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Sustainable Strategy

Illustration of two people walking against the University of Salford campus backdrop

As a civic institution, our mission is to:

  •  Educate the next generation of modern industrialists, innovators, creators, entrepreneurs and leaders
  •  Develop the skills and knowledge needed to capitalise on the next industrial revolution
  •  Work in collaboration with public and private sector partners to address local and global economic and societal challenges

We recognise the global climate and biological crises and that climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing our society across the globe. As a higher education provider we have a major role to play in enabling our students and staff to respond positively to global challenges through their study, work and life.

Striving for a Sustainable Salford

Our vision: 

By embedding sustainability in all aspects of university life, we will enable our university community to create impactful positive change for society and environment.

Within the Sustainability Strategy we acknowledge the three pillars of sustainability: social, economic and environmental and their interconnectedness. The university already addresses economic and social sustainability in areas such as access and participation, our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Statement of Ambition, our work to close the gender pay gap and commitment to the Can't Buy My Silence Pledge. Our Sustainability Strategy is focused on environmental sustainability; however, social and economic impacts and opportunities will be embedded in implementation. For example, there are significant opportunities to support social sustainability and equity, diversity and inclusion through our Education for Sustainable Development and Research as well as our Ethical Investment, Responsible Procurement and Sustainable Construction frameworks.

We also recognise our responsibilities for the direct impact on the environment; as one of the largest organisations in the Greater Manchester region offering a place of study and work to over 18,500 students and 2,200 staff across 27 buildings and around 70 hectares. We have an obligation to reduce our negative impact on our environment but also an opportunity to demonstrate environmental sustainability through our operations and using our campus as a living laboratory. 

The Estates and Facilities Division leads on the Environmental and Energy Management System (EEMS) which is certified to both BS EN ISO 14001: 2015 and BS EN ISO 50001:2018 standards covering all of our physical estates and operations. The EEMS was developed over a number of years using the EcoCampus approach with awards from bronze to platinum. Our certificates are available here: Eco-Campus Platinum, ISO 14001, ISO 50001.

Our Environmental Sustainability Policy sets out the framework for our environmental objectives.

On the Environmental Sustainability homepage, you can find more information on:

  • our actions to mitigate climate change,
  • resource efficiency,
  • sustainable campus operations,
  • and education and research for sustainability.

The Environmental Sustainability Plan, and the university's Sustainability Strategy are under review following the Sustainability Team restructure. We have consulted widely on the development of our Sustainability Strategy with our students and colleagues based on current thinking in the Sustainability Position Paper (staff only internal link). We have also considered the outcomes of the SOS-UK Sustainability Skills Survey; we have produced a summary report for University of Salford respondents in the 2023-24 academic year. 

Our updated sustainability targets can be found in the latest annual report.

Details on the governance of our Environmental Sustainability Plan are available on our governance page.

You can see our progress:

Sustainability is also included in the University of Salford Integrated Report 2023.

Working together for a Sustainable Salford

Inspired by Go Green Salford, in March 2021 colleagues came together for a 'Salford Conversations Go Green!' event to discuss climate change, becoming a low carbon institution and our individual roles in driving change to support and develop our Environmental Sustainability Plan. 

There's been so many adjustments to how we work over the last year and many of these are positively impacting on our carbon emissions. We discussed:

  • the behaviours and practices that we wish to keep;
  • what more we can each do individually;
  • and how we would like to influence and shape our university operations to achieve our low carbon aims.

Colleagues were keen to elevate this conversation across the university and further support our Environmental Sustainability Plan implementation. You can also check out a reading list created by library colleagues especially for the event theme.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), or Global Goals, are a call for action by all countries to promote prosperity while protecting the planet and provide a framework for action on sustainability globally. They recognise that ending poverty must go hand-in-hand with strategies that build economic growth and address a range of social needs including education, health, social protection, and job opportunities, while tackling climate change and environmental protection.

We recognise the critical role that education has in delivering the UN SDGs and are using them as a framework for action by mapping our Sustainability Strategy activity to the relevant goals.