TUM Sustainability
How can we make our university more sustainable and environmentally friendly and – in doing so – increase our contribution to global sustainability efforts?
What sustainability means to us
Sustainability is a key element of our future development agenda. That is why we are preparing a comprehensive strategy that will balance environmental, economic and social dimensions, and engage all stakeholders across all disciplines at our university. Because sustainability is not prescriptive. It can only be brought to life through the daily actions of each and every one of us – from students and lecturers to researchers and non-academic staff.
Sustainability is more than a vision or a target. It’s a process. As such, we will continue to face new tasks and challenges going forward, and we will tackle these in a targeted and effective manner. This calls for a holistic, systematic understanding of sustainability. Ultimately, new measures and projects must balance conflicting interests and interdependencies at the complex interfaces between different dimensions, while always striving to realize ambitious targets.
How we are forming our strategy
Together, we are identifying the building blocks required to create a holistic strategy that will act as a roadmap for our sustainability journey; an action plan fitting of a university of international standing with the power to influence society, industry and policy-makers. It is our objective to unleash the full sustainability potential of TUM across our key action areas: research – education & lifelong learning – entrepreneurship. We set focus on sustainability in our campus & operations and are in the process of creating the necessary governance structures, building on the commitment and support of the entire university community. Communication and knowledge transfer are key success factors in the process.
- Sustainability office: Brings together all existing initiatives and ideas under an overarching strategic framework, supports their implementation, and generates new ideas and projects through cooperation.
- Sustainability taskforce: In spring 2020, the taskforce wrote a comprehensive report to underpin the sustainability function’s strategy. The taskforce members remain strongly committed to the issue – both within their respective disciplines and for the university as a whole.
Four experts, one goal: How can society be won over to a more sustainable lifestyle? And what role do universities and research institutes play in this process? These questions are discussed by Prof. Dr. Thomas Brück, Foundation Director and TUM alumna Dr. María José Barragán-Paladines, student Tabea Riemensperger, and entrepreneur Dr. Andreas Sichert. Read the interview
Top-of-their-game scientists from around the world, excellent facilities and resources, and interdisciplinary teams all combine to inspire real innovations and valuable insights into how we can improve environmental, economic and social sustainability.
A snapshot of our research activities
- TUM Campus Straubing for Biotechnology and Sustainability: Cross-disciplinary research and teaching at this integrative research center focus on renewable resources, biotechnology and bioeconomy.
- Research Station Friedrich N. Schwarz: High up in the Berchtesgaden Alps, researchers are studying the alpine ecosystem and investigating new methods of teaching science in schools. All of this happens in a sustainable wooden building at an altitude of 1,262 meters.
- Schneefernerhaus environmental research station on the Zugspitze: In cooperation with other universities and research institutes, we conduct research into key environmental and climate issues on the highest mountain in Germany.
- Winners of the TUM Sustainability Award: We have been awarding this prize since 2019 for outstanding scientific contributions to a more sustainable future.
Other examples
The future belongs to future generations – our students! That is why we incorporate sustainability thinking into our study programs and even place it center stage on certain courses, for instance with the unique range of programs offered at the TUM Campus Straubing for Biotechnology and Sustainability. We equip the next generation with the skills they will need to make sustainable decisions for the good of our planet and society. This is the essence of “human-centered engineering”.
A snapshot of our study programs
- Agrosystem Sciences – Master of Science (M.Sc.)
- Forest Science and Resource Management – Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.)
- Green Electronics – Master of Science (M.Sc.) at TUM Asia, Singapur
- Ecological Engineering – Master of Science (M.Sc.)
- Politics & Technology – Master of Science (M.Sc.) at the the Bavarian School of Public Policy (HfP)
- Resource Efficient and Sustainable Building – Master of Science (M.Sc.)
- Responsibility in Science, Engineering and Technology (RESET) – Master of Arts (M.A.)
- Sustainable Energies and Entrepreneurship in the Global South – Master of Science (M.Sc.) / planned for winter semester 2021/22
- Sustainable Resource Management – Master of Science (M.Sc.)
- TUM Campus Straubing for Biotechnology and Sustainability: Degree program overview
- Urbanism – Urban and Landscape Studies and Design – Master of Science (M.Sc.)
- … search all degree programs
Our Sustainable Living Labs
- The pilot project Plant A Seed campus gardening
Other options
- Modules at the Munich School of Philosophy: Ethics and questions around society for science and technology students (in German)
- EuroTeQ Engineering Campus: We develop study programs and continuous learning programs for the engineering graduates of the future in cooperation with our partner universities in the EuroTech Universities Alliance
- Sustainability Council following the UN model: Students at TUM Campus Straubing for Biotechnology and Sustainability simulate a United Nations conference
- TUM goes COP – our students at the UN Conferences of Parties (COP) on climate change
Our students are active in many different projects, initiatives and societies and engage with sustainability topics in a variety of ways. By applying their academic knowledge, they embody TUM’s mission of thinking and acting like an entrepreneurial university. In the process, they have formed friendships and networks across Europe and the rest of the world.
A snapshot of our projects and initiatives
- „Ringvorlesung Umwelt“ (lecture series on the environment) and more environmental activities of TUM’s student representation
- Green Office Campus Straubing
- Green Office Campus Weihenstephan
- TU empower Africa
- TUM Speakers Series; eg. with former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
- TUfast Eco Team
- Ingenieure ohne Grenzen (Engineers without borders)
- Other student initiatives: Everyone is welcome to get involved!
Successful tech companies have emerged from the inventions of our researchers and students. The innovations they develop bring the topic of sustainability to a wider public audience. TUM is the top German university for the number of entrepreneurs who transition their idea from the lab to the market.
A snapshot of our start-ups
- Evum Motors: Electric vehicle for Germany and in particular for countries in the Global South (aCar)
- fos4X: Efficiency gains for wind turbines with digital solutions
- Hawa Dawa: AI-based air quality data analysis
- Kitekraft: Power-generating kites
- Orcan Energy: Producing electricity from waste heat
- Presize: Reducing online shopping returns by trying on clothes virtually in advance
Today’s start-ups are attaching more and more importance to sustainability, as revealed by a Europe-wide online survey conducted by UnternehmerTUM GmbH (05/2020).
Society needs to act together to transform our world into a more sustainable place. That is why we collaborate with our international partners to find solutions, develop technologies, and create new training and learning concepts.
A snapshot of our collaborations
- EuroTech Universities Alliance: “Sustainable Society” is one of the main focus topics of our cooperation with EuroTech partner universities. Our research projects include smart technologies for environmental protection in the digital age.
- International Sustainable Campus Network (ISCN): On an international level, we joined this network with universities on all continents with strong commitments and leading positions in sustainability.
- Bavarian Network for Sustainability in Higher Education: We are part of a 25-strong Bavarian university network which, building on a common understanding of sustainability, pools its resources in support of a whole-institutional approach to sustainability.
- European Knowledge and Innovation Communities (EIT-KICs): We work toward the sustainable production of food (EIT FOOD), develop sustainable mobility concepts (EIT Urban Mobility) and think of innovative measures to mitigate climate change (Climate-KIC).
- TUM without borders – Development cooperation at TUM: Teaming up with local partners around the world, TUM academics, students and staff make valuable contributions to more sustainable economic, social and environmental infrastructures in developing countries.
- TUM Seed Center: Interdisciplinary research and teaching combined with entrepreneurship is supporting the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations by focusing on sustainable, low-cost energy as a driver of development in the Global South.