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discovered 02_2012

discovered 02.12 Panorama WWW.Hzdr.DE Back in 1972 the “Club of Rome“ was already talking about the fact that the limits to growth had been reached and that we should now be looking at securing resources for future generations. Last year the German Federal Government introduced guidelines for the self-commitment of firms and institutions to sustainability in line with the German sustainability code and now there is increased pressure from the expectations that as many organizations as possible (particularly those that are publicly-funded) will foster this code of sustainability in an effort to save resources. The “Green Campus“ has been developed to this end almost as a marketing idea for universities and research centers that are competing for the best ideas and talents. One might assume that this kind of approach comes from the USA – and as far as the marketing is concerned, this assumption is probably true. The concept of “sustainability“, however, was more likely to have been invented in Saxony: As early as 1713 chief mining officer Hans Carl von Carlowitz formulated this idea in his work “Sylvicultura oeconomica“ with the suggestion that only so much timber should be harvested as would be able to grow back through planned reforestation. The Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf has been incorporating and realizing sustainability aspects into its various programs for over ten years, even if the term “green campus“ is still a fairly recent addition to our vocabulary. The master plan for the development of the center is a prime example of how one can realize construction with limited land consumption, restore land, modernize the heat supply, use renewable energies, encourage traffic calming, create a cyclist-friendly environment, manage rainwater and improve waste water disposal all in one master concept that not only reduces overheads but also leads to a noticeable improvement of the environment. Incidentally, as a result of its new architectural improvements, the center has become considerably more attractive and one can only begin to imagine what it will be like after the remaining restoration work has been completed. All of this can be read in a brochure to be published by the HZDR in September. Following on from the ten-year master plan for Dresden-Rossendorf, the next steps for the years to come now need to be defined just as the master plan needs to be updated. This will include further steps towards optimizing the large cost pools of heat energy and electrical energy as well as providing “user guides“ for a more efficient operation of the buildings. But there will also be questions to answer: What kind of a research center do we want to be? What can we offer our employees and visitors –in addition to our excellent scientific facilities? The American marketing ideas have caught up with us, and in striving to attract the best employees we will also have to answer questions about the best work climate in the field of research. Text . Peter Joehnk Translation . Sarah Gwillym-Margianto The “Green Campus“ Rossendorf Contact _Administrative Director at HZDR Prof. Peter Joehnk p.joehnk@hzdr.de ON TWO WHEELS: Site development includes the traffic concept “biker-friendly.“ In addition to providing facilities for parking bikes and separate biker entrances and exits, a special bike lane was created from the federal highway to the Center.

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