During the Green Impact Project students and employees of the VUB work together to improve the sustainability of the VUB’s services. According to Leendert Plaetinck, student employee at the VUB’s GreenTeam, allows the project for student’s voices to be heard and their ideas to be implemented. ‘The young generation has a different view on sustainability than the older ones. It makes working together very interesting. It gives students the opportunity to make the changes they believe are necessary.’
‘We notice that most people that participate already know what they would change, they just haven’t acted on it yet’, says his colleague Younes Rifaad. ‘It’s as if they’re already standing at the line, waiting for the start signal to be given. Thanks to Green Impact the ideas that people have are actually put into practice.’
Something that has been prover during the previous edition of Green Impact Project at the VUB. The participants encouraged each other, and other members of the VUB community, to commute less, to prefer their bicycles over their cars from time to time. On top of that some recycling bins have been distributed around the campus. ‘Some people even bought a blue-bike subscription for their service’, Younes continues.
Leendert emphasizes that there are more than enough reasons to participate in this project: ‘It should be enough to know that you’re helping the university to become more sustainable. You can put your ideas into practice and it also looks good on your cv. On top of that it’s also a competition with prices.’
Last year the Faculty of Economics and Solvay business school was able to take the golden award home. ‘I really enjoyed seeing the people work so hard towards their goal’, Younes adds. ‘Green Impact is a competition, but you don’t have to compete to win. It’s your own choice how big your group is and how much effort you put in the project. We only recommend that people work together with people that they often come into contact with.’
Students that want to help their department to victory, can register by filling out the following form: https://greenteamvub.wufoo.com/forms/zobxjq40l9gmwe/
Students that want to do something with sustainability, but don’t really feel like competing can also contact the GreenTeam. The Green Impact Project is not the only sustainability project they’re working on right now. Students can’t only always contact them when they have a question and when they are looking for someone to support their own sustainability project, but also to help out with the projects of others. People are always more than welcome to volunteer.
‘Just pick something that is relevant to you. Do you cycle to the VUB? Contact the GreenTeam for some goodies. Are you interested in sustainable food? Check out the ‘buurderij’. Do you want to improve the universities sustainability? Join the Green Impact Project’, Leendert concludes.