News

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  Global ESD conference to bring the focus back to education after COP26 – 19th October 2021

  Learning for Sustainability Scotland will virtually host the global conference for the UN-recognised Regional Centres of Expertise (RCE) in Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) from 16th-18th November 2021. The event will be a fantastic opportunity to build capacity for education for sustaina...

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  EAUC's COP26 Campaign – 28th September 2021

  The COP26 summit (31 October – 12 November 2021) will bring parties together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. This is an incredible opportunity for the Further and Higher Education sector to showcase the range of p...

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  SDG Accord Report 2021 Now Available – 27th September 2021

  A global alliance of the world’s universities, colleges and sustainability networks has launched the fourth annual SDG report; ‘Progress towards the Global Goals in the University and College sector’ available here. The findings from the SDG Accord progress report this year show...

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  Platinum accreditation to deliver Carbon Literacy Training – 15th September 2021

  Gaining momentum in 2019, when we started to see a rising interest from our members wishing to become Carbon Literate, two years down the line we are absolutely thrilled to announce that EAUC has met the requirements of the Carbon literate Organisation Standard and is now regarded as a Platinum leve...

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  Reflections on the latest EMR data – 1st September 2021

  The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) has released the latest Estates Management Record (EMR) on 19th August. These environment statistics are some of the most useful and telling when it comes to assessing where the Higher Education sector is with sustainable development and emissions red...

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  Net Zero Estates – 12th August 2021

  The University of Edinburgh in collaboration with a number of industry partners has published its report exploring ways in which to reach zero and low carbon targets through innovation in construction in Scottish Higher and Further Education.   The project has been funded by the Scottish Funding...

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  Evidence is irrefutable – collective action is needed now! – 10th August 2021

  Evidence is irrefutable – collective action to stop the climate crisis is needed now!  Described as "a code red for humanity", the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has warned that major changes due to global heating are inevitable and irreversible wi...

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  20,000 UK Citizens now certified as Carbon Literate – 6th August 2021

  As extreme weather events driven by climate change become increasingly severe, and their economic impacts increasingly obvious, the UK approaches its leadership and hosting of the COP26 United Nations climate change negotiations in Glasgow beginning on November 1st. 2021. In more positive news, T...

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  Climate change education rethink needed – 26th July 2021

  Climate change education rethink needed to ‘avoid failing next generation’ Schoolchildren are being let down by poor climate education, despite being the generation that will feel the biggest impacts of climate change, experts have warned. In an open letter endorsed by EAUC sent ou...

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  University of Bristol's laboratories receive green status – 21st July 2021

  The University of Bristol has become the first university in the world to achieve institutional Green Labs Certification. Each of their 990 laboratories have gained certification, through The Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework (LEAF) Programme which mobilised staff and students and the wi...

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  Green Jobs Taskforce Report – 21st July 2021

  The Green Jobs Taskforce published its report, issuing a call to action on how the UK can deliver a green industrial revolution with government, business and the education sector working together. Some of the key recommendations include: publishing a detailed Net Zero Strategy and using policy t...

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  A review of the EAUC Global Climate 2021 – 14th July 2021

  Following on the success of the first-ever fully virtual EAUC global conference conducted in 2020, we were delighted to welcome over 280 delegates and speakers from 29 countries worldwide to enjoy a range of inspiring sessions at the Virtual Global Climate 2021 ran in partnership with the UN Environ...

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  2021 UK & Ireland Green Gown Awards Finalists – 8th July 2021

  Awarding Sustainability Excellence in Extraordinary Times 2021 Green Gown Awards UK & Ireland   This year’s UK and Ireland Green Gown Awards’ Finalists, representing over 862,219 students and 156,000 staff, are leading the way with their commitment to the global sustainability agend...

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  2021 International Green Gown Awards Winners – 7th July 2021

  The winners of the 2021 International Green Gown Awards were announced on 7th July 2021 in an online bilingual ceremony hosted by Carina Mutshele, Youth & Education Officer from UNEP Kenya and Gloria Ordóñez Valenzuela from UNEP Environment Latin America and the Caribbean. The International Green...

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  Join SocEnv Campaign to restore ecosystems – 1st June 2021

  This year’s SocEnv World Environment Day theme is Ecosystem Restoration, a topic of urgent importance. Check out their website hub for resources and inspiration on actions everyone can take to help restore our ecosystems. In the UK and beyond, the Society for the Environment champions World...

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  WRAP’s first Food Waste Action Week conclusions – 18th May 2021

  WRAP’s first Food Waste Action Week alerts UK citizens to the link between wasting food and climate change Nearly half of those who saw Food Waste Action Week 2021 messaging reported either doing something different to reduce food waste or planning to in future. Building on 2021’s ...

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  Scottish Climate Emergency College Statement – 17th May 2021

  Scottish colleges have come together to support a new, ground-breaking statement of commitment on the Climate Emergency. The Scottish Colleges’ Statement of Commitment on the Climate Emergency highlights how college staff and students are working together to achieve a more sustainable futur...

