In our lab, sustainability is not a side project. It is part of how we work every day. From mindful ordering to creative reuse, we believe that caring for the environment goes hand in hand with doing good science. Our approach is simple: reduce, reuse, rethink, and recycle. But most importantly, we make it fun and collaborative. Here are some of the ways we do it:
🔄 We reuse and Repurpose:
Why throw something away if it can serve again? We refill and autoclave our tip boxes instead of buying new ones. Refilling them has even become a small, mindful break many of us enjoy between experiments. We also give packaging materials a second life: envelopes, bubble wrap, and polystyrene boxes often find new use for shipping samples or storing reagents.
Refilling tip boxes as mindful break :).
🧠 We Rethink How We Work
We keep detailed electronic color-coded databases of our reagents and samples, including freezer and cryobank maps, so we always know what we have and where to find it. This saves not only money and time but also reduces unnecessary orders and waste. We plan experiments carefully, optimize protocols to use smaller amounts of reagents, and share the knowledge and material between lab members.
Book with lab protocols and example of plasmid database.
🚛 We Reduce Waste and Emissions
Our lab manager orders in bulk whenever possible. Fewer deliveries mean less packing and lower CO2 emissions, and better prices, too! We also try to cut down on single-use plastics: choosing proper tube sizes, reusing plastic pipettes for common solutions, and switching to glass wherever practical (for example, using coverslip systems instead of plastic imaging plates).
♻️ We recycle and Color-Code 🔴🟠🟡🟢🔵🟣
We actively recycle paper, plastics, aluminum, and glass across the lab, but we go a step further by making organization part of our sustainability mindset. In our cell culture lab, we have set up a color-coded glove reusing system that helps us to use gloves more than once and is visually satisfying! Beyond that, we use color-coded, custom 3D-printed lab accessories, from tube holders to slide organizers, all designed and optimized to fit our specific workflows and space. These small adjustments not only reduce waste but also make our lab more efficient and personal.
3D-printed lab acessories, color-coded glove organizer & reusing nametags.
☕ We Bring Sustainability Beyond the Bench
Our commitment extends to meetings and conferences. We reuse name tags, print only when necessary, and opt for ‚green catering ‘ whenever possible.
For us, sustainability is about curiosity and creativity. The same things that drive our research. Each small action, from refilling a tip box to sharing a cell line, contributes to a bigger goal: a responsible, forward-thinking scientific community. And we love sharing ideas — rethinking our lab routines together and passing on tips and tricks that make our daily work more sustainable. We hope that by sharing our practices, we can inspire other labs to join the movement toward a greener, smarter way of doing science.