International Laboratory Freezer Challenge

2025 Freezer Challenge: General Information

What is the International Laboratory Freezer Challenge?

A competition among laboratories from around the world, designed to promote energy efficiency in cold storage (refrigerators, freezers, and cold rooms). The challenge is coordinated by My Green Lab and the International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories (I2SL) and is FREE to participating labs.

Is my lab eligible to participate?

The challenge is open to any lab with: 

• Mechanical -96°C or colder freezers that DO NOT use Liquid Nitrogen as primary cooling agent
• ULT freezers (between -40°C and -96°C)
• -30°C and/or -40°C freezers
• -20°C freezers
• 4°C refrigerators
• Liquid Nitrogen Storage (-96°C or colder)
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What is the timeline for the challenge?

• Registration for the 2025 challenge opens on January 1
• Labs can register at any point between January and July. Upon registration, labs will be sent the scoresheet, which will be in a survey format and available to fill out gradually throughout the challenge.
• Score sheets due for submission July 1 (labs can include any actions that lab has completed since August 1, 2024)
• Award recognition (see below)

 

How are labs scored?

Participants earn points for implementing actions such as the ones below:

• Practicing preventative cold storage management (i.e. regularly brushing frost from lab freezers or conducting a full defrost)
• Materials management (i.e. creating freezer and sample inventories)
• Temperature tuning (i.e. setting -80°C freezers to -70°C)
• Retiring, upgrading, and unplugging cold storage units
• Utilizing cutting edge practices (i.e. sharing cold storage units or transitioning to room temperature sample storage for select samples)

Most actions count as one point. And if one action is carried out on multiple freezers, each freezer is generally a point. My Green Labs looks at the overall spread of data and normalizes the points. Actions and score sheets are based on best practices for cold storage as listed on the Freezer Challenge website.

At the end of the challenge, participating labs will submit a scoresheet with responses in four categories.

• Here is the sample scoresheet for 2025. If labs would like to get a head start in implementing actions before registration for the challenge opens, it is recommended that they download the sample scoresheet and track their actions somewhere they can reference when filling out the 2025 scorecard
• The official 2025 scoresheet will be sent to participating labs once they register for the challenge 
• Once the scoresheet is submitted, each lab will receive a preliminary estimate of their energy savings
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Why should my lab participate?

This challenge is designed to encourage laboratories to recognize the benefits of good cold storage management, such as:

• Removal of unneeded, unwanted, or non-viable samples from refrigeration units
• Reduced costs associated with maintaining refrigeration units.
• Improved researcher access to laboratory samples and reagents.
• Development of ongoing cold storage management practices that support energy efficiency and maximize space utility.
• Cold storage units are often the second biggest energy consumers in the lab (after fume hoods). Ultra-low temperature (ULT, -80°C) freezers in your lab can use around as much energy as an average U.S. household (Energy.gov), so properly maintaining cold storage units is a great way for your lab to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

 

How can my lab sign up?

• Your lab will need to fill out the registration form on the official Freezer Challenge website, which will be posted by the end of February 2025.
• Don’t feel behind if you didn’t register for the Freezer Challenge in January or February! Labs can sign up anytime between January and the end of June. You are not at a disadvantage registering later in the year. All labs can count any of the cold storage best practices they’ve implemented from July 2024 forward until July 1, 2025 can be counted for the 2025 Freezer Challenge!
• Once your lab registers, the Office of Sustainability at the med center will be notified and will contact you with more information.
• Your lab will also need to register with the med center’s Green Labs program so we can track participation and progress as part of program metrics. Click here to register your.

 

How can the med center’s Green Labs program help my lab?

Reach out to Gary Dobesh at the VCR Office to receive:

• Backup freezers to store samples as you defrost your lab freezer. You do not have to reach out to the VCR Office directly if you only need to rent a backup freezer, just fill out this form.
  • Click here to download a PDF containing information about the VCR Office’s backup freezer protocol. 
• Tools for full defrost (besides backup freezer): water collection basins or absorbent towels to collect water, mild detergent to clean
• Tools needed for regular maintenance: gloves, a soft brush, an ice scraper

The VCR Office will coordinate with each lab in developing a Freezer Defrost schedule and assist in any other inter-laboratory needs.

 

What can my lab receive for participating in the Freezer Challenge?

Internal awards for participating med center labs

• Letter of recognition from the Office of Vice Chancellor for Research (VCR) and the Executive Sustainability Council (ESC).
• Window cling for your lab
• Recognition in internal communications

Challenge awards

• Top laboratory award winners will earn a certificate, will have their lab name and photo published in an online publication in the autumn of 2025 (see 2024 article here), and will be recognized at a virtual event
• Top organization award winners (organizations that have encouraged many laboratories to participate in the challenge) will earn a commemorative plaque, will have their lab name and photo published in an online publication in the autumn of 2025, and will be invited to accept their plaque in person at the annual I2SL conference awards luncheon
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Contacts

• Jerrod Bley (Sustainability Manager, Office of Sustainability): jbley@unmc.edu 
• Gary Dobesh (Research Technologist II, VCR): gary.dobesh@unmc.edu