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Ecosia now default on 800 Student Desktops

You search the web for free, Ecosia plants trees

Maastricht University has set the sustainable search engine Ecosia as the default search engine on 800 Student Desktops (SDT) in both library locations and the Randwyck Computer Facilities. Ecosia is like any other search engine, with one major difference: Ecosia uses 80% or more of its profits to help non-profit organisations that focus on reforestation. The sustainable search engine will also be available for installation on every other UM work station.

Idea launched by University Council students

The idea to implement Ecosia within UM was launched by University Council students. UM Library and ICTS embrace this valuable initiative. By creating an Ecosia account, UM contributes to sustainability and keeps track of how much CO2 savings take place collectively at UM level.

The initiators wish that other UM departments make the switch as well. Every UM employee and student can set up Ecosia on their own workstation or mobile phone, by downloading the Ecosia extension using the UM link: ecosia.co/MaastrichtUniversity. With this unique tracking link for UM, every download will contribute to the university's total tree count. These default settings also apply to Student Desktop Anywhere for remote access to the SDT facilities on and off campus.

UM sets a good example

Inspired by UM, the Mosa Lira Foundation has announced that it will implement Ecosia within its 21 primary schools and educational facilities. Soon, 6,000 pupils and all teachers will use Ecosia as their standard search engine!

Good to know

Ecosia uses Microsoft’s Bing search engine. If you prefer Google, then just add the search tag #g. More search tags to speed up your search can be found here.

The manual for Ecosia is available on the ICTS website.

Start planting trees today!

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