They review the university's internal environmental work

We have asked two of them, Marianne Louwerse, Coordinator of the Digital Business Lab, and Vijay Kumar, Associate Professor at the Department of Business Administration and Textile Management.

Vijay Kumar

What is the most important task as an internal environmental auditor?

“The most important task is to examine how different departments at the university follow rules and guidelines on environmental issues. It also includes how different groups implement sustainable processes, identifying areas for improvement and most importantly listening to employees, not only about what can be improved but also to capture good examples that other departments at the university can follow. The whole process is about interviewing relevant employees and finally compiling a report with what has been found and making recommendations.”

Is it an onerous role?

“It’s usually a simple process. We have a battery of questions to start from. At first, it can be a bit challenging to coordinate with different departments and to understand each department’s way of working with environmental issues, but after a while it becomes easier when you figure out how they do things.”

What is required to become an internal environmental auditor?

“You need to know the university’s environmental policy and guidelines. When I started, I got a review of the environmental management system that the university uses, which gave me abroad source of knowledge.”

What do you get from being an internal environmental auditor?

“It takes 20-40 hours per year, depending on how many people are interviewed, but it’s not just a role, it’s a great opportunity to learn how employees in their respective roles reason and implement environmental practices. You gain valuable insight into how environmental issues are considered and what routines are in place at the university.”

Marianne Louwerse

How long have you been an internal environmental auditor?

“I started in March 2023 with basic training in internal auditing. As a newcomer to the internal environmental audit in 2023, I was more of an observer and worked together with a more experienced environmental auditor in order to see how it works.”

What do you do as an environmental auditor?

“As an internal environmental auditor, I want to help ensure that the University of Borås complies with environmental legislation and internal environmental requirements. Through interviews with key employees, I try to understand how environmental work is handled in practice. After interviews, a report is written with possible deviations, i.e. deficiencies, and areas for improvement.”

Is it a difficult role? 

“Yes, a little. I think it’s difficult because I think it’s important, but at the same time it’s great to meet so many colleagues from different Faculties and get insight into so many different parts of the university.”

What is required to become an internal environmental auditor?

“You will first take a course in environmental auditing, mainly focusing on the ISO 14001 standard. You need to have good knowledge of the university's environmental management system and internal documents. In addition, you will learn auditing techniques, which means being able to plan, implement, report and follow up, as well as environmental legislation and the university's requirements in the area of sustainable development.”

What does it mean to you to be an environmental auditor? 

“It means that I play a small role in safeguarding the university’s environmental work. It is a job that provides both challenges and a sense of being able to make a difference. And it’s fun to be able to do it together with colleagues that I don’t see often otherwise!”

What do you get out of the role?

“I get knowledge about environmental work at the university and fun collaborations with colleagues from other Faculties.”

 Is it an onerous role? How much time do you spend on it?

“No, it's mostly just fun. You spend a total of 15-20 hours per audit.”

Read more

Here are all the university’s current internal environmental auditors:

• Cecilia Karlsson
• Christian Jensen
• Christian Mohr
• Hamid Movaffaghi
• Maria Westerlund
• Marianne Louwerse
• Mohammad Neaz Morshed
• Susanne Edström
• Vijay Kumar

Do you also want to help with the internal audit of the university's environmental work? Contact Maria Westerlund, Administrative Officer of the environmental work at the university. Email: maria.westerlund@hb.se