Here are some ideas which you might consider for your institution or organisation. Some may not be possible or relevant, and if you have other ideas we’d love to hear from you!
Institutions have significant potential to create meaningful impact on the environment and climate change through systemic changes, education, and community engagement. Transitioning to renewable energy could cut carbon emissions by hundreds of tons annually for larger organisations. Educating students and staff about sustainability can lead to widespread adoption of eco-friendly practices at home and in the community. By embedding sustainability into all aspects of their operations and management, institutions and schools can significantly mitigate their environmental footprint and inspire broader societal change.
The goals that institutions and schools should aspire to include:
This can be achieved by adopting science-based targets. Aligning institutional goals with frameworks like the Paris Agreement or UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will enable the organisation to better understand what is required to create more sustainable practices. This includes reaching carbon neutrality by committing to achieve zero emissions. This requires the organisation to reduce energy use, transition to renewable energy, and offset residual emissions.
Introducing the topic of sustainability into the curriculum, events and initiatives of the school sends a clear message that the organisation values sustainable practices. When schools incorporate climate science, environmental studies, and sustainable development into curricula across disciplines, students are exposed to the principles and importance of achieving sustainability goals. This message can be fortified with regular sustainability workshops and eco-awareness days and by supporting clubs and organizations that lead sustainability efforts, such as green teams or environmental advocacy groups.
Where possible, installing renewable energy sources like solar panels or wind turbines is preferable to using coal or oil systems. In additions, reducing and replacing energy sources for better efficiency is key. Thus, systems such as LED lighting, Energy Star appliances, efficient heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems go far to increase energy efficiency, along with smart building technologies to monitor and reduce energy consumption.
Establishing robust recycling and composting programs by sorting waste into recyclable, organic and land-fill bins should be standard where the infrastructure is set up for these types of collection and disposals. However, while sorting waste for recycling is helpful, significantly reducing waste is far more effective. Institutions and schools should develop a “zero-waste” campus plan, emphasizing waste audits and reduction initiatives. In order to reduce plastic waste, organisations should eliminate single-use plastics by switching to reusable alternatives wherever possible.
Installing water-saving devices, such as low-flow faucets and toilets, and using rainwater harvesting systems for non-drinking purposes are good ways to conserve water. Other initiatives include using water from handwashing sinks by recycling this into toilet cisterns or repurposing clean wastewater, such as from drinking fountains. Furthermore, organisations should monitor water usage in order to identify and fix leaks or inefficiencies as soon as they occur.
Wherever possible, organisations should prioritize local, eco-friendly and ethically sourced products. This will include seeking out and working with suppliers committed to sustainability, including fair trade and carbon-neutral companies. Additionally, procuring supplies locally will often reduce the environmental impact of long-distance transportation. Above all, institutions and schools should question and audit supply chains for their environmental and social impact.
Organisations can use artificial intelligence and data analytics to monitor energy use, emissions, and resource efficiency in order to conduct regular sustainability audits to track energy, water, and resource use. By using rating scales and certifications like LEED, ISO 14001, or WELL, organisations can benchmark their efforts against global standards. This could lead to publishing annual sustainability reports to share progress and areas for improvement with the greater community; thus, highlighting and promoting the efforts of the organisation to reduce their environmental impact.
By advocating for policy changes that support renewable energy, conservation, and emission reductions at a local, regional, and national level, institution and schools can model leadership in the community. Partnering with environmental organizations may also lead to amplified advocacy efforts. In addition, by recognising and rewarding efforts by staff, students, and departments in achieving sustainability goals, organisations can encourage sustainable behaviours. This can be enhanced by regularly celebrating milestones to maintain enthusiasm and momentum.
Not all schools invest in their own transportation but those which do also have role to play by transitioning to a green fleet of vehicles, such as electric or hybrid cars and buses. Another initiative may include staff and students being given incentives to use public transportation, bicycles, or to carpool. Organisations may also consider developing electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure, for example, charging stations for staff, students or visitors to the school.
Institutions and schools can play a part in regional sustainability projects, such as community tree planting events, clean-ups, or conservation drives, by collaborating with local governments, businesses, and non-profit organisations. Engaging in tree planting, habitat restoration, and conservation projects can improve biodiversity and sequester carbon through local ecosystem restoration. Organisations can then create platforms to share experience, knowledge and success stories with other institutions.
In order to implement school-wide sustainable practices, institutions and schools should consider creating teams to spread sustainable practice and foster an awareness of the school’s environmental impact. Teams are preferable to individual champions as they bring together diverse perspectives and skillsets, and have varied backgrounds and experiences, leading to more effective ideas for sustainable practices. Teams also motivate and hold each other accountable, along with sharing the workload. In this way, teams are more likely to have an impact of the school community.
