In spring 2024, a group of 100 MOME employees planted 19,500 saplings over 4.5 hectares with assistance from the staff of the Balaton Uplands National Park, while in the previous phase, students planted around 20,000 saplings over 5 hectares back in November 2023. With last November's and the current tree planting, the university successfully completed the first phase of its forest planting initiative comprising three parts. To mark this achievement, a totem pole was erected. Designed by two MOME alumna Dóra Zachár and Imola Pojdin, the installation incorporates a bird feeder and symbolises the creative power of the community. It was installed using ground screws to spare the environment in the nature conservation area. 

In 2022 MOME announced the launch of its own forest planting action alongside other eco-friendly measures as part of the MOME Zero programme. Joining forces with three national parks – the Balaton Uplands National Park, the Danube-Drava National Park and the Duna-Ipoly National Park – it will develop new forests in three locations across Hungary over nearly 50 hectares. When grown, these will help neutralise the university’s harmful emissions and offset the environmental burden associated with the day-to-day operation of the Campus. 

The programme also reinforces the ecological awareness of the MOME community, includes a number of segments to be incorporated into the curriculum, and provides tangible information about the the interaction between nature and man and the principles underlying sustainable design, while enabling university citizens to master the fundamentals of ecological awareness, essential in the 21st century, in a practical setting. 

This will put MOME on a path to accomplish its mission for 2030 to become the first carbon-neutral university in Hungary. 

☞ More information about the MOME Zero campaign