KU's carbon footprint

In the context of political, social, and academic discussions, the KU is addressing the challenges of climate change in a variety of ways. On the one hand, it is a focus of various research projects (e.g. in the field of geography); on the other hand, it is an important component of university teaching practice (including in the area of ESD) — and, within the field of campus management, it also addresses the impact of academic operations on the climate.

Political and legal framework

Issues related to climate change and the need for greater climate protection are of great relevance at the global level (GHG Protocol, etc.), the supraregional level (EU climate protection requirements), and the national level (German/Bavarian climate policy). In the context of the Bavarian Climate Protection Act (BayKlimaG, 2020), the goal is to achieve a gradual reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate neutrality by 2040 at the latest. Government institutions in particular — and thus also public educational institutions — are expected to play a pioneering role in this effort.

Significance and challenges at the KU

The KU plans to achieve climate neutrality within certain system boundaries as early as 2025; however, this has not yet been feasible due to various internal factors and, in particular, external conditions. Nevertheless, with regard to university operations, it can be noted that greenhouse gas accounting for Scope 1 and Scope 2 (according to the GHG Protocol) has shown a significant reduction for more than 10 years (see details in the Environmental Statement). Current challenges include the collection and analysis of GHG emissions arising from Scope 3 in order to develop and implement a reasonable reduction pathway in the medium term. The climate strategy focuses on continuing to eliminate or at least reduce all avoidable emissions — and offsetting unavoidable GHG emissions through local and regional (and in exceptional cases, international) offset projects—thereby achieving at least accounting-based climate neutrality.