UNIMORE, the first EPD for university education: an innovative model

The University of Modena and Reggio Emilia has achieved a landmark result in the academic world: the Department of Sciences and Methods for Engineering has obtained the first Environmental Product Declaration dedicated to a tertiary education service. This is a pioneering achievement, marking the first time that a tool primarily designed to measure and certify the sustainability of products, services and industrial processes has been applied to the university context.
Developed in accordance with international standards and with the Product Category Rules “EPDItaly 030 – Core PCR for products and service systems: Educational services” and “EPDItaly 031 – Sub-PCR for first-level tertiary education services”, the EPD examines the entire life cycle of the educational service offered by the Department, considering elements such as teaching organisation, the use of spaces and infrastructure, energy consumption and even the commuting of students and staff. The result is a transparent picture that measures the environmental impacts associated with the educational offer, opening new opportunities for responsibility and innovation.
The Department of Sciences and Methods for Engineering thus confirms its position at the forefront not only of scientific excellence but also of sustainability. This Environmental Product Declaration serves as a replicable model for other academic institutions and strengthens the link between university education, innovation and a more responsible and sustainable future.
To further explore the value and implications of this achievement, we gathered the insights of one of the people who guided the process from within: Roberto Rosa, Associate Professor in the disciplinary area CHEM-06/A (Chemical Foundations of Technologies) at the Department of Sciences and Methods for Engineering of UNIMORE. Together with colleagues Prof. Anna Maria Ferrari, Prof. Antonella Sola, Eng. Paolo Neri, Dr. Chiara Ruini and Eng. Lucrezia Volpi from the LCA Working Group, Prof. Rosa was recently involved in drafting the PCRs for educational services (EPDItaly 030 and EPDItaly 031) and in preparing the EPD for the tertiary education service offered by the Department (Declaration Number EPD-DISMI2025, Registration Number EPDITALY0902).

What initially motivated you to develop a PCR for educational services, and how did this experience influence the subsequent preparation of the EPD?
Today more than ever, universities have a responsibility to lead a cultural shift toward social, environmental and economic sustainability. They must act as an example and as a stimulus for their surrounding communities, promoting inclusive and informed practices. Sustainability is not an elitist asset, but an essential tool to improve collective quality of life. In this sense, the university becomes an active driver of social progress.
In 2019, a letter from Minister Fioravanti to the rectors of all Italian universities urged the integration of ESG criteria into the ordinary and extraordinary management of universities. This call encouraged our research group (LCA Working Group, www.lcaworkinggroup.unimore.it) to develop the PCRs for educational services (EPDItaly 030 and EPDItaly 031) and to integrate them into the “UNIMORE Sostenibile” project (https://www.unimoresostenibile.unimore.it/) recently promoted by our university. The project aims to implement actions focused on environmental, economic and social sustainability, both within and outside the institution. Recognising the absolute need for objective, science-based quantification of environmental, economic and social impacts, UNIMORE has also engaged in extensive monitoring and assessment of its environmental footprint, incorporating numerous initiatives into its 2020–2025 Strategic Plan (https://www.unimore.it/sites/default/files/2023-11/piano_strategico_2020-2025.pdf). Among these initiatives is an LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) study aimed at quantifying the environmental impacts associated with the full life cycle of the educational services provided by one of the university’s Departments, with the goal of obtaining an EPD and creating a protocol to be extended to the entire university and beyond.

The drafting of these PCRs was necessarily accompanied by the creation of a preliminary LCA model that allowed us to identify all aspects of an educational service that may potentially generate environmental impacts. These aspects were then reviewed and discussed with the members of the PCR committee during the public consultation phase and finally incorporated into the subsequent final version of the EPD.

Why do you believe it is important to measure and certify the environmental impact of university educational services using instruments such as the EPD?
Educational services, like all human activities, have associated environmental impacts. We believe it is not possible to claim improvements in sustainability—environmental, economic or social—without an objective and science-based quantification of the impacts linked to these actions. An EPD is fundamental for creating an environmental profile of the educational service, enabling transparent, objective and comparable communication of environmental data, validated by an independent third party, thus ensuring the reliability and credibility of the information provided.

Is this initiative intended as a replicable model for other Italian or European universities? How do you think it may be adopted by other academic institutions?
Evaluation tools such as the Green Metrics Ranking, already widely adopted internationally, provide a valuable starting point for promoting sustainability within universities. They allow environmental performance to be monitored and compared through aggregated indicators, fostering awareness and continuous improvement. However, to ensure a more accurate and scientifically grounded representation of the environmental impact of the services offered, it is essential to complement these approaches with more rigorous tools such as EPD certifications. Based on LCA studies and verified by independent bodies, EPDs provide objective, transparent and comparable data, strengthening the credibility of the sustainability strategies adopted. The complementarity between rankings and certified instruments enables universities to evolve toward increasingly responsible and measurable management models.
We are currently involved in drafting the EPDs of other Departments within our university, and we hope that UNIMORE’s example will be followed by many other institutions and training providers, both in Italy and across Europe, thus contributing concretely to the sustainable development of the primary, secondary and tertiary education system in our country and beyond.

What do you see as the main benefits that this certification brings both to the University and to the students who benefit from the educational services?
The most immediate benefit is greater awareness—on the part of both the university and the students—of the real environmental impacts of the educational service, helping both to adopt behaviours and actions aimed at effectively reducing those impacts. To make monitoring and environmental measurement even more effective, it would be useful to carry out further environmental analyses, ideally involving Departments with different structural and functional characteristics. Having EPDs for different departmental settings would allow the University to identify critical issues and solutions, understand the specificities of each case and lay the foundations for developing an innovative tool designed to measure the environmental impacts of the educational service across all Departments.