Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is a key part of our professions-facing curriculum.
The Student Success Strategic Plan 2025-2030 states that all courses will include the most relevant and material United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) at each stage. This is from identifying and understanding the relevant issues, through to implementing solutions.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.
At its heart are the 17 SDGs, which are an urgent call for action by all countries in a global partnership.
They recognise that ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand in hand with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests. Integrating the SDGs into courses means we can:
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Address global challenges and empower students as global citizens
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Enhance graduate prospects
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Encourage interdisciplinary learning.
The SDG Hub (login required) is our dynamic and living repository of best practice, guidance, and examples from Higher Education institutions and industry.
It's designed for all colleagues at the University to share ideas and showcase work. By accessing the hub you'll discover:
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What the SDGs are and why they're important to us as a university
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How we can embed SDGs across courses
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How you can assess the relevance for your course
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Practical examples of how SDGs can be embedded across a range of specialisms
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Industry guidance, articles, and literature to provide context
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Podcasts, webinars, and videos.
Using our ESD Framework, we'll support academics, course leaders, and teams to work towards the vision by following a staged approach:
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Course leader or team understands the most relevant and material SDGs and how they align with the professions-facing elements of the course, and has conducted a review of industry drivers and expectations in this area. All students are introduced to the relevant SDGs at a suitable point in the course cycle.
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Where the SDGs align with professions-facing elements of the course, these are embedded in core modules and assessed as part of the overall teaching and learning approach
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The most relevant and material SDGs (aligned with the professions-facing element of the course) are embedded in core modules throughout, including in assessment and with opportunities for work-integrated and entrepreneurial learning experiences.
The SDGs now also form part of the Programme Leadership Course, the Postgraduate Certificate HE, and Preparing to Teach (HE).
We're building regular training and knowledge-enhancing opportunities for academics into the year, including SDGs and Graduate Prospects workshops, and Carbon Literacy training.
In 2024/2025, there were two staff development sessions for academics – Connecting Global Goals to Student Success.
There's a sub-group of the Strategic Environmental Sustainability Group (SESG) leading this work, chaired by Professor Kevin Petrie, Professor of Creative Practice, with a champion from each faculty school.
We report progress towards the mission to embed ESD to the Strategic Environmental Sustainability Group. We also report this in the Annual Sustainability Report.
Sustainability within our courses
Our Medical School aims to create an environment that integrates sustainable healthcare education into the curriculum. For example, embedding teaching about air pollution and sustainable eating into clinical skills and patient journey sessions.
Our Healthcare Technicians are also working hard to reduce single use plastic while maintaining a realistic learning environment for students.
Our creative industries courses are embedding sustainability into teaching and other experiences.
There have been many achievements, including joining the BAFTA Albert education partnership to teach students the importance of creating sustainable content. There's also the Art and Design Global Challenges Scholarship.
We've been a signatory member of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME) since 2018.
As part of the Business Management Skills Development, students took part in the 'Take 25 Challenge' where they had to maximise a £25 investment and raise as much money as possible for the Children's Foundation. The integration of employability skills, real-world applications, and social responsibility created a dynamic learning experience for the students.
We offer two engineering courses with a focus on sustainability, demonstrating the growing need to reduce environmental impact and reliance on natural resources when creating products or services.