Greenhouse gas emissions

As of 2025, UZH has over 28,700 students and approximately 8,000 employees (full-time equivalents, including apprentices and interns). The University has 379,500 square meters of main usable area distributed throughout some 250 buildings. These numbers alone show the importance of carefully using energy and other resources for heating, commuting, business trips, cafeterias, lighting, computers, and other work and study-related activities.

The UZH has set itself the ambitious target of becoming climate-neutral by 2030. This means that at least 50 percent of emissions, compared to 2018, are to be offset by the university's own measures within its operations. From 2030 onward, this goal applies to the following categories of emissions: energy, air travel, vehicle fleet, catering, paper, water, and waste. From 2035, construction activities and laboratory and research materials will also be included.

GHG emissions (in t CO₂e) by source category 2018–2025¹

1 Commuter traffic has not been part of the system boundary for reducing GHG emissions at UZH since 2025 and is therefore no longer included in the graphic. This is because UZH has very limited control over commuting emissions. Nevertheless, UZH will continue to work to do its part to reduce the environmental impact of commuting.

Compared to 2018, absolute emissions were reduced by 10 percent in 2025. This reduction is currently insufficient to halve emissions by 2030. Positive developments include the reduction of specific emissions (see following graph) per student and per employee by 20 and 24 percent respectively compared to 2018 (the number of students and employees has increased), as well as the successful implementation of several measures to reduce GHG emissions, e.g., in the areas of laboratories, catering, and air travel. The effects of these measures will be partially delayed.

Development of specific GHG emissions (in kg CO₂e) per student or per employee 2018–2025

To develop new ideas for climate neutrality, UZH makes itself available to its researchers, staff and students as a real-world laboratory.
UZH as a real-world laboratory for climate neutrality 

The Strategic Project Decarb UZH Climate Neutrality 2030 aims to contribute to the climate neutrality by 2030 goal of UZH. The Strategic Project started in 2024 and is currently focusing on the causal categories of energy, air travel, catering and waste in initially four task forces.
Decarb UZH Climate Neutrality 2030

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info(at)sustainability.uzh.ch