University news

The University of Glasgow is reaffirming its commitment to sustainability on Earth Day 2018.

In October, the University signed on to support the Sustainability Development Goals Accord, the University and College sector’s collective response to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

The purpose of the SDG Accord is twofold:

•​to inspire, celebrate and advance the critical role that education has in delivering the SDGs and the value it brings to governments, business and wider society;

•​to commit learning institutions to do more to deliver the goals, to report annually on each signatory's progress, and to do so in ways which share the learning with each other both nationally and internationally. An objective is that sector SDG reporting metrics will be presented at the annual UN High Level Political Forum.

The move to join the Accord was part of the University’s robust sustainability strategy, which has guidedenvironmentally-conscious decisions such as becoming the first higher education institution in the UK to commit to fully disinvesting from the fossil fuel industry. 

Dr David Duncan, the University’s Chief Operating Officer, is co-chair of the University’s Sustainability Working Group. 

Dr Duncan said: “The University of Glasgow has a proud history which stretches back to the 15th century, and our longevity is in part thanks to a willingness to adapt to the times.

“Clearly, here in the 21st century where our natural environment is becoming increasingly fragile, we must take into account the sustainability of everything we do as an institution, from learning and teaching to research and on to our continuing campus development efforts.

“We work closely with GUEST, the Glasgow University Environmental Sustainability Team, to bring students into the heart of our sustainability projects and help shape our overall strategy. Our efforts so far have led to real successes, including reducing our overall carbon footprint from to 69,590 tons of CO2n in 2015/16 to 64,109 tons in 2016/17. 

“However, there is always more to be done, and maintaining sustainability is a full-time job. On this Earth Day, we are proud to restate our commitment to making the University of Glasgow as sustainable and environmentally-friendly as we can.”

For more of the University’s commitment to sustainability, visit: https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/sustainability/

 

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First published: 22 April 2018