The university's activities for Sustainable Development and Goal 17 presented in the reports for 2021-2022 and 2020-2021 "Lodz University of Technology on the path of sustainable development".
At Lodz University of Technology there is an Associated Secretariat of the BUP, which coordinates BUP activities in Poland. The Baltic University, established in 1991 and coordinated by Uppsala University, forms one of the largest university cooperation networks in Europe. About 90 active universities from the Baltic Sea Region have started cooperation in the field of education for sustainable development, climate neutrality, as well as democracy.
The Associated Secretariat at TUL organizes and supports the creation of conferences, seminars, courses, summer schools, training cruises for students, doctoral students, academic teachers from all scientific disciplines and fields of study from Polish universities.
Over the past 5 years, about 200 students, doctoral students and teachers from Polish universities have actively participated in the activities of BUP.
Cooperation with the University of Florence, initiated in 2018 and culminating in 2019 with the signing of an agreement between universities, allows for setting common directions of activities in the field of sustainable development. Activities are carried out both in the scientific, didactic and project fields.
The result of the cooperation are scholarships funded as part of the NAWA programme in the area of "Innovative management of enterprise resources in a circular economy" for an employee of the Department of Production Management and Logistics and students from the University of Florence.
Discussions within the framework of meetings in Rome, Milan, Florence and Lodz gave rise to joint initiatives. The first of these was the submission of two projects: "Plastic – no problem" and "Innapes".
ESSSR (European School of Sustainability Science and Research) is an inter-university consortium of members who share an interest in science and sustainability issues. It is a key organisation, bridging the gap in the coordination of teaching and research in the field of sustainable sciences in European universities. The result of cooperation with HAW HAMBURG is the submission of the project to Horizon 2035.
It is estimated that, on average, globally, about 30% of plastic waste is unmanaged and goes directly to waters and soils.
Until now, more attention has been paid to plastic pollution of waters. Perhaps for the simple reason that there waste is more visible. Meanwhile, the concentration of microplastics in the soil in some regions of the world reaches up to several thousand particles per kilogram of dry soil.
The object of research of scientists from the Faculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Environmental Engineering,
TUL as part of the "Bio-plastics Europe" project are innovative plastics obtained from renewable raw materials (bio-based
plastics) produced by TUL partners in this project. These materials will be assessed for their phytotoxicity, toxicity to soil fauna and their impact on the laboratory-scale model soil ecosystem. The results of the research can be used by plastics manufacturers.
Bioplastics Europe focuses on sustainable strategies and solutions for bioplastics to support the EU-Plastic strategy and promote circularity in the economy. The aim of the project is not only to conduct research, but also to raise public awareness. The project is implemented in a consortium: TUL is one of its 22 partners.
The Faculty of Technical Physics, Information Technology and Applied Mathematics together with pharmaceutical companies carry out research on the method of administering drugs to cancer patients. The result of the three-year collaboration was the planning of dosing protocols for complex therapies for chronic myeloid leukemia and multiple myeloma.
Cooperation with the University of Florence and CIHEAM Bari from Italy resulted in the acquisition of experts with many
years of experience in the implementation of innovative projects in the area of sustainable development.
Students of the Master of Operation Management within the subject of Technology and Innovations Management indicate the areas of the economy of our region that require changes in the light of the assumptions adopted by the EU New Green Deal for Europe. The prepared drafts of the projects were presented to a group of stakeholders from the region in order to spread education in the areas of sustainable development and stimulate joint initiatives.
For years, the university has been actively participating in the Finale of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, during which funds are collected for children and seniors.
During the 29th edition of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, almost 400 volunteers were involved in the activities of the staff at TUL. The staff, which was organized by the Faculty of Management and Production Engineering and the university authorities, collected a record PLN 345,000.
Money was collected by students, employees and rector's authorities.
Scientists from the Faculty of Chemistry of TUL together with Sichuan University: Chengdu, Sichuan, CN (West China School of Pharmacy) in the Sheng 1 project funded by the National Science Centre are conducting research on providing new ways of activating and innovative asymmetric reactions of aromatic carbonyl compounds.
The result of these activities is the development of new methods of functionalization of aromatic systems, which allows to deepen and enrich knowledge about their reactivity. The developed methodologies have the potential to be used as innovative tools for the preparation of new drugs, pesticides and other organic compounds of utilitarian importance.
Cooperation with scientists from China will allow to broaden the range of synthetic skills of both research groups and improve international communication in science.
At the end of 2021, TUL became a member of a European consortium of innovative universities and joined the elite network of the European Consortium of Innovative Universities (ECIU). ECIU is the first European university where students, teachers and scientists work together with regions, cities and enterprises to solve real problems that require a specific European and, at the same time, multidisciplinary approach. The goal of the ECIU University is to create an open and inclusive platform for students, teachers and scientists to solve real social challenges, such as those resulting from the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. The most important ECIU values that are reflected in scientific research, education and innovation are, in addition to academic quality, entrepreneurial mindset and an open ecosystem, also values directly related to the implementation of sustainable development goals - impact on society and stability in the future.
ECIU members are, apart from TUL, Aalborg University (Denmark), Dublin City University (Ireland), Hamburg University of Technology (Germany), Groupe INSA (France), Kaunas University of Technology (Lithuania), Linköping University (Sweden), Tampere University (Finland), Tecnologico de Monterrey (Mexico), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (Spain), Universidade de Aveiro (Portugal), University of Stavanger (Norway), University of Twente (Netherlands).
