MBA Sustainable Chemistry Management to start next spring

Climate change, environmental pollution and resource scarcity necessitate a drastic change of course in business. "Yet there are still far too few actors with profound knowledge of sustainability management in companies," explains Dr. Klaus Kümmerer, Professor of Sustainable Chemistry and Material Resources. The chemist is programme director of the new MBA Sustainable Chemistry Management. The part-time programme is aimed at international professionals from all industries and academic disciplines who wish to contribute knowledge to management and decision-making processes in the chemical industry environment, related economic sectors such as the textile industry, or waste management, but also in administration and politics. "The correct handling of chemical products is a central factor on the way to more sustainability at all levels and in all contexts, not only in a circular economy. Therefore, it is not enough to only train chemists accordingly. Rather, in this broader understanding of Sustainable Chemistry, the topic also belongs to the management levels," says Klaus Kümmerer.

The part-time programme covers fundamental concepts and understanding of green and sustainable chemistry that are essential for successful management in this context, such as strategic planning for circular value creation combined with extensive expertise in sustainability management, ethics, and international political framework conditions for chemicals and waste management. The content of the English-language programme is jointly supported by the Institute of Sustainable Chemistry and the Centre for Sustainability Management of the Faculty of Sustainability. Both institutes offer independent degree programmes in the field of sustainability - the M.Sc. Sustainable Chemistry and the MBA Sustainability Management - and combine their expertise in the new MBA.

The programme can be studied almost entirely online. Periods of attendance are only planned as networking events at the start and end of the programme. Resources include the e-learning platform Moodle, on which learning content is prepared with recorded lectures and corresponding literature with coursework to be completed. Online live sessions and mini-conferences promote exchange and comprehension, but also contact among the participants.

The application deadline is 30 November 2021 and the programme starts in March 2022.

The part-time MBA Sustainable Chemistry Management was developed in cooperation with the ISC3, just like the current M.Sc. Sustainable Chemistry programme. With its Research & Education Hub at the Institute of Sustainable Chemistry at the Faculty of Sustainability, Leuphana is part of the ISC3, which was founded on behalf of the Federal Ministry for the Environment and the Federal Environment Agency. As an internationally active organisation, it aims to promote sustainable chemistry worldwide.