awareness of correct waste management, encouraging conduct to prevent the initial production of the waste that ranges from the use or limited/shared use of given objects or substances to the virtuous management of goods and materials in order to extend their useful life as much as possible.
- Climate Changes, which aims to guide the University’s commitment in actions to combat climate change;
- Energy, aiming to promote energy sustainability in universities and local communities;
- Mobility, focused on policies and initiatives in university mobility management aimed at sustainable mobility;
- “Food”, looking at food consumption models among university staff and students in order to make universities a sustainable food consumption model for the local community;
- participation in the “Green Metric” international sustainability ranking table, in which the results in the section “Waste” indicate that the University’s performance in 2020 was excellent
- the work of the University’s Technical Office
- initiatives of the Rector’s Delegates for:
- External sites
- Waste management
- Mobility management
- Sustainability
- Administrative simplification and institutional agreements
- the work of the Energy Manager
TEACHING
The University of Trieste teaching programmes contribute to Goal 12 with first degree courses, Master’s degree courses, doctorates and, in general, postgraduate programmes in various departments, as well as through the 2nd level specialised Master in “Sustainable Blue Growth”, organised in collaboration with the Istituto Nazionale di Oceanografia e di Geofisica Sperimentale (National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics – OGS) and taught in English.
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The Master Programme aims at enriching the didactic offer to young people living in the Mediterranean region, in the marine and maritime sector, in order to foster sustainable economic development and responsible growth, and to contribute in promoting employment in the so-called blue jobs sector, while at the same time striving to facilitate dialogue between Mediterranean countries, thanks to Science Diplomacy. |
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RESEARCH AND THIRD MISSION
Research, third mission, knowledge transfer and public engagement work undertaken in departments (ArTS – Archivo della ricerca di Trieste (Trieste Research Archive)), together with patents, Spin-offs and Start-ups within the University of Trieste technology transfer system, contribute to Goal 12 objectives.
