Net Zero Carbon
NTU has pledged to achieve Net Zero Carbon emissions across all three carbon scopes by 2040 in order to create a Zero Carbon culture across the NTU community.
Milestone objectives
Three 'milestone' objectives will ensure NTU remains on target to achieve our Net Zero Carbon commitment:
- Milestone 1 – By 2026, deliver a 24% reduction in NTU’s total carbon emissions against a 2018/19 baseline.
- Milestone 2 – By 2030, deliver a 50% reduction in NTU’s total carbon emissions against a 2018/19 baseline.
- Milestone 3 – By 2040, achieve Net Zero Carbon emissions across our built estate, 10 years ahead of the UK Government’s 2050 legally binding target.
Our 2040 target, and interim milestones for 2026 and 2030, will not only include tackling carbon emissions associated with energy use across the entire NTU estate (Scopes 1 and 2) but also emissions associated with activities NTU has less control over, known as Scope 3 emissions. These include supply chain, transport and managed accommodation.
Net Zero Carbon is underpinned by NTU's strategic plan and is a strategic institutional KPI, with progress reported to UET and Board of Governors. The Carbon Programme Group, made up of representatives from across the university, NTSU, and student body, identifies, implements and monitors projects, programmes and plans required to progress towards net zero.
We've integrated funding for net zero initiatives into our capital development projects, long-term maintenance plan and other team budgets. In addition, the university invests in dedicated roles across Professional Services to drive carbon reduction efforts.
Have an idea for a sustainability project on campus? We'd love to hear from you. Please get in touch with the Sustainability team.
Implementing Net Zero
To meet our ambitious goals, the whole NTU community must be engaged as set out in the NTU Carbon Roadmap.
We have established a Net Zero Carbon governance structure tasked with implementing projects across four workstream areas to deliver necessary carbon reductions. These workstreams are Energy and Water, Transport and Travel, Supply Chain, and Partner Accommodation, covering the largest sources of emissions in our baseline carbon footprint. These groups work together to plan ambitious actions that will reduce emissions across all areas at NTU.
Each year, the Sustainability Team calculates the carbon footprint of NTU across all 3 scopes of emissions, aligning with the sector Standardised Carbon Emissions Frameworks (SCEF) and GHG Protocol, as outlined in our carbon footprint methodology.
Our annual carbon footprint can be found in Section 7 within our latest Net Zero Carbon Roadmap.
Progress to Net Zero Carbon
NTU has a strong track record for sustainability, and we have invested in creating low-carbon campuses.
Between 2012 and 2018, the Salix Revolving Green Fund provided NTU with £1 million of investment in capital projects such as the installation of energy-efficient fans in labs and PC shutdown software.
We generate our own energy on -site, including solar photovoltaic panels on the roofs of the Chaucer building on the City campus and the Rosalind Franklin building on our Clifton campus. These panels generate thousands of kWh of renewable energy per year.
Our biomass boiler at Brackenhurst campus provides hot water to the 300-bed student accommodation and the Brackenhurst library. The 400 photovoltaic panels on the Equestrian Centre roof are the largest solar PV installation at NTU.
Our campus heat network at Clifton uses CHP technology to generate heat, hot water and electricity for 7 buildings. We also have 10 of our city centre buildings connected to the Nottingham District Heat Network.
We continue to invest in sustainable infrastructure across our Estate, including our new sustainable hockey pitch at Clifton Campus, our cutting-edge Design and Digital Arts Building, and the Sustainable refurbishment of the Belgrave Postgraduate Centre.
Carbon Programme Group
The Energy and Water, Transport and Travel, Supply Chain and Partner Accommodation workstreams work together to plan ambitious actions that will reduce emissions across all areas at NTU. These workstreams report to a dedicated Carbon Programme Group, consisting of expert representatives from Academia, Research, Professional Services, NTSU and the student body, and is chaired by the Director of Estates. Progress is reported to senior leadership.
Title | Name | Department |
Deputy Director of Estates | Simon Smith (Chair) | Estates |
Interim Director of Estates | Harvey Dowdy | Estates |
Head of Sustainability | Laura Mayhew-Manchón (deputy Chair) | Estates (Sustainability Team) |
Head of Procurement | Kate Brown | Procurement |
Head of Engineering, Maintenance and Operations | Scott Brooks | Estates |
Digital Technologies Directorate Manager | Andy Semak | Digital Technologies |
Commercial Services Manager | Kate Ling | Knowledge Exchange |
Sustainability Manager | Charlotte Wood | Estates (Sustainability Team) |
Senior Sustainability Projects Officer | Emily Spencer | Estates (Sustainability Team) |
Sustainability Officer | Abby King | NTSU |
Strategy Manager | Michelle Pepin | Strategic Policy and Projects |
Head of UK Industry Research Funding | Sarah Malone | Research Strategy and Operations |
VP Community and Welfare | Joseph Cormack | NTSU |
Student Representative | Jordi McKinney O’Connor | Student |
Sustainability Assistant (Secretariat) | Gill Moczarski | Estates (Sustainability Team) |
Race to Zero
NTU is an official Race to Zero signatory. Driven by the UN Environment Programme, EAUC & Second Nature, Race to Zero is a global campaign to rally leadership and action in the education sector. Joining the Race to Zero demonstrates NTU’s commitment to the net zero agenda, alongside NTU’s pledge to achieve Net Zero Carbon emissions across all three carbon scopes by 2040.
Get involved
You can help us to meet the University's carbon reduction targets.
- Try out the Footprint Calculator to see how many tonnes of carbon dioxide you emit.
- Take part in our events throughout the year, or join NTU Green Rewards to find out more about what you can do to be more sustainable whilst working and/or studying at NTU.