Green Sentinel starts its work with a scientific conference

One of the most important measures of Debrecen's Environmental Strategy, the Green Codex, has been implemented: the Environmental Control System. This is the start of the Green Sentinel, a transparent, science-based environmental monitoring system that collects, analyses and shares information independently of authorities and companies. Its aim is to look after the people of Debrecen and its surroundings, to provide information and to inform about the state of the elements of our environment and its changes.

The details of the system's operation were presented at a scientific conference on 14 May 2025 at the HUN-REN Institute of Nuclear Research by the university researchers and experts involved in its development.

At the conference, Professor Péter Nagy, Scientific Chair of the Environmental Control System, summarised the professional background of the Green Sentinel. The monitoring system, set up within a single operational framework, aims to create a new quality of environmental awareness in Hungary by examining the environmental elements that determine urban life in their interdisciplinary complexity.

Mayor László Papp said that the three most important elements of the city's safety are proper regulation, a system that can analyse data properly, and the third is the Green Sentinel, which provides credible data on Debrecen's environmental status, so that we can live safely and sustainably alongside economic development. Debrecen is also setting an example of how to live a responsible urban life through the Environmental Control System.

Zoltán Szilvássy, Rector of the University of Debrecen, emphasized that the experts who created the system, the University of Debrecen and the academic sector have a strong credibility in scientific matters, which is the guarantee of the Green Sentinel.

The heads of the professional working groups described, among other things, the operation of the measuring stations, the professional processing of the 20 million data supplied by the instruments and their IT background, the novelty and uniqueness of the system, the validity of the data and the valid test methods, and the accredited laboratory tests. The results of the baseline measurements were also presented, which record the current environmental status and serve as a benchmark for the operation of the system.

Ákos Balázs, Deputy Mayor and Chairman of the Committee for the Development of the Environmental Control System, stressed that Debrecen wants to be a leader in the field of livability as well as in the economy. "We are working on an ecosystem in Debrecen that is based on cooperation, knowledge, development, security and well-being for the city's inhabitants; based on the alliance of nature and knowledge." To adapt to change, the city can draw on the intellectual capital of the university. The winners in the future will be those cities that recognise and embrace the opportunities for change. He stressed that such a complex, science-based, credible monitoring system is unique to Debrecen and is remarkable at international level.

The conference concluded with the launch of the Green Sentinel website, where, among other things, online measurement data from monitoring stations and the results of studies by researchers and experts can be followed. An important part of the website is also a glossary of terms to help interpret the results of the measurements and to help understand the context.

A short tutorial video on how to build the website can be found here:
Video