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Climate change

Climate change

Sustainability, climate change, and the debate over whether the UvA should collaborate with the fossil fuel industry.

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How heat-resistant is the Dutch forest ant?

13 juli 2026 - 08:00

How heat-resistant is the Dutch forest ant?

It is not just people who are suffering the consequences of a warming climate; animals are too. In the forests around Wageningen, UvA researchers from IBED are investigating how ants cope with drought and extreme heat caused by climate change. “Without ants, there is no forest.”

Han van der Maas | Shaming and blaming do not benefit the UvA’s climate policy

23 juni 2026 - 13:00

Aviation policy

Columnist Han van der Maas has serious reservations about the study into the UvA’s air travel policy. There is a lack of clearly substantiated figures on staff air travel patterns, and he believes the reporting on this issue falls short. He also asks aloud: should we really be flying less when sci...

UvA staff want stricter flight policies: “Flight shame doesn’t work“

17 juni 2026 - 14:45

UvA staff want stricter flight policies: “Flight shame doesn’t work“

Staff at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) want to fly less, but for that to happen, policy needs to change. Cameron Brick looked into the flights taken by UvA staff. “Awareness is not enough.”

Patients Are Ready for Sustainable Care: “I’d Like a Green Treatment, Doctor”

1 juni 2026 - 09:27

Ph.D. candidate Eva Cohen with her advisor, gynecologist Wouter Hehenkamp, wearing reusable caps and reusable gowns (not yet in use) in the operating room at Amsterdam UMC.

What is the environmental impact of surgery? Patients are happy to opt for a more sustainable treatment, provided it is just as effective. But the most sustainable option isn’t always obvious, according to the dissertation by UvA PhD candidate Eva Cohen.

UvA plummets in annual higher education sustainability ranking

29 mei 2026 - 16:00

Solar panels at Science Park

The UvA is falling increasingly behind other universities and universities of applied sciences when it comes to sustainability. This is evident from the annual SustainaBul ranking. In the space of three years, the UvA has dropped from third to 26th place in the ranking.

UvA researchers draw up roadmap for the Dutch-Colombian climate summit

24 april 2026 - 13:00

UvA researchers draw up roadmap for the Dutch-Colombian climate summit

This weekend, around fifty countries will gather at the Dutch-Colombian climate summit in Santa Marta, Colombia. It is the first summit entirely dedicated to phasing out oil, coal and gas. A policy recommendation from twelve UvA researchers is intended to put this into practice. What are the chances...

UvA becomes greener, but does not meet its sustainability targets

9 april 2026 - 07:45

UvA becomes greener, but does not meet its sustainability targets

Less flying, more sustainable procurement, and generating more of its own energy: in March 2021, the University of Amsterdam set itself an ambitious sustainability agenda with its White Paper Sustainability. Five years later, the university has indeed become somewhat greener, but many of its sustain...

“Climate history shows that things can change very suddenly”

30 maart 2026 - 09:59

Climate activists are protesting against Shell under the bridge at the Roeterseiland Campus.

Greenpeace and Shell once worked together. During the Solaris campaign in 1998, climate activists and the oil company sold solar panels to Dutch households. How did it come to that? And what can the climate movement learn from this? UvA Professor of Dutch History Peter van Dam investigated this.

UvA ecologists aim to map biodiversity in Europe using a single measuring system

27 februari 2026 - 13:45

Test of several insect cameras in the field.

At present, Europe is still a patchwork quilt when it comes to measuring biodiversity. UvA ecologist are proposing a integrated monitoring system for the entire continent, with a European coordination centre.

J/K courtyard garden on Roeterseiland finally taking shape

23 februari 2026 - 14:54

Greening in progress in REC J/K.

For those who think that Roeterseiland is now more or less finished after all the renovations: not quite yet. But now things are finally moving forward with the courtyard garden of the J/K building currently under construction: greening in progress. The plan includes a vegetable garden, seating are...

Can ecotourism and reforestation save the Amazon?

11 februari 2026 - 13:29

Panorama from an observation tower in the Amazon rainforest

In Ecuador's Quijos Valley, grasslands and grazing cows are being replaced by palm trees and legumes. Local farmers are focusing on ecotourism and reconnecting their farmland with the Amazon region. UvA students Marleen Leek and Eva van der Veek are researching how to grow the right trees more effec...

UvA experts predict ‘stormy period’ due to geopolitical tensions

15 januari 2026 - 07:00

View of planet Earth from space, showing a partially illuminated hemisphere with a blue atmospheric glow, visible clouds and ocean surface, set against a dark, star-filled background.

Risk experts have become significantly more pessimistic about global short-term prospects. This is evident from the Global Risks Report 2026 by the World Economic Forum, to which UvA-professor Henk Volberda contributed. Fifty percent of the 1,300 experts surveyed expect the world to face a ‘turb...

Participation councils: UvA must place more emphasis on sustainability

9 januari 2026 - 11:53

Participation councils: UvA must place more emphasis on sustainability

In a joint recommendation to the Executive Board, the Central Student Council (CSR) and the Central Works Council (COR) have urged the UvA to devote more attention to sustainability.