Lodz University of Technology traditionally played in the orchestra conducted by Jurek Owsiak. The headquarters of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity of Lodz University of Technology collected a record amount of PLN 310,000 during the 30th final. That's about 10,000. PLN more than in the previous year. This year, 310 people were involved in the activities at Lodz University of Technology. Volunteers starting with schoolchildren, students up to the Rector's authorities - 180 people - were collecting contributions at various locations in Lodz. As in previous years, students from the Public Secondary School of Lodz University of Technology were involved in the fundraiser. The 30th final of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity was held under the slogan: "Przejrzyj na oczy.” To ensure the highest standards of diagnosis and treatment of vision in children.
It is estimated that on average around 30% of plastic waste in the world is unmanaged and ends up directly in waters and soils. So far, more attention has been paid to water pollution with plastics. Perhaps for the simple reason that the waste is better visible there. Meanwhile, the concentration of microplastics in the soil in some parts of the world is as high as several thousand particles per kilogram of dry soil. Researchers from the Faculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Environmental Engineering of TUL under the "Bioplastics Europe" project are researching innovative plastics obtained from renewable raw materials (bio-based plastics) produced by TUL partners in this project. These materials will be assessed in terms of their phytotoxicity, toxicity to soil fauna and in terms of their impact on a model soil ecosystem operating on a laboratory scale. The results of the research can be used by plastics producers. Bio-plastics Europe focuses on sustainable strategies and solutions for bioplastics to support the EU-Plastic strategy and promote a circular economy. The aim of the project is not only to conduct research, but also to raise public awareness. The project is carried out in a consortium, Lodz University of Technology is one of its 22 partners. ,
Scientists from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and the Faculty of Chemistry of Lodz University of Technology take part in the FRONTSH1P project, the budget of which is EUR 19 million, and the list of consortium members includes 34 institutions from Poland, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and Switzerland. As part of this project, companies and research centers are working on "green" technologies for the circular economy. The first working meeting of the partners took place on November 17, 2021, in the Sports Bay at TUL. The aim of the project is to create regional closed process loops in the spirit of the circular economy. This will allow for the management of various types of waste: wooden packaging, food, organic agricultural and municipal waste, sewage, plastic and rubber waste. As a result, huge amounts of waste and pollution, which are currently an unwanted "product" of industrial processes, will be utilized, and the region and Lodz will be cleaner and healthier.
TUL will participate in the development of one of the four new technologies improved as part of the project. TUL will also co-create a technology that uses CO2 to foam materials used in thermal insulation. The result will be insulation with better thermal properties, lower cost of implementation and - most importantly - containing carbon dioxide particles, which will not be released into the atmosphere. It is expected that as a result of the project, carbon dioxide emissions in the Lodz Voivodeship may decrease by 2%-3%, 100,000 square meters will be cleaned. cubic meters of water per day, the amount of wood recovered will be the equivalent of 180,000. furniture per year, and the recovered heat will amount to 3,240 MWh per year.
Twenty-five entities, including TUL, signed a letter of intent regarding the creation of the Mazovian Hydrogen Valley. The project leader is PKN Orlen, which will be responsible for defining the goals of the Valley and preparing a strategy for its operation. The priority objective of this project is to develop technologies for the production of green hydrogen from renewable energy sources. The integration of business with the world of science will make it possible to implement large-scale hydrogen investments, contributing to the development of the domestic industry and increasing the competitiveness of the Polish economy. The signatories of the agreement will work on innovative technologies that allow the use of hydrogen in, among others, in transport, energy, municipal economy and agriculture.
The Mazovian Hydrogen Valley will be based on four pillars. The construction of the hydrogen value chain in the Mazovian region was adopted as the main one, as exemplified by the first hydrogen projects planned to be implemented by PKN Orlen, e.g., hydrogen hubs in Płock and Ostrołęka, a prototype hydrogen locomotive and hydrogen refueling stations. The other pillars are the implementation of research and development projects, the creation of systemic solutions for the training of specialized staff and conducting activities to support regulatory processes.
Sustainable Development has become one of the priorities for most universities in the world. The effectiveness of activities in this area requires cooperation between various scientific disciplines, various entities (universities, business, non-governmental and government organizations) and various countries. One example of such cooperation is the project "Sustainable, social design", initiated by the Embassy of the Netherlands in Poland and DutchCulture as part of the country's international cultural policy. The partners in the project are, apart from TUL, SWPS University and the Polish-Japanese Academy of Information Technology, Royal Academy, The Hague and Design Academy Eindhoven. The central theme of the project is sustainable design, which is of interest to the universities invited to cooperate. The aim of the project is to exchange ideas, knowledge, experiences and best practices from the perspective of various scientific disciplines and countries. In September 2022, a study visit of partners from Dutch universities to Poland took place. The guests visited the School of Form of the SWPS University, the Polish-Japanese Academy of Information Technology and the Faculty of Organization and Management of TUL. They appreciated the potential for sustainable design provided by the research equipment gathered in the EQUAL (Ergonomic Quality, Usability & Accessibility) laboratory. Thanks to it, during their short visit, the guests could look at the world through the eyes of the elderly and those suffering from Parkinson's disease. Another potential area of cooperation that was discussed is the design of packaging considering the principles of sustainable development.
TUL is a member of the ESSSR (European School of Sustainability Science and Research), which is an inter-university consortium composed of members who share an interest in science and issues related to sustainable development. It is a key organization that fills the gap in the coordination of teaching and research in the field of sustainable development sciences in European universities. The fruit of cooperation with HAW HAMBURG is the submission of a project under the Horizon 2035 programme.