Martin Farley has helped thousands of biologists to improve research capacity and quality while minimizing lab materials, energy, and time. Martin moved from stem cell research to becoming the first full-time green labs professional in Europe in 2013. He established lab sustainability programs at the University of Edinburgh and King’s College London and founded the user-driven, non-profit, Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework (LEAF) program at University College London. Today, his pioneering strategies are used by research universities in Europe, Australia, China, Singapore, and Japan to identify, track and achieve lab sustainability goals.
Our thanks to Martin for sharing his insights!
1. When did you develop the LEAF program, and how far has it spread since?
LEAF was initially piloted for 2 years, from 2018-2020. In that pilot we started with a 23 institutions, and just over 225 labs took part. In 2020, we commenced work on an online platform to support LEAF, which has really helped it spread widely. In just over a year since launching it in 2021 it's been picked up by 68 institutions, with over 1,000 labs and 1,600 users on the system, and it's growing fast! We're still developing the platform and content though, so hope to keep improving.
2. Why would you say it is so effective?
I think it's been effective for a few reasons really. Firstly, we have our platform, which allows LEAF to scale at several levels quickly. It still takes work to achieve the criteria, but we've made the content and supporting guidance very accessible. Secondly, we have calculators which allow users to estimate impacts, and which can translate to reported impacts both in terms of reduced carbon emissions and financial savings. We also really support the institutions who sign up and provide training for new users as well as the administrators who lead the program.
One unique aspect of LEAF was that we were the first to connect sustainability with research quality and reproducibility and look forward to exploring this area further. Lastly, I think we've just come at a good time, in that everyone wants to integrate sustainability into their working practices. Scientists are at the forefront of helping us understand what targets we need to avoid climate catastrophe, so it's normal they want to ensure their work is as sustainable as possible.
Scope 3 emissions are our greatest source of carbon emissions as institutions, and we can't even begin to get a handle on them as no one knows the full impacts. We need manufacturers to look beyond their traditional models and challenge us as purchasers to use new closed loop systems if they can facilitate this.
-Martin Farley
3. You have aired grievances on "greenwashing" lab products. How does this cause a problem for scientific progress?
I'm lucky enough to work at and with institutions that really care about the environment, with staff and students that want to contribute to those goals. What I see regularly though are manufacturers and suppliers which will push the "green" credentials of products, without truly considering the full impacts. Every company claims to sell the most efficient units (which can't all be true), and almost none consider the impacts of manufacturing, which is often greater than the energy consumption in terms of carbon emissions.
Purchasers are confused, and I am too often. How can we trust marketing materials? There's so little transparency in this area still, and I know it's early days, but we need more action now. Scope 3 emissions are our greatest source of carbon emissions as institutions, and we can't even begin to get a handle on them as no one knows the full impacts. We also need manufacturers to look beyond their traditional models and challenge us as purchasers to use new closed-loop systems if they can facilitate this. I think NEB has done this really well with their packaging reuse schemes, as it's the only company I know of which will encourage the reuse of ice packs in the U.K. for example.
4. Given the unique and diverse conditions of scientific labs globally, are there constructive ways that the research community can demonstrate unmet sustainability needs to innovators?
We all need to work together on these challenges. We know that reuse and making equipment last longer leads to lower emissions typically, and this requires all parties at the table. This includes manufacturers, suppliers, lab management, researchers, administrators, and everyone between. Likely the best is to take it a piece at a time. Starting to address our reliance on single-use plastics is a perfect example.
5. What has been the reaction so far to the study you authored with Re-use of labware reduces CO2 equivalent footprint and running costs in laboratories
The reaction to this study has been fantastic, Benoit Nicolet and I were really pleased with the reception! We suspected that the reuse of materials would lead to significantly lower carbon emissions, and we’re happy to see that the financial costs were also comparable if not much lower also.
I'm hoping we see more papers like this though, as we need a lot more research into these systems. There are still plenty of questions we have around the sustainability of science. For example, what are the impacts of storing samples in liquid nitrogen vs using a freezer, or what are the impacts of using laboratory chemicals and plastics on the environment? And to what level can we mitigate these impacts whilst not compromising the benefits of science?
6. What are some of the most interesting unresolved questions in lab sustainability today?
I've named a few above, but there are plenty more questions we have. For e.g., what are the total carbon emissions of science? When we consider accessibility of this science, I wonder how much of the science we've conducted is openly available, and can we work to normalize the reporting of "negative results"? Looking simply at operations though, I think we have plenty of questions around what needs to actually be incinerated, and what materials can be reused without compromising experiments? It's an exciting area to explore, though would add just the caveat that we can't wait for all the research to be complete, we still need to act where we can now.
7. Can you share a positive outcome that a lab using LEAF accomplished?
It's important to start by saying LEAF has enabled actions, but it's the scientists, technical staff, administrators, and students, who have actually gone and found ways to improve the sustainability of their work.
If anything, developing and managing LEAF has shown that while we can provide guidance, criteria, calculators, and the platform, probably the biggest change is getting people to consider sustainability alongside science. The people we work with are constantly coming up with new ways to make science more sustainable, and we're just trying to help make those practices more accessible. Long-term, I have hopes that LEAF could become associated with funding, to really standardize such practices, as has been done for e.g. with health and safety.
8. What is the most important aspect of sustainability that you hope scientists will focus their efforts on now?
With the variety of labs and research areas we work with, it really depends. That said, I think getting an understanding of the embodied carbon associated with all of our consumables and chemicals is particularly interesting, as it likely is quite a high-impact area.
Any integration of sustainable practices into science though, no matter how big or small, should be supported. From turning off heating blocks to developing methods to refurbish labs into net-zero facilities, to considering the accessibility and reproducibility of our work, it's all worth focusing on now.
9. Can you recommend any sustainable science networks for our readers to join?
Laboratory Efficiency Action Network (LEAN) - Based in the UK but widely available.
Sustainable European Laboratories Network - EU effort to tie networks together.
Green Labs Austria - Aims to connect Austrian and international laboratories that share the vision of sustainable research
Green Labs Netherlands - Community and resources platform for sustainable science
Follow @greenlabguy and @LEAFinLabs on Twitter