Sustainability Week 2026: Global climate policy and local initiatives
From repair café to an electronic waste party: The University of Basel's Sustainability Week kicks off on 9 March. Organized by the student organization UNISSA, the week combines practical activities, discussions and networking opportunities – bringing sustainability to life.
03 March 2026 | Marlene Schulze
This year's Sustainability Week is themed around diversity: “We deliberately chose not to focus on a single topic, but instead wanted to address the issue as broadly as possible,” explain students Fiona Müller and Yasmin Malard, who lead the organizing team. Whether it's a repair café, bike repair workshops, or a city tour of Basel's sustainable shops, the program focuses in particular on practical education.
It shows how easy it can be to act more sustainably in everyday life. “It was important to us to promote a change from everyday academic life and to get involved in a hands-on way,” emphasizes Yasmin Malard. The team is already looking forward to the start of Sustainability Week: “I think our kick-off event is particularly cool: a smoothie bike. It has a blender attached to it that is activated by pedaling and makes smoothies from rescued fruit.”
Sustainable together: electronic waste party, clothing swap, and more
Sustainability thrives on cooperation—and this is reflected in the program. One highlight is the electronic waste party on Thursday: “The entry fee is a piece of electronic waste,” explains Fiona Müller enthusiastically. Before the party, there will be a workshop in collaboration with SENS, the company that recycles electronic waste. The workshop will focus on educating people about the recyclability of resources in electronic waste.
But that's not the only place where sustainability and social exchange come together: on Thursday, there will be a workshop on dealing with climate anxiety, and on Friday, a clothing swap. And those interested in film and discussion can get excited about the climate thriller ‘Trop Chaud’ on the groundbreaking ruling of the European Court of Human Rights on the Climate Seniors.
Global perspectives
For those eager to learn, there will be lectures on resource use, climate policy, and sustainable fuels, among other topics. Through cooperation in the cross-border university alliances Eucor and EPICUR, scientific contributions to the geopolitical perspective on sustainability have been gained: experts, including Prof. Tomasz Brańka (resource conflicts in Greenland) and Prof. Jarosław Jańcza (energy policy in the border triangle of Germany, Czechia, and Poland), provide insights into global challenges. Dr. Iljana Schubert and Dr. Adam Hearn from the University of Basel will report on their research into the sustainability of aviation fuels in Switzerland.
Commitment to sustainability
The activities during Sustainability Week are made possible by the voluntary commitment of students who have been planning the event since the summer of 2025 as part of the student association United for Sustainable Student Action (UNISSA). They are supported by the Sustainability Office, the Eucor-EPICUR team, and the university's Campus Services, while IWB provides financial assistance through its sustainability project funding. “It was really impressive to see how many people it takes to put together such a large program and to support the project centrally as a committee,” summarizes Fiona Müller.
All events are free, open to the public, and held in German or English. The complete program and registration information can be found on the Sustainability Week Basel 2026 website.
