In the past few years there has been an increasing focus on sustainability worldwide. We find it important as a study association to contribute to a better climate and to be an example to our members. We want to achieve this by creating awareness among our members and by implementing sustainability in our daily operations. Every year a Sustainability Marketing Event is organised during the Sustainability Marketing Week and the MARUG has a Sustainability Officer in its board and in most of its committees. In turn, we hope to contribute to a better, cleaner and more livable world.
For these efforts, the MARUG has received the Silver Label from the Green Office of the University of Groningen. The Green Office is part of the Program Sustainability of the University and measures how sustainable an association is. Participating associations can obtain a Gold Label, Silver Label, Bronze Label, but can also not be granted a Green Office Green Label at all. We achieved the Bronze label in 2019-2020 and 2020-2021. Last year, we achieved the Silver label.
Waste Management:
In the Netherlands we produce almost 500 kilos of waste per person every year. This makes waste one of the most important contributors to environmental degradation. Therefore, the MARUG aims to make its waste management more sustainable through separation, recycling, reuse and reduction of paper use.
Waste is separated at the MARUG offices at all times. Furthermore, the MARUG recycles its waste, which not only saves resources but also saves energy consumption and greenhouse gases. Moreover, all leftover goodies and gadgets are inventoried and stored, to be reused in the future. All leftover food scraps are taken to the food bank, if possible, to avoid throwing them away. The MARUG has also been focusing on reducing paper use for several years. Operations are almost entirely paperless, saving thousands of pages. Also, during the (half yearly) General Member Meeting, policy documents are presented online by using a QR code, rather than being printed out for all attendees.
Sustainability Officer:
As previously mentioned, a sustainability officer has been appointed to the board and almost all committees. This officer ensures that the choices the committee makes are as sustainable as possible. This bottom-up approach also gets active members more actively involved in improving sustainability. In this way, we hope to raise awareness of sustainability issues.
Sustainability by our partners:
Besides our own sustainability efforts, the MARUG also collaborates with several companies that are focussing a lot on sustainability. This can for example be by reducing waste during the production process or by making sure your employees can sustain a healthy lifestyle at work.