CONFERENCE
Eco-Campus
Recognising the University of Latvia’s achievements in the field of environmental education and protection, the University of Latvia has been awarded the Latvian Eco-Campus Certificate for the 2025/2026 academic year. The University of Latvia has participated in the Eco-Schools Programme since 2022, carrying out an environmental impact assessment every year. The purpose of the University’s environmental impact assessment is to support the Eco-Council in selecting an appropriate priority theme and developing an action plan tailored to the University’s environmental context, aimed at reducing the institution’s impact on the environment. The University of Latvia first received the Eco-Campus certificate for the 2022/2023 academic year, and the first Green flag for the 2024/2025 academic year.
What is the Eco-Schools Programme?
Globally, the Eco-Schools Programme is coordinated by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE International), a non-profit non-governmental organisation founded in 1987 in Leiden, the Netherlands. Today, Eco-Schools is the largest educational programme in the world, implemented in 73 countries and involving 48,700 schools. It is a partner of the United Nations Environment Programme in environmental education and provides a framework for the effective integration of environmental protection and education activities into the daily life of educational institutions.
In Latvia, the Environmental Education Foundation has been implementing FEE International programmes since 1998, and the Eco-Schools Programme was launched in 2002. Currently, more than 195 educational institutions operate within the programme in Latvia, ranging from pre-schools to higher education institutions.a
Participation in the Eco-Campus Programme takes place through the establishment and operation of an environmental management system, as well as through continuous work on environmental issues within the institution. This management system is developed in accordance with the Eco-Campus Programme’s seven-step criteria. These steps are:
- Eco-Campus comittee
- Sustainability audit
- Curriculum links
- Action plan
- Monitor and evaluate
- Inform and involve
- Produce and Eco-Code
Each year, through the Eco-Campus Programme, the University of Latvia carries out an environmental review. The aim of this environmental impact assessment is to assist the Eco-Council in selecting an appropriate priority theme and developing an action plan suited to the University’s environmental situation, helping to reduce the institution’s impact on the environment.