We are committed to achieving carbon neutrality on campus and in our chains. In particular, we are focused on energy conservation and efficiency. We generate as much of our own energy as possible and buy the rest sustainably. For the goods and services we purchase, we work with our suppliers to reduce their carbon footprint.
Impact Makers: Tom van Onna
In this new series Impact Makers, a student or staff member of Radboud University is put in the spotlight each month. Our colleague Tom van Onna (Manager of energy and energy transition) kicks things off and gets you thinking: “Are you using your talents to work on the right problem?”
What can you do?
- Try to apply energy awareness at work too. For example, check the lighting and thermostat (if there is one) when you are the last person to leave the room.
- Brainstorm with your colleagues or fellow students about energy-saving opportunities in your work and study environment. You can track whether the measures are having an impact on the building's total energy consumption yourself via https://campusenergie.nl/.
- Your behaviour can contribute to lower emissions: choose sustainable transport and buy consciously.
What are we working on?
By connecting more and more buildings to the heating and cooling network, we are saving a lot of gas:
- Gas consumption has fallen from 2.4 to 0.9 million cubic metres (-61%) in five years.
- More than 90% of the floor space on campus is connected to the heat and cold network.
- In 2023, the expansion of the Hybrid Energy Network, including in the Student Church, Mercator I, Mercator II and the Berchmanianum, resulted in savings of 456,673 m3 of gas per year.
- In January 2025, SSH& Sterrenbosch is connected to the Hybrid Energy Network. This will help student housing provider SSH& save 250,000 m3 of gas per year.
In 2024 and 2025, many solar panels will be added to existing roofs. The total installed capacity increased from 1 MWp to 1.8 MWp in 2024. This expansion will generate an additional 600,000 kWh of electricity per year. This is equivalent to the annual consumption of approximately 200 households. University buildings where solar panels are currently installed:
- Mercator I
- Grotius Building
- Gymnasion/Elinor Ostrom Building
- University Library
- Maria Montessori Building
- HFML
- Radboud Daycare Centre
- Student Church
- Trigon
Would you like to know how much electricity the solar panels generate per building?
The university is currently replacing conventional lighting with energy-efficient LED lighting on a large scale. For more information about the lighting in the buildings, please visit the project page of LED's GO. In addition to the lighting in the educational buildings, the sports field lighting, grounds lighting and greenhouse lighting have also been replaced.
Advantages of LED are:
- Much lower energy consumption;
- Better light;
- Much longer lifespan.
Where can you see LED lighting on campus?
- Educational buildings: by 2026, almost all conventional lighting will have been replaced by LED lighting.
- Sports fields: 113 lamps provide 54% less sports field lighting. That is the annual consumption of approximately 63 households.
- Greenhouses: 180 lamps provide 43% less power consumption. That is the annual consumption of approximately 100 households.
In 2025, a total of 11,852 LED fixtures were installed on campus.
The university has installed its own water meters in many places to gain a clear insight into water consumption and to be able to detect abnormal consumption immediately. Specialised software automatically detects high consumption, after which the responsible employees receive an automatic email alert. High consumption occurs, for example, when emergency cooling of equipment is activated or when there is a leak. These types of alerts are sent several times a year and action is taken accordingly.
Since 2019, Radboud University has been measuring its CO2 footprint every two years. The CO2 footprint represents the university's total emissions in CO2 equivalents. Based on this, the university sets policy to reduce emissions and thus reduce its CO2 footprint.
More information about the CO2 footprint
One of the ways in which the university is reducing its carbon footprint is by planting trees. In this dashboard, you can see how many trees have already been planted.
Our goals
We are reducing greenhouse gas emissions by continuously saving energy on campus and making our consumption greener. We will also use our purchasing volume to achieve a significant reduction in CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions. In this way, we are pursuing the following goals:
- All buildings will have an A+++ energy label by 2050
- Radboud Campus will be natural gas-free by 2035
- Residual heat will be available to third parties by 2050 (at least 50 TJ)
- We will reduce the indirect CO2 emissions (e.g. emissions from production and transport) of the products we use at our university
Want to know more about energy and climate?
Sustainable Development Goals
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are seventeen goals aimed at making the world a better place by 2030. They serve as a global compass for addressing challenges such as poverty, education and the climate crisis.
Radboud University’s energy and climate plans are in line with the following SDGs:
- 7 Affordable and clean energy
- 12: Responsible consumption and production
