As part of its commitment to shift to 100 percent renewable energy by 2030, the National University of Science and Technology has installed 1 megawatt of solar power generation capacity on its flagship H-12 Islamabad campus. The university declared the achievement with the hashtag #GreenNUST through its social media platforms.
For many years now, the task of NUST towards sustainability and a reduced dependence on the national grid has been ongoing. Over the past few years, the university has built arrays of solar panels in the parking lots of its 19 constituent schools and colleges to take advantage of the open spaces available for parking, while at the same time giving shade to the cars parked below. In order to absorb sunlight and transform it into energy, solar arrays have also been mounted on building roofs, such as student hostels. In particular, this year the university administration capitalized on the lockout imposed due to the coronavirus to install solar panels on the campus that would otherwise have interfered with the institution’s daily operations.
In the social media message, NUST claimed that it was aware of its carbon footprint and that “universities, as research and innovation hubs, are responsible for significantly contributing to the fight against climate change through strategic operational planning, effective sustainable policies and models of governance.” The post claimed that NUST also worked aggressively on water conservation and recycling and extensively organized plantation drives across all of its seven national campuses.
