Teaching Sustainable Logistics As A Project-Based Learning Course

Sustainable logistics combines the task of the 6R of logistics (right product, right place, right time, right condition, right cost) with social and environmental sustainability, especially low emissions and low resource consumption. This means that a problem that is already challenging, namely planning, executing, and controlling logistical processes, gets even more complex and requires aspects of systems thinking to incorporate environmental and social impacts. Classical approaches of teaching, e.g. lectures with presentations and short exercises on closed problems, do not do justice to the complexity and intricacies of the topic sustainability. In such a context, projectbased learning (PBL) where students do group work on open-ended problems with real-world complexity seems to be a more adequate means to teach the subject. The paper describes a PBL course in which students worked on projects to conceptualize micro-depots for parcel delivery in different areas of Düsseldorf. A micro-depot is a temporary storage location in a city from which parcels can be delivered by cargo bikes. The aim was to locate the micro-depot, design the delivery routes, check the feasibility, and calculate the reduction of greenhouse gases and other emissions. The course was taught in cooperation with a partner from the courier, express, and parcel delivery industry. The paper describes the experiences with the course and gives recommendations for a successful implementation of PBL in courses on sustainability.