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Nottingham Business School to deliver Carbon Literacy Training to students from across the globe

Nottingham Business School (NBS) is to deliver its Carbon Literacy Training to students from across the world as it joins the Global University Climate Forum, led by Yale University in the US.

Hands holding a globe and a city
NBS will deliver its unique Carbon Literacy Training as part of the Global University Forum

The Forum brings together 500 student activists from 44 countries to work in teams on projects which make a meaningful contribution to tackling climate change.

The six-month projects fall under four areas, including the development of a creative approach to raising awareness of climate change; proposing a student-led project on campus or in their community which leads to measurable change; analysing how a local, national, or global climate policy or governance mechanism can be improved at their educational institution; or actionable projects which are revolutionary, entrepreneurial, and creative.

As one of only two UK universities to be part of the Forum, NBS is delivering its unique Carbon Literacy Training programme to participating students. This forms part of a series of workshops delivered by a range of international universities and climate-focused organisations, including a keynote interview with Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac, co-founders of GlobalOptimism.com and co-authors of the book, The Future We Choose: Surviving the Climate Crisis.

The Carbon Literacy Training was devised following NBS research into sustainability in the TV industry, which demonstrated that carbon emission reduction can only be achieved if every employee understands how they contribute to carbon emissions.

Since its launch in 2019, the programme has been used to train people at all levels in universities across the world.

The course covers the basic science behind the climate crisis and the impact different sectors have on our climate, and vice versa. Participants learn about climate change mitigation tools for their own areas of study or practice and explore solutions with the highest impact. They also gain the strategies and skills for communicating climate actions.

As part of the Forum, students will take part in four sessions to become certified[1] peer educators, so they can teach others about carbon literacy.

Dr Petra Molthan-Hill, Professor of Sustainable Management and Education for Sustainable Development at NBS, said: “The Global University Climate Forum aims to make real change in the fight against climate change, so we’re extremely pleased to be offering our training as part of this year’s workshops.

“Our course will provide the students with the skills needed to make high impact changes in their own activities to reduce carbon emissions, as well as being able to pass on the knowledge they have gained to their peers.

“Like our own NBS graduates who have completed the course, being aware of, and able to tackle, environmental and social issues will also give these students a competitive advantage in the job market.”

Successfully completed projects will be included in a publication to be issued during the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Glasgow, Scotland.

To find out more about Carbon Literacy Training visit the NBS website

[1] Students who participate in all four sessions will be eligible to apply for certification by The Carbon Literacy Project in Manchester, UK.
  • Notes for editors

    Notes to editors

    Press enquiries please contact Helen Breese, Public Relations Manager, on telephone +44 (0)115 848 8751, or via email

    Sessions from the Global University Climate Forum can be watched online.

    About Nottingham Trent University

    Nottingham Trent University (NTU) was named University of the Year 2019 in the Guardian University Awards. The award was based on performance and improvement in the Guardian University Guide, retention of students from low-participation areas and attainment of BME students.

    NTU was also the Times Higher Education University of the Year 2017, and The Times and Sunday Times Modern University of the Year 2018. These awards recognise NTU for its high levels of student satisfaction, its quality of teaching, its engagement with employers, and its overall student experience.

    The university has been rated Gold in the Government’s Teaching Excellence Framework – the highest ranking available.

    It is one of the largest UK universities. With nearly 32,000 students and more than 4,000 staff located across four campuses, the University contributes £900m to the UK economy every year. With an international student population of more than 3,000 from around 100 countries, the University prides itself on its global outlook.

    The university is passionate about creating opportunities and its extensive outreach programme is designed to enable NTU to be a vehicle for social mobility. NTU is among the UK’s top five recruiters of students from disadvantaged backgrounds and was awarded University of the Year in the UK Social Mobility Awards 2019.

    A total of 82% of its graduates go on to graduate entry employment or graduate entry education or training within six months of leaving. Student satisfaction is high: NTU achieved an 87% satisfaction score in the 2020 National Student Survey, above the sector average of 83%.

Published on 23 November 2020
  • Category: Press office; Nottingham Business School