Discover Université Grenoble Alpes

Assessing Our Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions to Support Changes in Practices

This assessment allows us to define a decarbonization pathway aligned with national and European goals. This initiative, which involves all university units, is also being implemented in our laboratories, academic departments, and central administrative offices, which are also conducting their own GHG assessments and taking concrete steps to reduce their carbon footprint.

Our initiatives:

• Prepare a GHG emissions inventory to measure the impact of our activities on the climate.
• Support departments, laboratories, and services in developing plans to reduce GHG emissions.
• Identify and assess the carbon sinks on our campuses.
• Assess the energy and carbon impacts of projects.
• Develop an energy management system that incorporates metrics and dashboards.

Continue to promote sustainable and responsible transportation options across all of our campuses

Staff and student mobility accounts for a significant portion of the institution’s GHG emissions: approximately one-quarter of our GHG footprint. These trips can be daily—such as commutes between home and work—or occasional, such as business trips and study trips. Just as it is for the regions we serve, mobility is therefore a major challenge for our university.

We encourage alternatives to private car use, particularly by promoting carpooling solutions (carpooling platforms, the creation of local communities, etc.) or by supporting active modes of transportation, such as biking (installation of bike racks and secure parking areas, repair shops, etc.).

In 2023, we adopted a charter of commitment to environmentally responsible business travel. Through this charter, we set forth best-practice recommendations that help reduce our greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining the quality of our operations and our employees’ work-life balance.

Our initiatives:

• Measuring and assessing the impacts of our travel.
• Support a discussion on changes to our business travel practices (policy, carpooling, etc.).
• Work with local partners to make public transportation and cycling more appealing.
• Manage vehicle traffic and parking on the various campuses.

Managing and Reducing Energy Consumption in Real Estate

We manage a building portfolio of more than 700,000 m² spread across 13 geographic locations. We are committed to a policy aimed at reducing energy consumption and making our energy mix more sustainable. Since 2019, thanks to the recovery plan and our energy conservation plan, we have reduced GHG emissions related to our buildings’ energy consumption by 40%, thereby fully contributing to national goals. 

Our initiatives:

• Expand the scope of renovations and prioritize comprehensive energy-efficiency renovations (building envelope, thermal comfort, indoor air quality, etc.).
• Develop remote management tools and energy management practices to promote energy efficiency in programs, equipment, and usage.
• Make the most of every square meter.
• Decarbonization and the development of locally produced renewable energy: expansion of solar power installations and connection to the district heating network.
• Take a forward-looking approach related to action plans and real estate strategy.