The American College of Greece
IN-19: Green Laboratory Program

Our institution is always considering how to reduce its environmental impact, by promoting the culture of sustainability and educating the whole community (students, faculty and staff) to apply sustainable practices in their everyday (on- and off-campus) activities.
We do not yet participate in an official green laboratory program, but we focus on reducing the environmental footprint of our teaching and research laboratory facilities.
Energy conservation practices have significantly increased within our institution during the last few years. More specifically, in our laboratories we implement energy-saving measures such as using energy-efficient light bulbs and equipment (when possible) and turning off lights and the air conditioning plus unplugging equipment when not in use. Freezer maintenance is regularly applied to ensure efficiency.
We implement water-saving measures such as carefully identifying and fixing leaks as well as using low-flow fixtures in our water taps. We have previously run some audits related to water conservation across the ACG campus and have made specific recommendations to technical services. Some of these recommendations have been adopted.
The laboratory activities of our teaching programs have been developed to comply with sustainability and “green” chemistry methods. We manage that by using smaller amounts of chemicals, as well as always choosing non-toxic chemical alternatives (when possible), without compromising the learning process and outcomes for our students. Also, all chemicals are stored and disposed of following the appropriate guidelines, which are explained in prior to our students so proper waste disposal is always applied.
We always try to minimize our waste by reducing, and in most times eliminating, the use of single-use plastics in the laboratory. Moreover, our laboratory waste is carefully separated to be disposed of either with domestic waste (non-hazardous waste) or safely by a certified external contractor (biological/hazardous waste). Green purchasing and recycling are partly possible for some of the materials used in the labs such as cleaning material, paper towels, and print paper.
Proper education on sustainable practices is provided to all laboratory users (faculty, technical staff, researchers, and students) in prior along with laboratory safety rules and regulations. We believe the key to a more sustainable laboratory is depended on the collective engagement of individual lab users and their ongoing participation in the institution’s sustainability efforts.

Also, “green chemistry” is discussed within the context of introductory chemistry courses to undergraduate students. Moreover, the use of lab materials (chemicals and other consumables) is constantly monitored by lab instructors and administrators to prevent inappropriate consumption and continuously improve towards the most sustainable practices.