Written by:
Director Safety, Health, Environment Lead for Global Quality at AstraZeneca
Quality Control Sustainability - HSE Program Manager, AstraZeneca
At AstraZeneca, we are integrating sustainability through our entire supply chain, from the lab to the patient. We constantly challenge ourselves to pioneer innovative approaches and processes which minimise our impact on the world's natural resources. By creating a culture of sustainability, and changing mindsets we ensure we design, develop, and deliver new medicines in the most environmentally sustainable way possible.
Scientific innovation and environmental responsibility go hand in hand
The healthcare sector is responsible for approximately 5% of all global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions with laboratories found to consume 5-10 times more energy than typical office spaces.1 As a company whose mission is to transform health outcomes, we have a responsibility to address the climate crisis directly. By making long-term and lasting changes, we are lessening the environmental impact of our lab operations, and contributing to our Ambition Zero Carbon strategy to decarbonise our operations and value chain to become net zero by 2045.
Achieving our sustainability targets requires a change in mindset
Through our Green Labs programme, we are reducing the environmental impact of our lab operations by engaging scientists in environmental sustainability across the organisation – from lab-based colleagues in R&D and Pharmaceutical Technology and Development to our operational colleagues across quality control in our manufacturing and supply network. With more than 4,500 colleagues optimising ways of working, we are changing our culture. For example, we are taking action on:
- Energy reduction: Engaging in the International Freezer Challenge and Switch Off Optimisation Program (SWOOP) to reduce our power consumption and carbon footprint.
- Waste management: Adopting eco-friendly waste disposal methods and promoting the recycling of lab materials such as plastics and gloves, reducing our waste output.
- Certification: In collaboration with My Green Lab, deploying certificates across our organisation to understand our sustainable performance within the lab space and identify opportunities to improve.
- Innovation in laboratory processes: Reducing raw materials and solvent usage.
What is My Green Lab?
My Green Lab is a non-profit environmental organisation with a mission to build a global culture of sustainability in science. The organisation is the world leader in developing internationally recognised sustainability standards for laboratories and laboratory products, bringing sustainability to the community responsible for the world’s life-changing medical and technical innovations. Laboratories are one of the most resource-intensive spaces in any industry, but they don’t have to be. By introducing both a new perspective and proven best practices within a carefully crafted framework, My Green Lab has inspired tens of thousands of scientists to make a positive change in their labs by reducing the environmental impact of their work.
Creating a culture of sustainability with My Green Lab
Recognised by the United Nations Race to Zero campaign as a key measure of progress towards a low carbon future, the My Green Lab Certification was brought into our labs through our R&D team and is considered the worldwide standard for laboratory sustainability.
My Green Lab Certification: a commitment to sustainable science
In December 2024, we became the first organisation globally to achieve the new My Green Lab 2.0 Certification. The Company has over 129 lab spaces certified in 19 countries, and 91 achieved the highest level of certification – Green.
Our groundbreaking work at our manufacturing and supply sites across 33 labs has enabled us to achieve the highest level of certification, and with 100% engagement, setting a new industry standard. This is a remarkable testament to our commitment to environmental stewardship.
For example:
- Our Sweden and Indonesia laboratories have avoided over 600MWh/year by optimising their laboratory heating, ventilation and air conditioning.
- Our Mt Vernon site contributed to the 300 tonnes of waste we've globally avoided by simplifying their testing processes.
- Harmonisation of testing methods, such as at our Brazil and Puerto Rico sites, has enabled a 11,000kL reduction in water use.
Promoting best practices in laboratory cold storage management
In addition to My Green Lab Certification, for the past five years we participated in an international, annual competition designed to promote best practices in laboratory cold storage management. Our labs competed to save energy through activities such as freezer clean outs, maintenance, temperature set-backs from -80 to -70°C, and upgrades to more energy-efficient models.
In 2024, we avoided 7962 kWh/day, the equivalent of the energy used to charge an estimated 432,472 smartphones per day.*
In August 2024, we were recognised with two awards from My Green Lab and the International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories in the 2024 Freezer Challenge: the Winning Streak Award for Biotech/Pharmaceutical Sector, for being at the top of our sector and surpassing our energy savings from the previous year, and the Top Small Lab Award – Biotech/Pharmaceutical Sector, awarded to AZ Gothenburg Regional Human Biological Samples Centre.
Additionally, lab-based colleagues at our Gothenburg site upgraded our Biobank freezer park, safely decommissioning 37 old freezers and replacing them with 25 new and more energy efficient models, helping to avoid 1 tCO2e – equivalent to charging 121,643 mobile phones – every week.*
Empowering scientists and operators to switch-off lab equipment
Since 2021, we have been implementing SWOOP, or the Switch-off Optimisation Program, across most of our labs. SWOOP is a grassroots initiative that identifies and categorises laboratory equipment to allow individual scientists to shut down equipment when appropriate, and without significantly impacting scientist workflows. By labelling equipment with either a green (safe to shut down after use), amber (check with a supervisor before shutting down) or red (do not shut down) sticker, our scientists are empowered to make small changes that reduce our GHG emissions footprint; a simple initiative that has delivered tangible energy reductions.
We are empowering our lab-based colleagues with sustainable research practices through behavioural changes. It’s about asking everyone in our labs to have a sustainability mindset in everything they do. Our accreditations are a testament to how quickly this programme can result in positive change to more sustainably manage energy, water, waste and chemicals across our laboratories.
Every change matters. Our ultimate goal is to achieve the highest level of certification provided by My Green Lab across all our sites and have lab-based colleagues around the world take part in activities that reduce our environmental impact and enable us to operate sustainably. Having seen first-hand the benefit of My Green Lab Certification, the Freezer Challenge, and SWOOP in helping us achieve our environmental sustainability goals, we are now a My Green Lab sponsor and are working together to support the future of sustainable science across our company, our partners, collaborators and beyond.
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