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  Launch of the SECR Tool exclusively for FE Members – 11th May 2021

  Following on the Education & Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) recommendation that colleges in England should submit their carbon reporting through the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR), we are now delighted to bring to EAUC FE members a SECR tool developed in partnership with Hillside Envir...

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  Results Announced: THE University Impact Rankings 2021 – 21st April 2021

  Times Higher Education (THE) released today (21 April 2021) the third edition of the University Impact Rankings which uses metrics based on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) measuring institutions’ social and economic impact. We are thrilled to see that The Univ...

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  EAUC-Scotland Annual Report – 21st April 2021

  EAUC-Scotland are pleased to launch their annual report for 2020/21. This was the first year of a 3 year programme entitled: Accelerating action and leadership in Scotland’s universities and colleges in order to respond to the Climate Emergency, In a challenging year EAUC-Scotland has had r...

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  Universities and Colleges join the Race to Zero ahead of COP26 – 13th April 2021

  What is Race to Zero?  Race To Zero is a global campaign to rally leadership and support from businesses, cities, regions, investors for a healthy, resilient, zero carbon recovery that prevents future threats, creates decent jobs, and unlocks inclusive, sustainable growth. Led by the High-Leve...

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  Seeking New Trustees - Join our Board 2021 – 13th April 2021

  The EAUC Board is made up of 12 volunteer Trustees and Director with experience in the Further or Higher Education sector.  Two long-standing Trustees reach the end of their tenure at the June 2021 AGM and so we will have TWO available Trustee positions. At the March meeting of the Board’s ...

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  Green Jobs for Youth – 1st April 2021

  New initiative - Global Guidance for Education on Green Jobs: Connecting Higher Education and Green Opportunities for Planetary Health from UNEP's Youth and Education Alliance is designed to increase demand for green jobs in the workforce and help create a stronger supply of necessary green and envi...

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  COP26 Universities Network - March Briefing – 1st April 2021

  Net zero emissions targets have gained traction in the global effort to halt climate change. This new briefing from the COP26 Universities Network sets out the science behind net zero targets and the considerations that policymakers and industry leaders should take when adopting and implementing suc...

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  New guidance on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) – 1st April 2021

  The launch of new guidance on Education for Sustainable Development in higher education, jointly published by QAA and Advance HE is intended to help UK higher education institutions to incorporate Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) within their curricula. The guidance comes at a time of ...

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  King's College London fully divests from fossil fuels – 1st April 2021

  King’s College London has fully divested from all fossil fuels almost two years ahead of schedule. Since making a commitment to a full divestment target in 2017, King's College London have steadily reduced the exposure to fossil fuels from 7.3 per cent in 2017 to zero in 2021. Professor Ev...

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  Green Gown Award Winners Announced – 24th March 2021

  Green Gown Awards Celebrate Initiatives Playing Leading Roles in Addressing Climate Action In the first ever virtual ceremony, held on Wednesday 24th march 2021, the Green Gown Awards celebrated the inspirational work and projects of 74 Finalists in 12 different categories - showing the importanc...

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  Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy - Summary – 19th March 2021

  Following the publication of the Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy on Wednesday 17 March, we welcome the summary of key announcements prepared by our partners Aldersgate Group.  The Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy offers a positive direction and comprehensive take on the measures that need ...

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  Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme Update – 17th March 2021

  The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme have released the grant recipients of Phase 1 of the Scheme. A total of £33,312,689 has been awarded to the further and higher education sector. This is 4% of the total fund awarded of £932,248,184. Details of Phase 2 have been announced with a further £75...

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  Nearly three quarters of teachers lack training on climate change – 17th March 2021

  New research by Teach the Future, which EAUC is glad to be supporting, has revealed that 70% of UK teachers have not received adequate training to educate students on climate change, its implications for the environment and societies around the world, and how these implications can be addressed.*1  ...

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  EAUC is supporting the 2021 ENACTUS UK National Expo – 9th March 2021

  On the 12th – 14th April, 65 Enactus teams from across the UK will participate in the Enactus UK National Expo, which will be held virtually. Enactus believe that investing in students who take entrepreneurial action for others creates a better world for us all. Enactus develops university ...

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  EAUC attended the Environmental Audit Committee inquiry into Green Jobs – 3rd March 2021

  On 3rd March (2021), Iain Patton, CEO at EAUC was invited alongside representatives from Education and Training Foundation (ETF), Students Organising for Sustainability (SOS-UK), Leicester City Council and Greener Jobs Alliance to look at how green jobs can help tackle the expected rise in unemploym...

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  Kickstart Scheme Placements Update – 18th February 2021

  EAUC, Change Agents UK (CAUK) and SOS-UK are working together to support the Further and Higher Education sector create new and exciting fully-funded 6-month paid positions for 16-24 year old's this year through the government's Kickstart scheme. We are glad confirm that we can now accept new plac...

