GreenLab_OS: School laboratory in Oldenburg awarded third prize!

GreenLab_OS: School laboratory in Oldenburg awarded third prize!

On March 10, 2025, the LeLa Prize 2025 was awarded in the castle hall of the castle in Oldenburg, which is awarded to outstanding concepts for promoting scientific education for schoolchildren. The third prize in the “School Lab+” category went to the “GreenLab_OS goes circular” project, which is led by Sascha Hager, a research assistant and doctoral student. The project aims to introduce circular economy principles through interactive experiments and inquiry-based learning and provides an interactive laboratory environment that promotes hands-on learning about sustainable chemical processes.

The LeLa Prize, which comes with a total prize money of 40,000 euros, is awarded annually at the LeLa annual conferences to recognize and promote the achievements of school laboratories and their employees. This year the winners were recognized in several categories. The GreenLab_OS project convinced the jury with its innovative approach to circular value creation and the combination of science, sustainability and education. Prof. Dr. Marco Beeken, head of the chemistry didactics and science communication working group, expressed his positive opinion about the award and the confirmation of GreenLab_OS's work in science communication and the promotion of young talent. [uni-osnabrueck.de reports that…]

Winner of the LeLa Prize 2025

The 2025 award winners in the “School Laboratory+” category cover a wide range of topics:

• 1. Preis: Kieler Forschungswerkstatt – Projekt: „Licht- und Schattenseiten der Ölpalme“
• 2. Preis: MExLab ExperiMINTe – Projekt: „iCODE_MS“
• 3. Preis: GreenLab_OS – Projekt: „GreenLab_OS goes circular“
• 3. Preis: Lernlabor Barkhausen Institut – Projekt: „Künstliche Intelligenz für Kinder“

The projects are notable for their efforts to inform students about pressing environmental and economic issues. The Kiel Research Workshop's project in particular aims to make the connections between rainforest deforestation, biodiversity and the processing of palm oil understandable.

The meaning of the LeLa Prize

The LeLa Prize is considered an important award for non-university teaching and learning places in the natural sciences in Germany and is part of a movement that aims to further develop MINT education offerings through innovative concepts. As part of the award ceremony, the next LeLa conference was also announced, which will be hosted by the University of Osnabrück from March 8th to 10th, 2026.

This conference will bring together scientists, teachers and student laboratory managers from all over Germany to present innovative concepts for the future of MINT education. The close collaboration between educational institutions and student laboratories plays a crucial role in promoting scientific and technical environmental education that is geared to the needs and interests of learners. [lernortlabor.de provides information about the significance of the prize]

Promoting sustainable development is not just a question of education, but also a social necessity. The German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU) has been supporting environmental education projects that focus on sustainable development since 1990. School laboratories, such as the GreenLab_OS, have a special position in this context because they teach scientific topics in a practical way and thus strengthen environmental awareness and promote design skills. [mint-nachhaltigkeitsbildung.de describes the role of school laboratories]