Nobel Prize Winner Among Team of Dutch Researchers Encouraging Green Labs Best Practices

“It is in our very nature as scientists that we want to understand life, molecules, materials, physical principles, and its laws of nature- however by our action we are not only harming ourselves but also the planet surrounding us.” This is a quote from a recent publication in Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) Sustainability, titled “The relevance of sustainable laboratory practices” written by several researchers from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, including the 2016 Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry, Ben Feringa. In the US, C&EN published “How Groningen’s labs are going green”to highlight the article. It reports on a case study at the University of Groningen where they analyzed the large environmental footprint of their research and demonstrated significant progress for reducing resource consumption through widespread engagement of their researchers. The RSC article is also acting as a global call-to-action to “advocate for and spark leadership to promote a systemic change in laboratory practices and approach to research.” It encourages action by researchers, research institutions, and others such as funding bodies, publishers, and suppliers/manufacturers to adopt eco-friendly standards. 

Reported actions by the University of Groningen’s Green Labs team include LEAF (Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework) certification of labs, replacing inefficient laboratory equipment, adjusting freezer temperatures, and encouraging safe lab practices to name just a few. The article states, “Since the implementation of sustainable laboratory efforts 46 freezers were increased in temperature from −80 °C to −70 °C, which saves 81,030 kWh annually equalling to the energy consumption of 27–32 Dutch households.” Additionally, two efforts of the University of Colorado Boulder are recognized in the publication: solvent recycling which saves money and reduces hazardous waste, and the Biochemistry Shared Cell Culture Case Study for its demonstration of 30% lab space savings from sharing equipment. 

This publication also discusses the challenges that need to be addressed to advance sustainability further in laboratories including the need for a cultural shift where “management, supervisors, and colleagues recognize the ‘voluntary’ work on sustainable laboratory practices as important rather than ‘unproductive’” and the need for change by granting bodies “to introduce incentives to, e.g. reduce plastic waste and make greener lab practices a requirement in the application process.” On the latter point, the authors share that researchers can visit “initiatives such as the Million Advocates for Sustainable Science (MASS) or BETR Grants organized by My Green Lab and [International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories] I2SL to demonstrate support for a systemic change within the global science funding system.”  

Learn more about Green Labs in this video created featuring a message from Nobel Prize winner, Ben Feringa: