Over the past 15 years, KU Leuven has cut building emissions by half. More than 60% of employees use alternatives to car transportation to reach work, and cutting emissions from business travel has become a priority for the institution.

Part of the institution’s holistic strategic plan, the KU Leuven Sustainable Travel Policy emphasizes 3 action points:

• Avoiding transportation when possible through remote conferencing;
• Prioritizing train travel over air using decision-making tools;
• Compensating for CO2 emissions of flights at the rate of €40 per tonne.

Carbon offsetting for flights is voluntary. Contributions are collected for an internal fund, to support video conferencing, sustainable research, and efforts such as Carbon + Alt + Delete and reforestation projects.

KU Leuven will monitor travel-related emissions, and provide travelers with annual summaries of their aviation-related travel emissions.