Environmental and sustainability efforts at Biomedicum 2024
Jennie Eldh Bastman, the environmental and sustainability representative at Biomedicum, talks about the environmental initiatives that have been carried out throughout the year.
What has happened at Biomedicum and KI in terms of environment and sustainability in 2024?
Karolinska Institutet has established a new environmental policy that came into effect on October 30, 2024. Part of the policy includes the action plan for 2025-2027, which is currently under development.
At Biomedicum, two environmental audits have been conducted this year: one for the department of microbiology, tumor and cell biology (MTC) and one for the Facility Management Biomedicum service organization.
A noticeable change in the building will be the introduction of food waste collection bins, which will be placed by KI’s property and facilities office (FA) in December. The bins will be clearly marked and located in common areas, such as lunchrooms and the atrium on floor 3. More information about the implementation can be found on the staff portal under "Food waste collection is now being introduced throughout KI"
How can we at Biomedicum reduce our climate impact?
The biggest factor, I would say, is behavior. Every individual's actions count. Together, we can establish a more environmentally friendly culture by ensuring that each employee follows the guidelines listed below:
- Turn off your computer when you leave for the day.
- Sort your waste (it’s important to ensure that waste is placed in the correct bin).
- Please note that colored glass sorting will only be available in the environmental room on floor 2 starting next year. If you are unsure how to sort any waste, please contact the FM Helpdesk.
- Submit all chemical waste to FM. Do not pour anything down the drain!
- Most departments have ventilated cabinets labeled for chemical waste, where chemical waste should be placed for later collection by FM. If there is no such cabinet, contact the FM Helpdesk for waste pickup.
- Place styrofoam boxes in the environmental room on floor 2.
- The supplier BioNordika reuses as many of their styrofoam boxes as possible and picks up some from Biomedicum.
- Use timers on instruments that don’t need to run continuously.
- Only buy the amount of chemicals you need.
- If you don’t need a lot, contact the KLARA administrators at FM to see if it is available from another group.
- Shop at the Supply Center.
- Always close fume hoods and ventilation benches when they are not in use.