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  HE Climate Action Toolkit launched – 4th February 2021

  Climate Commission launch Climate Action Toolkit to help Vice-Chancellors, Governors and Senior Leadership Teams in universities in tackling the climate emergency The Climate Commission for Higher and Further Education Students and Leaders is delighted to announce the launch of the Higher Educati...

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  What an online Go Green Week can look like? – 29th January 2021

  While no formal date and theme on what Go Green Week should focus on have not been announced yet, we know that some EAUC members have plans to hold a series of virtual events either in line with Go Green Week or alternatives of it. Based on members' plans and other events taking place this year, we ...

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  Universities and Colleges consider carbon offsetting in move to net-zero – 26th January 2021

  How can Carbon Offsetting help UK Further and Higher Education Institutions achieve net-zero emissions? The EAUC and the COP26 Universities Network are pleased to launch the new guidance on offsetting to support the development of further and higher education offsetting policies. The COP26 U...

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  Revised Scope 3 tool launched – 19th January 2021

  We are pleased to announce that the Scope 3 emissions tool for the education sector - called the HESCET Tool - has been updated and is now available for use via your HEPA account. We encourage all member institutions to use the tool and look at the updated figures for input into the EMR (Estate Mana...

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  Launch of the Global Goals Teach In Campaign – 15th January 2021

  The fourth annual Global Goals Teach In has launched and will take place 22nd February – 5th March 2021!   The annual campaign calls on educators to pledge to include the UN Global Goals for Sustainable Development (SDGs) in their teaching and learning throughout the two weeks. The 2020 camp...

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  New EMR report and statement from AUDE and partners – 6th January 2021

  AUDE has released it's Higher Education Estates Management Report 2020 and a statement alongside other key organisations on the necessity of the EMR data.  This report represents the hard facts and accurate data for big choices in estates management and future investment. By bench marking institu...

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  Global SDG Accord report paints promising picture of SDGs – 11th December 2020

  The SDG Accord Report 2020, endorsed by UN Environment, paints a promising picture of the embedding of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in universities and colleges across the world, despite the global pandemic. The findings from the third SDG Accord annual progress report show awarene...

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  Higher education in the era of climate change – 10th December 2020

  New report urges universities to have zero carbon emissions by 2035 and to rethink knowledge and teaching practices for the era of climate change The Higher Education Policy Institute (https://www.hepi.ac.uk) has published a new report, Beyond business as usual: Higher education in the era of cli...

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  Sustainability Leadership Scorecard Annual Report 2020 – 10th December 2020

  Universities and colleges picking up the pace on sustainability, but must address curriculum reform  More universities and colleges than ever from across the UK and Ireland have shown their commitment to sustainability over the last year. The 2020 Sustainability Leadership Scorecard Annual Report...

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  EAUC Members reflect on the impact of Covid19 – 8th December 2020

  The Covid-19 pandemic caused unprecedented challenges for the entire world and the Further & Higher education sector was not spared the mayhem of disruption. We at EAUC wanted to better understand how the pandemic impacted the sustainability community and how we can better support members during ...

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  ​Disappointment at misguided Ofsted comments – 8th December 2020

  Last week, at the launch of Ofsted’s 2019-2020 annual report, Ofsted’s Chief Inspector Amanda Spielman, said: "And increasingly we see efforts to commandeer schools and the curriculum in support of worthy social issues and campaigns. In the last year, many of these calls have been about...

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  UK sets new climate target ahead of UN Summit – 4th December 2020

  The Prime Minister has today (Friday 4 December) announced a new ambitious target to reduce the UK’s emissions by at least 68% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. This is an increase of 15% from the previous target of 53%, and is in line with the recommendations made by the Climate Change Commit...

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  Sustainability Ambition in Education Week – 1st December 2020

  It’s coming to the end of a tumultuous year and never has it never been clearer that we need to address the global challenges the world faces, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace, justice and of course, health and well-being. So at the end of 2020...

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  University of Glasgow sets 2030 carbon neutral target – 30th November 2020

  The University of Glasgow has pledged to go ‘further and faster’ in its response to the climate emergency with a raft of new commitments, including a target for net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.   The ambitious aim is one of a series of actions set out in a new strategy appro...

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  Become a net-zero college by using the FE Climate Action Roadmap – 26th November 2020

  What can colleges do to tackle climate change? The recent plan to reach net-zero emissions unveiled by PM Boris Johnson last week comes as a confirmation that many colleges are leading the way. The FE Climate Action Roadmap for FE Colleges provides colleges with practical steps they can take in f...

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  Aston University named Guardian's University of the Year – 26th November 2020

  Aston University has been crowned university of the year in the Guardian’s annual awards for its work eradicating the gap in grades between black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) students and their white peers, as well as its emphasis on sustainability. In a year during which UK universiti...

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  Finnish universities commit to 12 principles of Sustainable Development – 24th November 2020

  Carbon neutrality by 2030, sustainable development at the heart of strategies, and strong support for the Finnish Government’s climate and biodiversity goals. All of the above is included in the plans of Finnish universities through 12 mutual principles on sustainable development and respo...

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