Certifications
Environmental certifications and sustainability frameworks help laboratories structure and accelerate their transition toward more responsible research practices. They provide practical tools, measurable objectives, and collaborative approaches to reduce environmental impact while maintaining scientific excellence.
At EPFL, several initiatives support laboratories in improving sustainability practices across research activities, infrastructure, and innovation processes. Your lab could be the next to embark on one of these initiatives!
LEAF certification
The Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework (LEAF) is a sustainability certification programme designed specifically for wet research laboratories. It provides practical actions and measurable criteria to improve laboratory sustainability in areas such as energy consumption, waste reduction, procurement, equipment management, and research practices.
- Structured sustainability framework for laboratories
- Bronze, Silver, and Gold certification levels
- Focus on operational improvements and measurable impact
- Supports long-term behavioural change within research teams
- Focused on wet laboratories
- PERL (ENAC), Prof C. Grossiord, Silver
- LCOM (SB), Prof P. Dyson, Bronze
- LMSC (STI), Prof A. Fontcuberta, Silver-Gold
- FMO1 (STI), Prof F. Mondada, Bronze-Silver
- LBEN (STI), Prof A. Radenovic, Bronze
- LSBI (STI/SV), Prof S. Lacour, Silver
- Groupe Maynard, Prof A. Maynard, Silver
- VDG (SV), Prof G. van der Goot, Gold
SparkHub
SparkHub is an open source collaborative platform that helps research organisations and teams reduce their environmental impact through practical guidance, certification, and community-led good practice. It encompasses several frameworks designed to address a broad range of laboratory typologies.
For instance, the Green Digital Sustainability Certification is part of the SparkHub certification scheme and is designed to help digital and computational research groups promotes concrete changes in the way computational resources, data, software and digital infrastructure are used and managed.
- Structured sustainability framework for laboratories,
- Bronze, Silver, and Gold certification levels,
- Focus on operational improvements and measurable impact,
- Supports long-term behavioural change within research teams.
- Encompasses several frameworks designed to address a broad range of laboratory typologies
- Open-access
- UPOates (SV), Prof. A. Oates, Green Digital Sustainability Certification Bronze
- Groupe Paoli (SV), Prof. Lucas Paoli, Green Digital Sustainability Certification Bronze
Green DiSC
Green DiSC digital sustainability certifications are integrated directly into the SPARKHub platform.
Green DiSC follows a three-level structure:
- Bronze : represents the entry level and focuses on establishing fundamental sustainable computing practices
- Silver : represents a more advanced level of implementation and demonstrates a broader and deeper integration of sustainability principles into computational research,
- Gold : represents the highest level of achievement and recognises more comprehensive and mature sustainable-computing practices.
- UPOates (SV), Prof. A. Oates, Green Digital Sustainability Certification Bronze
- Groupe Paoli (SV), Prof. Lucas Paoli, Green Digital Sustainability Certification Bronze