PLANET

Top of our sustainability agenda is reducing carbon emissions. By 2030, we aim to cut emissions (that fall within our direct control) by 24%, which will bring us close to the science-based targets set out in the Paris Agreement. To that end, we have been tracking energy usage in buildings and reducing on-site lorry deliveries by setting up a centralised shop.

We have also been working to improve our campus environment by reducing the speed limit to 20km/h on our newly adapted campus road and planting a total of 51 trees – these provide more shaded areas as well as increasing biodiversity.

Finally, we have renewed our credentials as a green space with Swiss non-governmental organisation Fondation Nature & Economie, obtaining the highest possible certification.

SOCIAL

We aim to ensure that all of our members feel safe and supported on campus, which is why we organise first aid trainings and have installed defibrillators in every campus building to increase chances of survival in the event of a medical emergency. Having established a lactation room, we also plan to open a crèche in 2025 to better accommodate mothers working on campus.

The talent of tomorrow is an important aspect of our corporate social responsibility agenda. So far, we’ve partnered with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL) to help run the Innovate4Life programme and have launched our own Postgraduate Consulting scheme, both of which give talented students and postgraduates valuable experience in a start-up environment and enhance their employability. We also support other student initiatives, including the Life Sciences Career Day and the Faces of Industrial Research. And there’s more to come – watch this space.