2023 projects - CaNDLE call

Faced with the massive use of single-use plastics and packaging linked to the purchase of commercial consumables, and a production of waste linked to all its activities, the Department of Biology and its 4 research units aim to create a more sustainable system of research production, with a significant reduction in their environmental footprint. By implementing a policy of waste reduction, reuse of durable materials and recycling, the Department aims to set up "green" laboratories in collaboration with researchers united around a common goal and with trained students, future players in this transition.

Project leaders: Alison Forrester(URBC) and Frédéric Silvestre (Biology)

Responds to three SDGs: Responsible Consumption and Production - Sustainable Cities and Communities - Quality Education

This project aims to contribute to the preservation of bats, which are suffering from the disappearance of their resting and breeding sites, particularly in cities. It involves the placement of 7 cottages on the campus en ville in Namur and 2 cottages on the Haugimont campus in Faulx-les-Tombes. Through a communication component, this project aims to raise awareness among the university community and the public of the importance of bat conservation in terms of biodiversity (ecosystem services, umbrella species, protection status...), demystify the false beliefs that circulate about them, contribute to knowledge of chiropteran frequentation in the city of Namur and enrich scientific databases.

Project leaders: Jérémy Berthe and Laura De Wandeleer (URDB)

Responds to three SDGs: Terrestrial life - Sustainable cities and communities - Quality education

With a view to promoting greener chemistry at UNamur, this project aims to make a significant short-term impact on campus sustainability via the installation of a deionized water production system for the chemistry didactics laboratories in the Faculty of Science. This system will enable a significant annual reduction in water consumption in these laboratories, as well as a reduction in the use of chemical products. The project incorporates an awareness-raising dimension on the issue of water resource management, aimed at students, supervisors and, more broadly, researchers and visitors.

Project leaders: Sarah-Davina Pierard and Johan Wouters (Chemistry)

Responds to four SDGs: Clean water and sanitation - Responsible consumption and production - Sustainable cities and communities - Quality education

This project involves replacing the thermal vehicle used to transport hazardous waste produced by the campus laboratories with a sustainable alternative: an electrically-assisted cargo bike. Short car journeys are twice as polluting as long ones. The implementation of this solution will both reduce carbon dioxide emissions and fine particles impacting the environment and health, while preserving transport safety for drivers and passers-by in the streets around the campus.

Project leaders: Thierry Mayenne (SerP) and Simon Hauser (SIGeC)

Meets three SDGs:Clean and affordable energy - Sustainable cities and communities - Action on climate change

This project proposes the creation of an experience of reconnection with nature, opening up debate on the individual and collective actions that could be taken in the face of climate change. Inspired by an initiative at Schumacher College in England, the walk will start in Parc Louise-Marie and take participants on a journey through billions of years of Earth's history, through the green spaces surrounding La Citadelle. This concept transforms time into space, and invites participants to rethink their connections to nature through storytelling breaks to listen, exchange and reflect (alone and/or with others). It will be offered to members of the university community as well as other players in the area.

Project leaders: Julie Solbreux (HD Eco-Management Dept.), Stéphanie Weynants (Economics Dept.) and Pietro Zidda (Dean FSÉSG - Management Dept. Management)

Meets four SDGs: Quality education - Good health and well-being - Action on climate change - Partnerships to achieve the goals

The aim of this project is to strengthen interactions between members of the university community and the Domaine d'Haugimont, an exceptional 360-hectare heritage owned by UNamur in Faulx-les-Tombes. To this end, it plans to organize "nature sharing" events (birdwatching, mushroom picking, edible plants, stargazing, listening to the bellowing of the deer...) open to members of the community, as well as raising awareness of biodiversity by observing the animals present on the estate thanks to the installation of solar-powered 4G cameras. Animals that can be observed via the UNamur website include deer, roe deer, wild boar, badger, beaver and raccoon, as well as several species of nesting birds (harrier, tawny owl, swallows, etc.). The project will also encourage UNamur members to integrate the field into their teaching and research activities.

Project leaders: Simon Hauser (SIGeC)

Responds to four SDGs:Life on land - Action on climate change - Quality education - Partnerships to achieve the goals

This project involves the organization of two days of suspended courses entitled "Journées d'Enseignement au Développement Durable et à la Transition écologique", aimed at UNamur students from a cross-disciplinary perspective. The first day will feature workshops and 6 40-minute lectures covering the basics needed to understand the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Law, Economics, Social and Management Sciences, Medical Sciences (Human and Veterinary), Science, Computer Science, Philosophy and Literature. Working groups will be set up to collaborate over the course of the academic year to produce tools for transmitting knowledge in fields related to their training programs. The second JEDDT will be dedicated to presenting the materials developed by the students, and will be designed as a flipped classroom during which students will teach their teachers and peers.

Project leaders: Amélie Lachapelle (Faculty of Law) and Grégoire Wieërs (Dep. of Medicine)

Responds to three SDGs: Quality education - Measures to combat climate change - Partnerships to achieve the goals