The UvA had to think a little bit, but has now signed the climate manifesto

3 december 2025 - 12:36

The green roof on main building 904 of Science Park.

The UvA has also signed the climate manifesto of the Green Young Academy (GrYA). Nine institutions have now signed the manifesto, which calls on knowledge institutions to pursue a more ambitious climate policy.

UvA alumnus collaborates with Indigenous communities at climate summit in Brazil

20 november 2025 - 15:29

Nina Witteveen together with the Science Panel for the Amazon at the 30th climate summit in Brazil.

UvA alumnus Nina Witteveen travelled to the climate summit in Belém. Together with the scientific initiative Science Panel for the Amazon and the Indigenous population, she wrote a report on rainforest restoration that was published last week. “Demonstrating has an effect, but we still ...

The Young Academy: “Dutch universities’ sustainability plans not ambitious enough”

4 november 2025 - 13:23

Solar panels and a green roof at the Science Park.

Climate policy at Dutch universities needs to be stepped up, concludes the Green Young Academy (GrYA) in a report published today. It is therefore calling on knowledge institutions to sign a manifesto. Six institutions have signed, the University of Amsterdam is still considering its position.

Letters | Degrowth works against climate improvement if it becomes the norm

23 oktober 2025 - 15:00

Letters | Degrowth works against climate improvement if it becomes the norm

Felix van Hoften’s opinion piece on the alleged lack of ecological economics courses at the UvA prompted several letters to the editor. A selection can be read here.

Why climate change is conspicuously absent from the election campaign

23 oktober 2025 - 12:08

Why climate change is conspicuously absent from the election campaign

Housing shortages, healthcare, migration: climate change is barely mentioned in the political parties’ election campaigns. Force majeure or strategy? “Climate change polarises public debate, and that doesn’t help anyone.”

Where are the ecological economics programmes in the Netherlands?

17 oktober 2025 - 08:00

Where are the ecological economics programmes in the Netherlands?

How is it possible that there are no Bachelor’s, Master’s, minor or even elective courses in Ecological Economics in the Netherlands? In a country that likes to present itself as a leader in sustainability, innovation and knowledge, the absence of this discipline is more than remarkable, argues ...

How climate change is slowly driving biodiversity off the mountain

11 september 2025 - 08:00

Alpine zone in the Swiss Alps.

Climate change is causing temperatures to rise, pushing the treelines higher up in mountain ranges. Rare species that live above that treeline are forced to seek higher ground. How did nature cope with warm periods in the past? University of Amsterdam alumna Eline Rentier is reconstructing this on a...

How sustainable are container homes in a warming climate?

2 juli 2025 - 15:11

Most students keep their curtains and windows closed on the Spinoza campus during the heatwave in early July.

Climate change is causing heat waves with tropical nights to become increasingly common. During these days, container homes heat up like greenhouses and have difficulty releasing the heat. Yet there is still no policy in place to protect residents from the heat. “In this weather, it’s like a sau...

This is how guilty UvA students feel about their flying habits

27 juni 2025 - 11:15

Flight shame

Flight shame has increased in the Netherlands between 2020 and 2023, according to figures from Statistics Netherlands (CBS). It is striking that young people feel less guilty about their flying behaviour than older people. More than 60% of 18- to 25-year-olds took a plane in 2023. Despite the damage...

UvA switches from Deutsche Bank to ING: “No difference for the planet”

6 juni 2025 - 13:30

ING office on Bijlmerdreef in 2020.

On insistence from activists, the Green Office and the Central Student Council (CSR), the UvA and the HvA launched a tender three years ago to select a sustainable house bank. ING emerged as the winner. Is this a green step forward for the university?

UvA researchers can better predict extreme weather with AI model

23 mei 2025 - 14:01

Cloudburst over a field.

Weather forecasts have improved significantly in recent years with the help of AI. UvA researchers have contributed to an AI model that can now predict extreme weather more accurately than traditional weather stations. “If you see extreme weather coming, you have more time to make evacuation plans...

Melting sea ice changes the color of the ocean

20 mei 2025 - 15:09

Melting sea ice changes the color of the ocean

Melting sea ice not only changes the amount of light that enters the ocean, but also its color. This has consequences for algae that live off the light and absorb the greenhouse gas CO₂, and therefore for the climate, as UvA biologists Monika Soja-Woźniak and Jef Huisman have discovered.

What does the dry spring say about the summer? “This will have a long-lasting effect on nature”

2 mei 2025 - 15:00

What does the dry spring say about the summer? “This will have a long-lasting effect on nature”

It has been extremely dry in the Netherlands for two months now. And nature is suffering as a result. Not only are plants struggling, but soil life is also being depleted by the drought. “It will take years for nature to recover from this.”

The UvA is full of green ideas but little takes root

1 april 2025 - 13:15

One narcissus at Science Park

Six months ago, the university set aside an additional three million euros on top of the approximately ten million euros already invested in a ‘climate-adaptive’ and ‘nature-inclusive campus’. But plans to make the campus greener are struggling to be implemented.

