Green Erasmus

The European Commission is currently working on ways to make the new generation of the Erasmus+ programme ‘greener’ in the future.

With the aim of integrating Erasmus+ into the European Green Deal, the programme’s content and scope are to be used to unlock the potential for ecological transformation and reduce its environmental impact.

Since 1 September 2020, TH Köln has been part of an Erasmus+ Strategic Partnership addressing the environmental impact of the Erasmus programme, known as the Green Erasmus project. The long-term aim is to help the programme achieve the greatest possible environmental friendliness and sustainability, without neglecting the programme’s existing benefits.

Co-funded by the European Union (Image: EU)

In general, sustainable internationalisation is set to become increasingly important in the coming years. Through the Green Erasmus project, TH Köln hopes to contribute to this and, using the insights gained, to provide long-term support to universities, staff and students in creating environmentally friendly internationalisation experiences.

Project objectives:

•     To reduce the negative aspects of the Erasmus+ programme in the long term
•     To raise awareness among European universities of the importance of sustainable internationalisation
•     To empower students and student organisations to advocate for change and demand improvements in environmental sustainability

Desired outcomes:

•     Students (and staff) use more environmentally friendly means of transport during their stays abroad.
•     Students become more mindful and critical consumers during their semesters abroad.
•     University staff actively support the ‘Sustainable Erasmus’ project.
•     Sustainability is a key theme in activities carried out by student organisations.

To achieve these objectives, the following six project partners from Belgium, Luxembourg, the UK and Germany are working together:

•    Erasmus Student Network/ Belgium
•    European University Foundation-campus Europe/ Luxembourg
•    Students Organising For Sustainability UK/ United Kingdom
•    Université Libre de Bruxelles/ Belgium
•    European Students’ Union/ Belgium
•    TH Köln University of Applied Sciences/ Germany

The collaboration focuses on the following five work packages:

1.       The Green Erasmus Research (Lead: ULB). The results of the survey have been published and are available to read.

2.       Sustainable Internationalisation for Universities (Lead: EUF)

3.       Student-Oriented Approach to Sustainable Internationalisation (Lead: TH Köln)

4.       Educational Framework for Environmental Sustainability in the Classroom (Lead: ESU)

5.       Toolkit for Environmental Sustainability Activities (Lead: ESN)

The results will be presented at two conferences in October 2021 and October 2022.

The first phase of the Green Erasmus project has been completed. In an online event hosted by ESN Europe, the initial findings of the surveys on sustainable mobility and sustainability at universities will be presented under the title ‘The challenge of sustainable mobility: the launch of the Green Erasmus survey report’.

The project runs from 1 September 2020 to 31 December 2022.