People & Planet University League
People & Planet's University League is a league table of UK universities ranked by environmental and ethical performance. The table is compiled annually by the UK's largest student campaigning network, People & Planet.
Sustainable Sussex
The University of Sussex is working towards our 2021 Sustainable Sussex Strategy across a variety of areas, from food and biodiversity, to teaching and research, in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Our sustainability progress has been recognised by the QS World University Rankings 2025.
Find out about our work in the areas covered by the People & Planet University League criteria. You can read more about our work in other areas by exploring our Sustainability webpages.
- Policy and Strategy
We published our ambitious and wide ranging Sustainable Sussex Strategy [PDF 2MB] in June 2021, which is reported on annually.
The strategy includes SMART targets for reducing environmental impact, including:
- Environmental Auditing and Management Systems
The University is currently working towards the EcoCampus bronze accreditation, and have carried out internal audits on waste, energy, water, and biodiversity.
- Managing Carbon
Our target is to reach net zero carbon by 2035. Our 2021 Carbon Management Plan [PDF 553KB] for achieving this is publicly available.
The plan includes:
- a 2018/19 baseline
- reduction targets for scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions
- baselines for scope 3 emissions from waste management, water, procurement, staff and student business trips, staff and student commuting, and international student travel
- reduction targets for scope 3 emissions from waste management and water
- a plan for securing the budget for this work
- a named owner of Allan Spencer, Executive Sponsor for Sustainability
- a reporting mechanism: our Key Performance Indicator will be reported to council (the highest-level decision-making body at the University) each year.
The Carbon Management Plan is currently being reviewed to align it with a new baseline for 2021/22.
Our carbon emissions, including those from our residences, are reported to the Higher Education Statistics Agency via the Estates Management Record. However, a more comprehensive calculation following the Standardised Carbon Emissions Framework is available on our Performance Dashboard.
- Sustainable Food
The University’s Sustainable Sussex Strategy has targets around food production and consumption. Our Sustainable Food and Agriculture Policy [PDF 129KB] incorporates a comprehensive framework for sustainable food and catering. This policy is extended to all contracts with external contractors.
In 2024, our largest outlet, Eat Central, achieved three stars in the Food Made Good Standard from the Sustainable Restaurant Association. We also have a fully vegetarian outlet, The Veg Bowl @ Dhaba Café, and vegetarian and plant-based options are available at outlets across the campus.
The University provides space on our campus for student-led sustainable food projects, including the Roots Communal Gardening Society and the Forest Food Garden.
- Ethical Investment and Banking
The University has a Socially Responsible Investment Policy [PDF 121KB], which provides guidance to appointed investment managers and was last reviewed and approved by the University’s Council in November 2023.
The policy specifically rejects investments in arms, tobacco, gambling, and pornography. It also requires investment managers to consider the protection of the environment, including through the reduction and future elimination of fossil fuel exploration and production. The majority of the University’s investments are held in the Liontrust Sustainable Future Management Fund.
The Liontrust Sustainable Future Management Fund rejects investments in fossil fuels, in favour of investing for positive impact, especially in the areas of Better Resource Efficiency (including production of clean and renewable energies), Improved Health, and Greater Safety and Resilience.
The University also places pressure on the financial industry to stop financing fossil fuel expansion. Find out more about this and the University's investment practices and procedures.
- Ethical Careers and Recruitment
Our Careers and Entrepreneurship service works to support students to prepare for and find green jobs, including through an annual Green Futures event and a student consultancy programme with external business, community, or sustainability focussed organisations.
The Careers service’s Terms and Conditions set out the criteria for their advertisement of opportunities.
- Staff and HR
In line with its importance as a key strategic aim, staff across the University work on sustainability every day. Whether this is alongside their day to day roles, such as through the Green Impact scheme, or as dedicated sustainability staff, this contributes to our institution’s sustainability progress.
This is also represented in our governance, where Allan Spencer, Executive Director and the University’s executive sponsor for Sustainability, sits on the Environmental Sustainability Board, which includes the University Executive Team.
- Workers Rights'
The University is an accredited Real Living Wage Employer, which aims to ensure that staff are paid a fair wage that can meet their everyday needs. Other staff working on campus, such as the Students’ Union, Sussex Estates and Facilities, and the Institute of Development Studies have also benefited from the uplifted wage rate. Our catering partner Chartwells are also separately accredited as a Real Living Wage Employer.
The University is also collaborating with partners to protect supply chain workers’ rights. For example, our ITC supply chains are covered by Electronics Watch and we are working towards achieving the Fairtrade accreditation.
The University is a signatory to the ‘Can’t Buy My Silence’ pledge, which commits the institution to not using Non-Disclosure Agreements to silence people who come forward to raise complaints of sexual harassment, abuse or misconduct, or other forms of harassment and bullying.
- Staff and Student Engagement
We work with staff and students across our Sustainability Strategy. Our engagement plans can be found in our Sustainable Sussex Strategy [PDF 2MB].
Our student engagement activities include:
- student inductions and talks in Welcome Week
- a regular programme of events across the year, including our annual Sustainable Sussex Fortnight
- our flagship competition Pitch for the Planet which award funds for student-led sustainability innovation projects.
We engage staff from the start of their roles at Sussex. The staff induction checklist includes a link to our Sustainability e-Learning module for all staff, and the Welcome to Sussex Digital Pack includes a page on Sustainability.
Staff are invited to join our Green Impact scheme, a champions and environmental improvement scheme, which is led by staff with student Project Assistants and is audited by students. The scheme launched in October 2023 and is continuing for the 2024/25 academic year.
There are student representatives from the Students’ Union present on a range of committees at different levels of University governance, including the Strategy and Performance Committee and the Finance and Resources Committee.
- Education for Sustainable Development
Embedding Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is one of the key aims of the University’s Curriculum Reimagined project, led by a team including Claire Smith, Deputy Pro Vice Chancellor of Education and Innovation.
You can explore the University’s ESD opportunities in our Undergraduate Sustainability Curriculum Brochure, as well as our 2022 Curriculum Mapping report from SOS-UK, which maps ESD activity across our teaching and learning.
We took part in SOS-UKs SDG Teach in 2023, including a workshop and webinar to bring educators together to discuss and share their experiences of ESD. Resources for supporting teaching staff to embed ESD include a Sustainability Educator Toolkit, produced by the Faculty of Media, Arts, and Humanities. More examples of Living Lab and research projects across the University, can be found in our Annual Sustainability Reports.
As part of our Access & Participation Plan, we offer multiple scholarships, two undergraduate and one postgraduate, for people seeking asylum, those with refugee status, and others with limited forms of leave to remain in the UK. These scholarships include a full fee waiver and living costs higher than those received through student finance.
- Environmental Data
The University’s data on Energy Sources, Waste & Recycling, Carbon Reduction, and Water Reduction is reported to Higher Education Statistics Agency via the Estates Management Record. Detailed information can be found on the Performance Dashboard.
Contact
If you have any queries, email sustainable@sussex.ac.uk.