The idea for this initiative originated from four honours students. Last year, they worked on a proposal in their track ‘Processes of Change’. They joined forces with sustainability officer Brechje Maréchal and then continued working on the idea together. Now there is green light from the Executive Board for the establishment of Green Hub Twente.
‘There are already many different initiatives in the field of sustainability within the UT community, often simultaneously, without staff and students being aware of each other,’ says Maréchal. The Green Hub Twente must become a central point to bundle all knowledge, initiatives and forces. According to Maréchal, the hub will also play an active role in shaping and implementing new sustainability initiatives.
‘No messing around in the margin’
It’s all meant to make the UT more sustainable in the field of education, research and management. ‘This could include a sustainable enterprise programme, connecting researchers and creating visibility for research projects related to sustainability, proactive engagement in more focus on sustainability in education,’ co-initiator Wytze Haan sums up. ‘And also organising an annual Sustainability Week, lectures and discussion sessions.
Maréchal adds: ‘Other universities in the Netherlands also have such a green office and everyone implements it differently. What we want to avoid is messing around in the margin. This hub must be a serious and integrated part of the UT.’
Loose ends
There are still some loose ends. It is currently unclear where this hub will be located in the Bastille. The UT also has to recruit a full-time coordinator and then find students who want to be the first to run the Green Hub. ‘We want to complete those processes before the summer, so that the students can present themselves during the Kick-In and can get to work in September,’ says Maréchal.
