A commitment to recycling and reducing waste has put De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) among the top 30 universities in the world for sustainability.
Announced in the Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings 2022, the university has been ranked 30th in the world and 15th in the UK for its focus on responsible consumption and production.
Now in their fourth year, the rankings include 1,406 universities from 106 countries and employ indicators to provide comprehensive and balanced comparisons across four broad areas: research, stewardship, outreach and teaching.
The rankings have been measured by how a university is working towards achieving the United Nations’ (UN) 17 SDGs - a global call to action to tackle poverty, climate change and inequality.
This particular ranking focuses on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12, consumption and production, which centres on the efficient use of resources and minimising waste.
Universities are measured on research, publication of sustainability reports, proportion of recycled waste and operational measures including a number of policies on: ethical sourcing of food, disposal of hazardous waste, use of plastic, and measurements of waste sent to landfill.
DMU’s efforts have been recognised globally, with the institution placed 30th best in the world.
Karl Letten, Sustainability Manager at DMU said: “DMU is committed to addressing sustainability and carbon reduction across all its operations and activities.
“Our students are the business leaders of tomorrow and we intend to ensure that they are given the right skills and knowledge to make sustainable choices throughout their careers in order to create a more sustainable society.
“To be recognised in this way by the Impact Rankings is testament to the hard work by our students and staff in embracing sustainability and adopting more sustainable behaviours such as recycling, greener travel and reducing carbon emissions.”
The university is committed to the SDGs and sustainability is at the heart of its operations. From managing buildings to embedding sustainability into teaching and learning, to engaging staff and students on global issues, DMU has a long list of measures in place to make the university more sustainable, including:
- giving away more than 21,000 free reusable mugs to staff and students
- wood pellet boiler which are carbon neutral
- fitting the leisure centre with air source heat pumps
- using photovoltaic panels on DMU buildings to generate electricity
- using ground heat pumps in some buildings which draw heat from the earth
- a greener travel policy which sees four times the national average of staff cycling to work
- solar panels all across campus
- embedding sustainability into all teaching and learning
- delivering Carbon Literacy training to staff and students
- gaining Carbon Literate Organisation status for the University
- growing food on campus for use in the DMU catering outlets
- award winning catering offering a low carbon diet
- developing a Hedgehog Friendly Campus
- a furniture recycling scheme to reuse and repurpose redundant furniture
- a recycling rate of over 90%
- the only university in the UK to be given global hub status for an SDG (number 16) by the United Nations
- electric vehicle charging points on campus
Posted on Wednesday 8 June 2022