Two research groups obtain My Green Lab certification at the Michael Sars Centre
Efforts to make the Christiaen and Burkhardt laboratories more sustainable were rewarded with the highest-level certification from international environmental organization My Green Lab. The initiative received support from the UiB Climate Fund.
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When the Geomicrobiology laboratory at the Centre for Deep Sea Research became the first Norwegian public laboratory to become certified by My Green Lab, Eva-Lena Nordmann, staff engineer in the Burkhardt group, was inspired to kick-start a similar process at the Michael Sars Centre. After a year of work in close collaboration with colleagues Paula Miramón-Puértolas, a former staff engineer in the Burkhardt group, and Margaux Failla, head engineer in the Christiaen group, both laboratories received the certification over the summer. “I am very happy to see this idea come to life and witness our team collaborating on this group effort together to shift our lab into a greener future”, Nordmann said. “Being part of such a wonderful collaboration is truly inspiring!”
Energy waste and consumables under scrutiny
A globally recognized organization endorsed by UN-backed sustainability programs, My Green Lab offers practical guidance and tools to laboratories eager to reduce their environmental footprint. From workplace culture to waste management and field work, participants are invited to evaluate their practices over a diverse range of thematics.
“I think that the biggest impact we had was first by switching all -80°C freezers to -70°C, which saves a huge amount of energy. Then we found out that by rearranging a few things, we could fully switch off one of them”, said Miramón-Puértolas. “My Green Lab forces you to look into these things, and I am proud of what we achieved.”
The process also allowed the team to get more familiar with the treatment of waste produced by research, an experience they described as eye-opening. As a result, they examined laboratory consumables and were able to swap products such as pipet tips for alternatives with greener packaging.
In recognition of the certification, the groups received a wooden plaque from My Green Lab.
Finding time to drive the change
From analyzing behaviors to learning about local waste management regulations and generating new guidelines – the path to sustainability is not trivial. “Making time for this was a shared challenge between the groups”, Miramón-Puértolas said. Failla agreed, adding, “Especially for postdocs and PhDs, it is a lot to consider. We had to engage people and find the motivation for making a change”.
Further support from the UiB Climate Fund
The certification was supported by grants from the UiB Climate Fund obtained by both groups in 2023, and for the team, it was only a first step towards better practices at the Centre. “This summer, I applied and got an additional 200.000kr from the Climate Fund in order to make more improvements”, Failla revealed. “Most of these improvements should be at the level of the Centre. We hope that other groups will also find the motivation to do this process!”
My Green Lab
My Green Lab is a non-profit organization that aims to build a culture of sustainability in science. Throughout their globally recognized My Green Lab® Certification program, they have supported 4000+ laboratories around the world on their path to greener practices in research.
The certification focuses on 14 actionnable categories including infrastructure energy, water and chemical use, resource management or travel. Labs receive a certification level—Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, or Green—based on the depth and breadth of sustainable practices adopted.
UiB Climate Fund
The UiB Climate Fund supports initiatives and measures that contribute to UiB’s work for a more climate and environmentally friendly university, either by directly reducing UiB's climate footprint, or by engaging students and staff in joint environmental and climate efforts.
Both students and employees can apply for funding for smaller or more extensive measures up to NOK 300,000.
There is one application deadline each semester. Learn more and apply on this page.
