The Chula Zero Waste initiative, led by Chulalongkorn University’s Environmental Research Institute and the Physical Resources Management Office, is a commitment of the University in being a sustainable university that focuses on tackling the environmental issues and cultivating eco-conscious lifestyles for all members of the university, especially the students.

The program employs a multi-sectoral approach to develop an effective waste management system within the campus and the surrounding communities for all types of waste, both hazardous and non-hazardous, generated in the academic activities, day-to-day operation, and recreation. Putting the Zero-Waste-to-Landfill concept and the 3R golden rules (Reduce-Reuse- Recycle) into action during the first 5-year phase (2017-2021) of the program, a reduction of approximately 40% of waste was resulted, exceeding its original target of 30%. More importantly, the program shows the effectiveness of organizational policy in driving the change of mindset and behavior of the stakeholders in the communities.

Implementation strategies and lessons learned from the Chula Zero Waste initiative will be shared and demonstrated, including the recent ‘Partnership program for a more sustainable future’. This partnership model of university, community and private sector for waste segregation, collection and processing provides win-win benefits to the operators and the society, and also contributes to the reduction of environmental impact.

At present, similar activities are being carried out by more than 36 members of the Sustainable University Network of Thailand (SUN Thailand) which was founded in 2016 for learning exchange and policy development in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.