Hi Reader, would you like to make your institution greener?
To succeed on a broader level, you’ll need to involve others and build a collective effort.
The challenge is that it’s often unclear where to start or whether you can do it on your own.
Here’s what I consider the easiest way to get started:
Today's Lesson: Getting Ready to Drive Change
A pragmatic guide to assembling the help you need
Number of the Day
According to a survey conducted by the Royal Society of Chemistry, 84% of scientists consider reducing their environmental footprint at work to be important. Similarly, a Frost & Sullivan survey commissioned by Agilent Technologies found that 82% of the 500 labs studied already implement some form of sustainable practice. The interest in sustainability is far more widespread than we often think. But how can we organize the passion that is shared within our institutions?
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How to Assemble Your Support
The first steps to initiate change are generally easy, even though they may feel intimidating.
If you have ever considered driving change at your institution, it’s fairly likely that everything you need is essentially already in place.
Especially in science, we are aware of the significant amounts of plastic waste in the laboratory. That means awareness and the desire for change are strong, it just takes a few people to initiate action.
The main challenge is often just uncertainty.
This is why, in the following, I want to give you some simple yet effective tips.
Finding the Dream Team
The first thing I would advise you to do is simply write an email.
It really is that simple. Others, as well as I, have seen surprising results.
Get the template here. I also included some prompt ideas if you want ChatGPT to rewrite it to fit your preferred style. And don’t worry, it’s not that other people will resent you, or that change is impossible due to the kind of research conducted or financial limitations. Rather, we often make it unnecessarily difficult to simply take action.
Remember, most people want to be more sustainable; however, they are often uncertain whether they really can be. If you lend them a helping hand, many will be grateful.
If you are in a leadership or management position, attach a short form for them to fill out and ask about their experiences and goals.
If you are an individual, simply invite them for a coffee or a meeting.
Pro tip: Send a second email to catch those who may have been too hesitant to respond to the first one. Empathy is key.
Create a Vision
While your email circulates, I would recommend putting together some resources.
However, do not think that you have to create them yourself! Save yourself that time.
Take advantage of the work others have already done - for example, I have compiled a fairly exhaustive overview for you.
The point is to get you up to date, but especially to give you an idea of the many different areas where sustainability can be applied.
This will be helpful for two reasons:
First, it will provide inspiration and proof of what is possible.
Second, some people will have very specific project ideas. If you can already point them to something useful, they will recognize you as someone who can make things happen.
Categorize Your Support
Once you have received responses to your email, it is all about assessment. Unfortunately, many people miss this step.
Don’t jump straight into action by trying to quantify your footprint or starting random projects. This will make your results messier and less organized.
But what should you assess? Here is my personal framework:
Support: How widely is sustainability represented—are there isolated individuals, informal networks, entire labs, departments, or core facilities involved?
Expertise: How deep is each person’s knowledge, and in which field? For example, do you have someone who understands how to optimize mass spectrometry, or someone knowledgeable about plastic recycling?
Progress: Where has action already been taken? Has there been optimization in procurement, waste management, infrastructure, or energy use? This helps you prioritize and build on existing efforts.
Readiness: Who is willing to work with you, how much time they can dedicate, and what motivates them?
You will gather this information from your new contacts. Then, you can also reach out to departments you haven’t heard from.
In the end, you might come up with a plan like this, where you can note where changes have happened and where you will receive support. Floor plans can be helpful, as people in institutes often know each other due to overlapping topics or physical proximity. Don’t lose track of the small details, they matter!
Again, it’s very simple - most people miss out because they think they need a complex system for all of this.
Pro tip: Ask those who have already driven change to provide a concrete, written overview of what has been done. This makes it easier to share and gives you a clearer understanding, especially if you are not an expert. If you later work with an advisor, you will already have everything prepared to share.
Don't Overcomplicate, Just Go
Once you have assembled all of this, it is time to put the pieces together and get started.
Now, you are better prepared than most other institutions that have been able to make change happen.
Especially if you’re working on bigger projects, such as carbon footprint analyses, you’ll need to know whom to talk to. Speaking from experience, it’s critical to have your contacts ready when you need data, information, or support. If you’re interested in this topic, I’ve outlined it for you here.
Pro tip: When deciding where to act, consider not only what you will do but also how much effort it requires and how long it will take.
If you need help or data from others, first check whether they are responsive before committing to that project.
Applying the Knowledge
Don’t worry, even if you are an introvert, this will be easier than you think!
You are connecting over a shared goal - you are not trying to convince people or lead a movement. There is no need to change who you are.
There is a lot of flexibility in this plan. It’s up to you, for example, you can meet those who want to support you one-on-one or in a group, whatever suits you best. The same applies to outreach and strategizing. And if you have an advisor or supporter, you’ll likely just need to coordinate with them. Also, you will not annoy anyone - if someone is not interested, they will simply ignore your email.
All in all, don't think you have to figure it all out yourself. This is most often the reason why change stalls.
If you are not directly involved in the lab, consider working with an advisor or consultant. They can help identify quick wins and guide larger efforts.
Remember, people may leave or become unavailable for personal reasons. Therefore, be realistic about what you can handle yourself.
If you have an advisor/consultant at hand, simply tell them what you can and cannot do. That is what they are there for!
How We Feel Today
References
Freese, T., et al., 2024. The relevance of sustainable laboratory practices. RSC Sustainability, 2(5), pp.1300–1336. doi:10.1039/D4SU00056K.
Penndorf, P., et al., 2023. A new approach to making scientific research more efficient - rethinking sustainability. FEBS Letters, 597(19), pp. 2371–2374. doi:10.1002/1873-3468.14736.
If you have a wish or a question, feel free to reply to this Email. Otherwise, wish you a beautiful week! See you again on the 30th : )
Edited by Patrick Penndorf Connection@ReAdvance.com Lutherstraße 159, 07743, Jena, Thuringia, Germany Data Protection & Impressum If you think we do a bad job: Unsubscribe
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