Who can apply for the U-GREEN Label?
How to apply for the U-GREEN Label?
What is U-GREEN Label?
U-GREEN Label is a certification for Education and Training Institutions that want to demonstrate their commitment to the Green transition to the outside world. U-Green Label will be awarded by U-GREEN Consortium to the Institutions that fill in the self-assesment form available on this website and reach the required score in one of the three established levels.
U-GREEN Label is the second output obtained through the U-GREEN Project (University cooperation for promoting the GREEN transition and sustainable practices in education and training) and consists of the creation of a common framework to assess and provide recommendations contributing towards the readiness of Education and Training Institution to tackle the green transition and act as catalysts in promoting behavioural change and the development of green skills among a new generation of committed European citizens.
Building on the U-GREEN common standards, practices, and approaches described in the Guidelines for Education and Training Institutions, main objectives of the U-GREEN Label are:
- To offer a common framework to assess to what extent green and sustainability practices are transversally embedded in Education and Training Institutions, at the same time providing easily adoptable recommendation on how to update practices towards achieving greener Institutions.
- To raise awareness on –and contribute to adopt measures towards reducing–the environmental impact of Education and Training Institutions.
- To support the process of introducing/updating green practices and sustainability strategies in Education and Training Institutions.
U-GREEN Label Handbook
All information concerning the U-GREEN Label has been detailed in the U-GREEN Label Handbook which describes the rationale and needs underpinning the U-GREEN Label, as well as the methodological framework adopted and the practical steps towards obtaining the label (including the application form). It also includes the principles, methodology and criteria applicable to the three progression levels in the 3 areas and their topic tackled by U-GREEN (Infrastructure & Resources; Administrative management, Teaching & Learning; Community Engagement and Awareness). Moreover, this labeling process is based on 2 assessment formats: self-assessment and peer-auditing.
The three progression levels with the respective assessment format of the U-GREEN Label are:
- Starter Level: it requires only a self-assessment format.
- Advanced Level: it requires only a self-assessment format.
- Master Level: it requires a peer-auditing from Consortium members.
Who can apply for the U-GREEN Label?
All Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) can apply to obtain the U-GREEN Label certification. The U-GREEN Label can be applied by the whole Higher Education Institution or only by a part of it. In our handbook and in those concerning the U-GREEN Label award process, we refer to these respectively using the following abbreviations:
- HEI (Higher Education Institution).
- PHEI (Part of Higher Education Institution). A PHEI is identified, for U-GREEN Label award process, as a Campus or a part of the HEI with well-defined boundaries, which may include several and different faculties, departments, organizations providing higher, postsecondary, tertiary and/or third-level education and which includes spaces, such as green areas, buildings, classrooms, libraries and canteens.
The U-GREEN Label can be obtained by compiling a specific Checklistform which sets definite points for each answer given (detailed explanation of the scoring system is provided in the handbook).
The U-GREEN Checklist is organized following logical steps using specific indicators for different issues. It is divided into the U-Green 3 main areas: Infrastructure & Resources; Administrative Management, Teaching & Learning; Community Engagement and Awareness and their relative topics.
The U-GREEN Label is awarded on the basis of the score achieved by the HEI or PHEI after answering the U-GREEN Label Checklist.
How to apply for the U-GREEN Label?
The U-GREEN Label Handbook must be read in detail before applying for certification.
Once the institution has read the Handbook in detail, it can carry out the self-assessment through the U-GREEN Label Application Excel to check that they are in a position to apply for at least the starter level.
In order to apply for the U-GREEN Label certification, the institution must attach to the online application form both the U-GREEN Label Application Excel file and the three annexes with the required evidence for each indicator.
The consortium members will analyse the application received and give the corresponding reply to the institution, indicating the need to carry out a peer-audit in case the master level is requested.