The HSE Mobile Apps Unit has added a Library section to the latest version of HSE App X. HSE Life is here to tell you about the new section’s features, the joint campaign between the Wallet app and Green HSE, and HSE University’s plans to reduce plastic production by 50 kg per year.

HSE App X now has a Library section for students and staff of HSE University in Moscow.

Features of the new Library section

The section can be used to obtain a digital library card for faster, more convenient book borrowing. The card is also compatible with Apple Wallet and Google Pay. The Library section also includes information on the addresses and opening hours of university libraries, allowing users to plan their journeys and contact library staff more easily.

The new section also lets users keep track of which books need to be returned and when, as well as view their lending history (to check which books they’ve borrowed before in the run-up to exams, for example) and stay up to date with the latest library news.

What about plastic library cards?

The digital card will replace the old plastic one. This will help the university to reduce its production of PVC products by 50 kg per year. First-year bachelor’s students, master’s and doctoral students and HSE staff will now use only digital library cards.

However, there are still some uses for plastic cards. Digital cards can’t be used at the self-service stations at Myasnitskaya and Pokrovka, so those who want to check books out themselves will still need a plastic library card.

Eco-campaign with the Wallet app and Green HSE

The HSE App has partnered with the Wallet app and the Green HSE student organization on a campaign to collect plastic cards at the university in order to reduce plastic waste. Those with old library cards (and any other plastic cards) can dispose of them in the purple boxes located in every HSE library.

Green HSE volunteers will bring the collected cards to Wallet, who will then take them to the 7Other recycling company. The chips will be separated from the plastic, which will be ground into powder and melted into granules for use in new pipes, windowsills and building materials.

The joint campaign from HSE App X, the Wallet app and Green HSE is a great example of staff and students working together to create a greener university. HSE University has long been aware of trends in modern digitalization, and we’re now able to combine digital projects with eco-initiatives as part of a sustainable development strategy.