Sustainability Policy

Our research is highly international, with a strong focus on generating evidence on health, development and gender issues in countries of the Global South. We recognise that our research activities can create large amounts of carbon emissions, both through travel to international conferences and through participation in data collection in countries of the Global South.

While it is not possible to completely avoid all negative environmental impacts of air travel, we have taken a number of steps to reduce the carbon footprint of the Professorship for Global Health:

1. We will avoid air travel to any location that can be reached by alternative means of transport (e.g. train) within 8 hours or less. Team members are encouraged to also travel by train for longer distances, and the Professorship will always choose more environmentally friendly travel solutions, even if the cost is higher than that of air travel.
2. We will only attend overseas conferences if participation is deemed to serve an exceptional professional interest. This includes (1) presenting a new paper to receive critical feedback from international research experts in the specific field, (2) organising a panel or session at the conference, and (3) the opportunity to conduct additional field research at the conference site.  
3. For all our data collection and field research activities in countries of the Global South, we strive to build strong partnerships with local collaborators, thus reducing the need for TUM researchers to frequently travel to field sites in the future and enabling local collaborators to carry out research activities independently and successfully. This approach will also ensure that all our research activities have a decolonising premise.
4. Where air travel is unavoidable, carbon emissions are offset through CO2 certificates purchased centrally by the Free State of Bavaria and distributed to the universities.
5. For printing and office products, we use recycled paper or paper with labels as FSC or where possible the EU Ecolabel or Nordic Swan, always opting for double-sided printing to reduce the amount of paper needed. Furthermore, we exclusively source fair trade coffee and snacks for our team, aligning with our commitment to ethical and responsible consumption.