The Maastricht University Green Office was established in 2010 as a student initiative to coordinate sustainability projects across the university. It is now officially recognized by the university and coordinates projects related to education, research, operations, and community outreach. Run primarily by student employees and volunteers, it empowers students to help advance the university's sustainability efforts and has achieved successes like developing the university's first sustainability policy and initiatives to reduce energy usage.

1. Maastricht University Green Office

2. Maastricht University Green Office

3. Started as a student initiative in spring 2010. Officially integrated into
Maastricht University (UM) in September 2010.
Coordinates & initiates sustainability projects at Maastricht
University, by empowering students and staff.
Maastricht University Green Office
Driven by student employees, the university’s environmental advisor
and many student volunteers.
Major successes: Sustainability baseline assessment & subsequent
development of UM’s first comprehensive sustainability policy, Green IT
Project (e.g. PC Power Management) & two sustainability conferences

4. Maastricht University struggled to
Students faced obstacles of entry to create a dynamic sustainability
advance change towards sustainable process, due to lack of money,
development within Maastricht knowledge, people and a structure to
University coordinate efforts across
departmental boundaries
Maastricht University Green Office
Sustainability
was not
sustainable

5. Top-down: University
provides
budget, facilities &
executive backing for
student-driven Green
Office
Maastricht University Green Office
Bottom-up: Students
become integrated &
drive the university’s
sustainability efforts

6. 7 student employees & dozens of student volunteers
University’s environmental advisor
Maastricht& Universityoffice facilities Office
75,000 € Budget centrally located Green
Official mandate as main entity to advance sustainability at Maastricht
University
High profile supervisory board providing advice & support

7. Green Office team
runs the office &
implements
projects
Maastricht University Green Office
Office facilities
Budget to pay
provide meeting
salaries & projects
& working space

8. André Postema
Vice President Maastricht
Jacqueline Cramer Harm Hospers
University
Former Dutch Minister of Dean FHS & University
the Environment College Maastricht
Supervisory
board provides
Maastricht Universitysupport
advice & Green Office Edward de Vries
Former Mill Director at
Annemarie van Zeijl Sappi Limburg
Sustainability Researcher
at ICIS
Jos Kleinjans - Professor Michiel Ritzen
of Environmental Health Researcher at Ribuilt and
Science at UM advisor of
Hogeschool Zuyd

9. Collaborations
create leverage
Maastricht University Green
& synergies Office
International Center for
Integrated Assessment
and Sustainable Development

10. Making Maastricht University
more sustainable
EDUCATION RESEARCH OPERATIONS COMMUNITY
Advance Promote Decrease Empower
Maastricht University Green Office
Education for
Sustainable
Research on
Sustainable
ecological,
economic, and
students &
staff
Development Development social
footprint
ORGANIZATION
Administrative foundation of Green Office

11. External Faculties
Volunteers
partners
Green Office
Maastricht• University Green Office
Empowers students by providing access
into the university
• Creates synergies by connecting
stakeholders
Facility
Student Management
community

12. - Conducts feasibility Challenges for large-scale
studies, researches and implements projects:
best practices
- Leverage not fully transpired
- Coordinates & consolidates various throughout the institution
Maastricht University Green Office only
disparate efforts throughout UM
- Students engaged for
- Participatory governance model one or two years
creates dynamic process and
- Students need to gain
legitimation for institutional change
knowledge & experience
- Provides informal learning
- Limited budget & decision
opportunities for students
making power

13. Inputs Outputs Outcomes
• Student team & volunteers • Feasibility • Organizational change
• Support by professional studies, business and learning for
staff (e.g. environmental cases, implementation sustainable
advisor) plans development
• Supervisory board • Monitoring & support for • Minimization of
• Official mandate as executing entities environmental and social
Maastricht University Green Office
principal actor to advance • Reporting &
transparency
footprint
• Economic advantages
sustainability at UM
• Budget & facilities • Furthering Education & through cost savings
Research for Sustainable • Active student
Development participation &
• Cohesion & ownership ownership
through participatory
governance structures

14. End 2010
Establishing the
September operational base of
the
Green Office is
office, brainstormi
officially launched at
ng &
opening of the
June conceptualization
Academic Year
Maastricht University Green Office
Presentation to ceremony
of first
projects, contactin
university council & g
decision by Executive stakeholders, raisin
Board to implement g awareness about
Spring the Green Office the Green Office at
the university
A student initiative
forms to develop
the Green Office
concept & lobby
for its
implementation

15. Maastricht University Green Office
Climate Action Report
Sustainability Policy Ctrl-Alt-Delete
• First baseline analysis • Joint GO project to Emissions
of sustainable develop Sustainability • Business case for more
development at Policy 2012-14 in a energy efficient ICT
Maastricht University, stakeholder inclusive structure.
published in a 44 page approach, covering Implementation of PC
long report in operations, Power Management in
November 2011 organization, education September 2012, with
and research, as well as expected annual
community. electricity savings of
44 000 Euro.

16. Maastricht University Green Office
Education Community Research
• Integrated research questions • Organized one student • Listed all courses, research
about university’s sustainability sustainability centers, professorships and
efforts into five Bachelor and conference, sustainability think research institutes related to
Master courses tank, networking events, joint sustainable development at
• Developed extra-curricular board meetings of student Maastricht University
course offerings on sustainable sustainability groups, swap- • Organized one research
development shop, sustainability working conference on sustainable
• Guided and supported various days, film series, support of development
thesis projects in the field of various student projects (e.g.
sustainability green city map, student
sustainability guide), etc.

17. In February 2012, Maastricht University receives
the Sustainabul Award as Dutch university with
the most transparent sustainability efforts
Jeanine Gregersen - Director of Marketing and
Communications - upon receiving the award in the name of
UM: “We owe this award to the driving force of our
students at the Green Office and we as management
Maastricht University Green Office
embrace this honour wholeheartedly.”
Andre Postema – Vice President of Maastricht University: “Looking
back to 2011, it strikes me that the Maastricht University Green
Office has achieved so much. Naturally, it faced numerous
challenges, but to put it in a nutshell: The experiment works.”

18. Implement a
showcase for
sustainable buildings
at University College
Maastricht
Monitor the
Compile a
implementation of
Sustainability Progress
the Sustainability
Report
Policy 2012-2014
Maastricht University Green Office journal
Obtain a PhD position
for Maastricht
Publicize a
sustainability
University Green based on a research
Office conference
Implement PC-Power Develop the
Management for all Sustainability Vision
PCs and increase 2030 & a Roadmap to
Server Virtualization achieve this vision

19. In November 2011, a group of founders of the Green Office established
the informal working group, called ANZ.
Aim: Establish, support & connect student-driven Green Offices at other
Maastricht University universities Office
European
Green
Current state of operations: Business plan development, market analysis,
connection to stakeholders. Start of operations in August 2012

20. Green
Office
Staff &
faculty
Maastricht University Green Office
Students
Sustainability
at Maastricht
University