The Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework (LEAF)

The Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework (LEAF) is an accreditation scheme developed by the Sustainability Team at University College London (UCL) designed to improve sustainability within university teaching and research. The aim of the project is to reduce carbon footprints whilst also reducing costs for researchers and institutions. The framework enables lab teams to quantify their environmental and financial impact.

The LEAF programme comprises the following:

• Participating labs are given a list of sustainable criteria and corresponding actions to complete using an online platform. Criteria are broken down into Bronze, Silver and Gold categories.
• The categories include waste, samples/chemical management, travel, energy, water, procurement, and research quality.
• Each action is clear and easy to implement and is supported by a rationale along with guidance to help implement it.
• Carbon calculators are included within the online toolkit to enable users to quantify the impact of their actions by comparing the financial costs incurred and carbon consumed before and after sustainable practices have been introduced.
• The online calculators provide clear values to incentivise users to improve their sustainability performance and track their ongoing progress.
• Labs can decide to aim for a bronze, silver or gold level award and have the opportunity in the following year to improve and aim for the next level (if required).

This is a great opportunity to collaboratively work and share best practices with other lab teams, universities and research institutions. In addition, LEAF allows exceptionally well managed laboratories to gain recognition for their efforts.

Staff who would like to take part in the 2023-24 round of LEAF assessments, can use the links below to either log in to the portal to access their labs or embark on their LEAF journey by creating a new one:

• log in to the LEAF portal
• register your labs.

LEAF audits are usually scheduled on an annual basis around May.

• Find resources and inspiration from UCL's Sustainability Team 
• UCL LEAF Green Lab initiation guide (Word)
• UCL Green Lab Consumables Guide (PDF)
• "LEAF - Improving the Environmental Sustainability of Science Laboratories" by Blanche Kollo, UCL Sustainability Laboratories Officer (PDF)
• Sustainability tips for commonly used lab equipment (PDF) 

• St George's Christmas lab switch off
• VWR bottle recycling scheme - Researchers can drop off any empty VWR sourced bottles, both plastic and glass, to the dedicated cages in 2.211. These are then collected by VWR and recycled. Please remove the caps and place in clear plastic bags attached the cages.
• StarLab TipOne recycling scheme – Collection points are located in the shared lab 2.259 and gel room 2.235. All StarLab TipOne packaging components made of Polypropylene (PP) can be recycled.
• Item Tracker - Simplifies sample logging offering an easy-to-use interface for researchers to log, track, and update information in real time. Ideal for samples stored in ULT freezers, it enables precise mapping of each sample’s location, reducing freezer opening times, saving energy, and avoiding unnecessary alarms.  Special cold-resistant labels ensure durability. Item Tracker is also a valuable tool for Human Tissue Authority (HTA) sample auditing. For access and training, contact labhelp@sgul.ac.uk.
• New England Biolabs (NEB) shipping box recycling scheme –  Use the free return label in the box to send any polystyrene shipping boxes back to NEB. A donation is made to the Woodland Trust for every box returned.

We’d love to hear about more Green Lab initiatives! Please get in touch with Priya or Lara via labhelp@sgul.ac.uk with your ideas.