The University of Antwerp has the objective to be climate neutral by 2030 with an effective emission reduction of at least 55% and wants to be completely fossil-free by 2050. These ambitious but necessary goals are at the heart of the university's climate strategy to go from zero measurement in 2019 to fossil-free.
In March 2023, a new carbon footprint was issued for the year 2021 for the categories energy and mobility. This shows that in terms of energy and mobility, the University of Antwerp is for now on course to meet its targets. For mobility, the possibility of working from home and travel restrictions as a result of covid measures play an important role in the reduction of CO2e emissions. The strong decrease in CO2e emissions in terms of energy is due to the purchase of 100% locally produced green electricity. Natural gas consumption increased slightly. Therefore, to stay on track, fossil-free alternatives for heating and cooling all buildings should be fully deployed.
Several thematic working groups are active within the Climate Team, each in a specific area. Discover here the climate strategy, proposed actions and achievements per topic.