State of the Sector: we found out what universities and colleges are doing on sustainability

Following the initial research in 2015, in November 2016 we published research on the state of sustainability across further and higher education. Staff from across the sector have completed a survey. We’ll carry on with the research in future years so we can see what’s changing.

The findings of the research continue to demonstrate the need for students’ unions to work with their institutions on making improvements on all aspects of sustainability.

Our research, conducted in partnership with EAUC, UCU, AoC and College Development Network found that:

• Only a quarter of respondents report that sustainability is a strategic priority.
• Senior leaders such as Vice Chancellors and Principals are seen as having the biggest potential to help address sustainability, yet lack of senior management commitment is seen as the second biggest barrier, after finances.
• A third of university staff still have doubts regarding the likelihood of achieving carbon reduction targets at their institutions.
• Only 1% believe that their institution is achieving 10 out of 10 in terms of their action on sustainability
• A lack of financial and staff resources are seen as the biggest barriers to acting on sustainability – with support from the highest levels seen as the most important way of overcoming these barriers.
• Concerns over availability of financial resources for the 2016-17 academic year remain, with respondents more commonly reporting an expected decrease than increase in budget.

Read the full 2016 findings here