Joyeeta Gupta: “Without justice , we cannot solve the climate crisis”

17 februari 2025 - 12:01

Joyeeta Gupta: “Without justice , we cannot solve the climate crisis”

Joyeeta Gupta, then a PhD student and now a professor, was one of the first to write about climate justice. Since then, she has been respected worldwide, won a Nobel Prize and finally received recognition for her research on justice in the climate crisis with the Spinoza Prize. She has one more drea...

Old t-shirts left over? UvA scientists recycle them into sugar and plastic

31 januari 2025 - 09:43

Old clothes after contact with hydrochloric acid at Avantium's pilot plant in Delfzijl.

Worldwide, millions of tonnes of clothing are thrown away every year. UvA chemists came up with a solution. Using super-concentrated hydrochloric acid, they recycle clothes into sugar and plastic.

A 4 million grant for cost-effective biofuel from algae oil

3 december 2024 - 10:09

Tubes in which algae are grown at Photanol, a UvA spin-off.

Will planes ever fly and ships sail on algae oil? A €4 million European grant for an international consortium including Wageningen and Amsterdam scientists brings that dream one step closer.

Why the Baku climate summit is not about fossil fuels

22 november 2024 - 11:00

Industry at the capital Baku in Azerbaijan where the 29th climate summit is taking place.

After almost two weeks of discussions at the climate summit in Baku, most agenda items are still undecided. How does UvA climate lawyer Joyeeta Gupta perceives the summit? “Slowly, rich countries are losing power. At the end of the day, 6 billion people live in developing countries.”

What makes fields suitable for natural pest control again? UvA biologists figured it out

25 oktober 2024 - 15:18

What makes fields suitable for natural pest control again? UvA biologists figured it out

Hoverflies and other natural enemies of pests can protect agricultural crops from aphids as an alternative to pesticides, provided there are enough bushes, hedges and flower borders around farmland. UvA biologists demonstrate this with a mathematical model. “This is the first step to make the v...

“My grandfather worked at Shell. I now get his inheritance”

25 oktober 2024 - 13:00

“My grandfather worked at Shell. I now get his inheritance”

How does your family history affect you as a person? That was the focus of a special workshop on family history at VOX-POP. For example, how do you deal with a inheritance that indirectly comes from a polluting company like Shell?

Can microalgae save Antarctica’s melting ice?

14 oktober 2024 - 15:18

Can microalgae save Antarctica’s melting ice?

Scientists from the UvA are going to research microalgae in the ice sea around Antarctica. These algae could potentially help regulate the climate. “One of the biggest uncertainties is that nobody knows how fast land ice and sea ice will melt and how that affects sea level rise.”

Overloaded power grid makes natural gas-free UvA campuses by 2025 unfeasible

8 juli 2024 - 09:33

Overloaded power grid makes natural gas-free UvA campuses by 2025 unfeasible

The power grid in Amsterdam is overloaded, which means the UvA will also be short of electricity in the coming years. As a result, the university’s ambitions to transition away from gas are in trouble.

What's at stake in the climate case against Shell?

5 april 2024 - 09:31

What's at stake in the climate case against Shell?

Shell is once again facing the Dutch climate organization Milieu Defensie in court this week. The central question is to what extent the oil company can be held responsible for climate damage. Professor of European Law Christina Eckes sheds light on the case.

What deep layers in the Earth tell us about a changing climate

3 april 2024 - 16:03

What deep layers in the Earth tell us about a changing climate

The biodiverse mangrove forests on the northern coast of South America changed into savannahs in a short period of time due to the changing climate during the last Ice Age. This was discovered by UvA researchers using fossil remains. “Mangrove forests play a key role in protecting coastal areas in...

ENT physician at Amsterdam UMC: “Climate change causing shifts in pollen levels”

26 maart 2024 - 09:43

ENT physician at Amsterdam UMC: “Climate change causing shifts in pollen levels”

Hay fever season came early this year. Due to mild temperatures, birch trees and other spring plants are blooming earlier than expected, to the dismay of hay fever sufferers. Is this a result of climate change? And what can you do about it? “It's often a matter of a nasal spray or a tablet.”

By train or by plane to Brussels? “Train,” KLM boss answers firmly

14 maart 2024 - 18:03

By train or by plane to Brussels? “Train,” KLM boss answers firmly

In the second interview in Room for Discussion anniversary series, KLM CEO Marjan Rintel pleads for a global level playing field in the airline industry. That would be a real contribution to sustainability goals, she argues.

The sustainability agenda has had its day, or has it?

29 februari 2024 - 15:01

The sustainability agenda has had its day, or has it?

A tour through the USA suggests that the sustainability agenda has had its day. It also became clear in Davos that the sustainability agenda is under pressure, media writes. However, the arguments of the skeptics are imperfect, and we in Europe would be wise to persist in our sustainability agenda.

After five years, Amsterdam Law Hub expands its focus to include climate justice

29 februari 2024 - 11:59

After five years, Amsterdam Law Hub expands its focus to include climate justice

The Amsterdam Law Hub celebrated its fifth anniversary on Thursday. What is happening in the hub? “We want to show that, as a law student, you don't necessarily have to go to a law firm, but can also go into business for yourself.”

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