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Green Erasmus

Research and resources tackling negative environmental impacts of Erasmus+
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Project overview

The benefits of the Erasmus programme for the students and higher education institutions that take part are well-known, however the programme also has a negative impact on the environment.  The aim of Green Erasmus is to improve the environmental sustainability of the Erasmus programme, whilst also contributing improvements in environmental sustainability across Europe.

The objectives are:

  1. To decrease the negative impact of the Erasmus programme in terms of environmental sustainability.
  2. To raise awareness across the European higher education sector about the importance of sustainable internationalisation.
  3. To empower student organisations to be the agents of change, pushing for improvements on the topic of environmental sustainability.

The project started in September 2020 and will finish in December 2022.  

Partners

The consortium of partners involved in the project includes:

  • Erasmus Student Network (co-ordinators)
  • European University Foundation
  • European Students' Union
  • Université Libre de Bruxelles
  • Technical University of Cologne
  • Students Organising for Sustainability UK

Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union

Take action

Sign our petition to support more sustainable travel for students going on Erasmus mobility.

Further information

Read our latest report on the habits of Erasmus students here: https://greenerasmus.org/documents/GE-report.pdf

To find out more about the programme and for the latest updates please visit: https://greenerasmus.org/

If you're a student going on mobility, check out the advice on how to make your mobility more sustainable: https://www.greenerasmus.org/

Sign up for 2023/2024

Support greener travel

Green Erasmus wants to see significant changes in the mobility patterns of students going on Erasmus+ exchange to reduce the environmental impact of the programme. Part of this should be ensuring that sustainable travel options are more inclusive and affordable.

The Green Erasmus research on the habits of Erasmus students reveals that although students are concerned about climate change, cost is one of the main drivers of their travel choices, meaning that they end up choosing cheaper but less sustainable modes of transport. In the petition “INCREASE SUPPORT FOR GREEN TRAVEL IN ERASMUS+”, we ask EU institutions for more funds to travel sustainably. Specifically,

  • Increasing the current €50 to a universal top up to individual support of up to €250 for green travel, proportionate to distance covered
  • And increasing the current 4 days up to 7 days of additional individual support covering additional subsistence costs and/or accommodation needs linked to green travel - for the round trip

Introducing this support will allow students from all destinations to travel to their host country, and return back home via greener land or sea transport, without being out of pocket.

SIGN THE PETITION HERE