On 15th October 2025, within the framework of the “20th International Symposium on Waste Management, Resource recovery and Sustainable landfilling”, the Workshop “Efficiency of Waste Management policies in Universities” was held under the patronage of the RUS and organized by the R&W WG.

The event was the occasion for a discussion on an international level on university policy aimed at promoting responsible consumption (upstream) and efficient waste management actions (downstream), with a particular focus on student engagement.

The program of the initiative is presented below.

Program

(Chairs: Giovanni De Feo, Maria Cristina Lavagnolo, Eleonora Perotto)

The role of the Resources and Waste Working Group of the Network of Universities for Sustainable Development in promoting efficient prevention and management waste policies

Eleonora Perotto (Politecnico di Milano)

[Click here to download the presentation]

How we analyzed waste management at MUNI

Michal Struk (Masaryk University)

[Click here to download the presentation]

Nearly Zero Waste -n0w – Improving waste reduction and separate collection at the University of Pisa

Giulia Romano (University of Pisa)

[Click here to download the presentation]

How the University of Padova community perceives recycling

Enrico Rubaltelli (University of Padova)

[Click here to download the presentation]

The evolution of the separate waste collection system at the university of Salerno

Giovanni De Feo (University of Salerno)

[Click here to download the presentation]

Discussion and conclusion

As part of the presentation on the R&W WG’s activities, the following points were highlighted:

• the good practices collected during the call, which closed in September 2025; in particular, the following universities participated: PoliMI, PoliTO, UniBocconi, UniBO, UniCA, UniFI, UniGE, UniPD, UniPI, UniPV, UniRoma1, UniSA, UniSI, UniVE;
• a preliminary elaboration of the “mini” survey carried out in October 2025, regarding: i) the removal of bins from offices; ii) the introduction of organic waste collection; iii) waste prevention and management during graduation ceremonies.

The discussion highlighted several aspects confirming the importance of sharing good practices adopted by individual universities, in order to promote increasingly effective and sustainable waste management and resource recovery, in line with current legislation. The exchange with international realities during the workshop revealed that many challenges and reflections are shared among all universities, suggesting that RUS can play a significant role beyond national borders in promoting training and awareness on sustainability and the responsible use of resources.

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