Sustainability at the Alfred Wegener Institute

In its focus areas climate, biodiversity and Earth system research, the AWI makes important scientific contributions to sustainability-related issues. To support concerted international research endeavours, we maintain stations in the Arctic and Antarctic, as well as our own research ships and polar research aircraft. These resources also entail a considerable responsibility, which we live up to by holding ourselves to high environmental standards. Moreover, providing comprehensive information and pursuing a dialogue with society at large regarding various aspects of the effects of human actions on the environment are central objectives.

For many years now, the staff members of the AWI have worked together to make their research efforts and operations more sustainable, to reduce resource consumption to a minimum, and to influence our research subjects and sites as little as possible. As a member of the Helmholtz Association, we worked together with the Leibniz Association and the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft to help prepare the guidelines “Sustainability Management in Non-university Research Institutes” (LeNa). In this context, a sustainability guideline was prepared for all of our staff, and serves as the basis for defining future targeted measures for ecological, social and commercial sustainability. 

The AWI is also a member of the Helmholtz Association’s Sustainability Working Group.