Waste not: CHARM-EU students tackle real-world sustainability challenges
Posted on: 16 May 2025
Trinity will today host the final day of XHIBIT, an intensive learning programme during which 40 CHARM-EU students teamed up with Dublin-based organisations to develop solutions to real-world sustainability challenges.
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Proposals put forward by the students will include a marketing strategy to reduce food waste for Teagasc and strategies to improve plant-based menu options and reduce bottled water consumption on Trinity’s own campuses. Solutions to reduce reliance on single-use products and food and water loss at St James’s Hospital will be presented, as will innovative ideas on sharing urban farming practices from Airfield Estate. Other groups will present methods to change attitudes to waste management with The Light House, and how to make protected buildings more sustainable, in collaboration with Chancery Place.
The students visited Airfield Estate to learn about sustainable farming
With a focus on practical applications and real-life learning, XHIBIT has presented students with real briefs from real organisations, encouraging them to develop creative solutions that are innovative, interconnected and transdisciplinary. Alongside this work, the students have taken part in visits to sites including Airfield Estate and FoodCloud, as well as workshops and cultural activities in Trinity, delivered by a range of industry and academic experts.
On a field trip to FoodCloud, the students saw how technology can be used to reduce food poverty and food waste through redistribution programmes
The students, who are studying CHARM-EU's Masters for Global Challenges in Sustainability, have been working closely with the local organisations to understand their specific challenges and develop creative solutions, drawing on academic theory and hands-on experience.
'My congratulations to the students who have taken part in XHIBIT over the last two weeks,’ said Assistant Professor Annemarie Bennett, Trinity Academic Director, CHARM-EU Masters. 'Their enthusiasm and creativity is inspiring and I look forward to seeing the solutions they put forward later today. My warmest thanks also to the local organisations who have been so generous with their time in engaging with our students.’
The students learned about ways to protect soil in extreme heat
About CHARM-EU
CHARM-EU is an alliance of 9 European universities working together to build a transformative, inclusive and challenge-drive university model inspired by European values, the Green Deal, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
About the Masters in Global Challenges for Sustainability
CHARM-EU's international Masters programme enables students to develop critical skills that address the need for more environmentally sustainable approaches across a range of areas, including food, healthcare, and water. Five universities across Europe currently support the delivery of the programme and students spend time studying in at least two countries during their course.