Antonio Gomera is Doctor in Environmental Education and Degree in Environmental Science. He is working since 2001 as a Technical Coordinator of the Environmental Protection Service of the University of Córdoba. He also coordinates the Sustainability Office at the University. He is collaborating as a professor in environmental education subjects. His research line focuses on the study of environmental awareness and pro-environmental behavior in the university, linked to the processes of curriculum adaptation.
The teaching and research activity that takes place in the university generates a large amount of hazardous chemical and biological waste. This type of waste is characterized by a heterogeneous composition and a production in small and time varying quantities. This makes it necessary that the procedures for their control should pay special attention to educational strategies that may facilitate motivation and competence for the people involved. Objective: To present the experience developed at the University of Cordoba (Spain) for controlling and improving the management of hazardous waste between 2008 and 2016. Methodology: Describe the main training, information and awareness actions launched by the Environmental Protection Service of the University, e.g.: courses, newsletters, awareness tools aimed at producers and users. In our university there are about 90 producing units (research groups, departments, etc.). Results: These actions have paid special attention to waste minimization, achieving, in the nine-year period, a decrease in consumption of packaging by 37% and waste production by 24% (getting a decrease in the percentage of mixtures of 64%). Conclusions: Used in a coordinated way, education and management in the field of hazardous waste can complement and even strengthen between them. A good management is an excellent educational tool and, in the same way, a good education enriches and improves the effectiveness of management.