Creative Institution

We are developing UJEP as a socially and environmentally responsible institution. We share good practices with other public and private organizations in the region.

A Activities

Sustainable Institution – We take a systematic approach to sustainability within the UJEP campus and strive to be socially and environmentally responsible in our behavior.
A new logo ‘SUSTAINABLE UJEP’ has been created for all activities that are related to the issue of sustainability.

A1 Systemic Approach – Adoption of ESG Principles for Sustainability Support

We are creating an institutional strategy for the areas of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG), adopting elements of the corporate agenda related to sustainability, and striving to apply them within all possible procedures . We are considering not only environmental aspects but also the area of institutional management and the social sphere. We are also considering a suitable spillover to other institutions in the region.

• We have created and successfully filled the position of ESG Manager at UJEP; the ESG Manager is Dana Kapitulčinová, Ph.D.
• ESG coordinators have been appointed at the faculties to enable active involvement of individual faculties.
• We are working on a conceptual understanding of ESG at UJEP in the form of monitoring available data, discussing individual agendas, and creating a follow-up strategy.

A2 Landscape Concept and Study of All Areas on the UJEP Campus in the Context of Climate Change Adaptation

We recognize that for effective care of the campus grounds, it is necessary to create clear rules and a vision for the future development of outdoor spaces on campus. These rules and the vision will aim at efficient rainwater management, a high-quality blue-green infrastructure system, all in accordance with the accompanying infrastructure to make the campus attractive to UJEP students and employees, as well as the public. The Landscape Concept, which will be developed within the project, will be the fundamental document for future development.

A3 Blue-Green Infrastructure

We are taking further steps for the development of blue-green infrastructure at our institution.

We are preparing the construction of the UJEP Environmental Center, which will include a demonstration educational garden, a pond, an orchard of old and native varieties, and an outdoor classroom. This investment is another step in the revitalization of the campus grounds and education in this area.

Part of this activity also includes the optimization of UJEP’s energy management, within which measures for more efficient energy management will be adopted after a thorough analysis of current energy consumption and processes.

B Activities

Living Institution – Let’s move, but let’s not harm; a significant burden on the environment is related to transport. In the case of our institution, this primarily concerns the movement of people, and given that this number approaches 9,000 individuals, transport is a significant aspect.

B1 Living Lab for Sustainable Mobility

We strive to establish rules and find more efficient ways for the movement of employees and students so that the impact on the environment is less than it is now.

The proposed activity works with the concept of a living lab. In the Czech Republic, this is still a relatively new and not very widespread approach to solving social challenges or specific problems. Living labs connect the academic community, businesses, the public sector, and the public for the purpose of co-creating value, rapid prototyping, and/or verifying the functionality of developed products or services. The UJEP Living Lab will focus on the topic of sustainable mobility and its comprehensive solutions.

The activity responds to the dynamic development that concerns not only the university campus itself but also the development in its immediate surroundings and faculties, student dormitories, and other UJEP facilities located in various locations across the city.

A series of pilot projects are planned, the implementation of which will also provide important insights into the functioning and acceptance of these measures in the specific conditions of Ústí nad Labem and the entire region.

The aim of the activity is to achieve change through the implementation of participatory workshops, the development of a mobility plan, and subsequent interventions designed and tested through a living lab. The desired change is a sustainable transport solution accepted by stakeholders, satisfied students and employees, residents, and businesses, the achievement of secondary positive effects precisely from the perspective of sustainability, and, last but not least, UJEP’s position as a (regional) representative of good practice in the field of clean and
innovative mobility.

B2 Infrastructure for Safe Bicycle / Scooter Movement on Campus and to Dormitories

This activity will include measures strengthening non-motorized transport within UJEP, based on the developed Mobility Plan.