When appointing teams, schools should include both administration staff and teachers. However, student participation will depend on the age and the duration with which the students are at the school. Organisations may decide to appoint:
A Staff Sustainability Committee (SSC): Where administration and academic staff meet regularly to discuss and implement eco-friendly practices throughout the school.
A Student-led Green Team (SGT): Where students are responsible for sustainability initiatives, such as waste audits, energy checks, and organizing eco-events.
A Staff Sustainability Committee is a group within an organization dedicated to promoting and implementing sustainable practices. For educational institutions, these committees serve as catalysts for environmental stewardship, reducing the institution’s ecological footprint, and fostering a culture of sustainability among staff and students.
The overall purpose of the SSC is to:
Develop and Implement Green Policies:
Draft and recommend policies on energy conservation, waste reduction, green procurement, and sustainable commuting.
Engage Staff and Students:
Promote awareness and involvement in sustainability initiatives across departments and teams.
Monitor Progress:
Track and report the institution's progress on sustainability goals, such as reducing carbon emissions or waste.
Advocate for Sustainability:
Act as a voice for sustainability at leadership meetings, ensuring it remains a key priority in decision-making.
Coordinator: Someone who leads meetings, sets agendas, and acts as the primary point of contact.
Secretary: Someone who takes minutes during meetings, tracks action items, and ensures documentation.
Green Champions: Representatives from various departments who communicate and implement sustainability efforts in their areas.
(Optional) Specialists: Staff with expertise (or who could be given specific training) in energy, waste management, or environmental education to provide informed recommendations.
Environmental Impact: Drives measurable reductions in waste, emissions, and resource use.
Cost Savings: Reduces operational costs by conserving energy and minimizing waste.
Engaged Workforce: Fosters a sense of purpose among staff, boosting morale and teamwork.
Institutional Leadership: Positions the institution as a leader in sustainability, attracting students, staff, and funding aligned with green values.
Community Influence: Demonstrates leadership to the broader community, encouraging others to adopt sustainable practices.
A well-structured sustainability committee empowers staff to take ownership of environmental goals, ensuring that sustainability becomes a shared responsibility and a core part of the institution’s identity.
The following are examples of activities that SSCs can engage in:
Policy Development
Develop and circulate a clear sustainability policy that aligns with institutional goals to stakeholders to ensure that the aims and targets of environmentally friendly behaviour are clear to all.
Create and enforce green office policies, such as energy conservation guidelines or a zero-waste lunch program. [ADD EXAMPLE POSTERS]
Adopt practices like virtual meetings to save resources and designate certain days as "low energy" workdays where natural lighting and minimal tech are used.
Project organisation
Assess and report on the feasibility of installing solar panels for hot water or for electricity generation where available and oversee the project.
Establish and maintain composting systems for cafeteria and garden waste. This can be done with clearly labelled bins in areas of food preparation and consumption to ensure that the composting is carried out well. The resulting compost can be used in school green areas or donated to farmers or local community gardens.
Encourage biking, carpooling, and public transportation through incentives such as bike maps, bike parking or bike maintenance stations for biking to school; priority parking, reduced parking fees or fuel-payment giveaways for carpooling; and subsidized transport passes, monthly raffles or a shuttle service to the nearest public transport station for public transport.
Work with procurement teams to source eco-friendly supplies. Office and classroom supplies should be sourced from companies which also embrace sustainable practices and who aim to reduce their carbon footprint. Thorough research into the supplier should be carried out and companies should recognise that they will be held accountable for their sustainability practices.
Organise workshops or training for students and staff on topics like reducing plastic waste or energy-saving tips for home and school.
Awareness Campaigns
Organize events like Earth Day celebrations, sustainability fairs, documentary screenings, or adopt a sustainability day.
Earth day: The earth day website has free resources for activities. Additionally, a pledge wall could be set up where students and staff commit to sustainable actions.
Sustainability fair: Students, staff or local artisans set up booths showcasing eco-friendly products, green technologies, and local environmental organizations.
Documentary screenings: Films on environmental issues as shown during the lunch break or after lessons, such as The Story of Plastic or Before the Flood, followed by group discussions or activities.
Adopt a sustainability day: One day a month or once a term/semester is dedicated to eco-friendly practices, such as zero-waste lunches or paperless assignments.
Invite guest speakers, such as environmental experts, to speak about local or global sustainability efforts. Experts should be told to adapt their talk according to their audience for maximum audience engagement with the topic.
Create and disseminate posters and digital newsletters about sustainability topics, such as energy-saving practices, waste reduction, and sustainable procurement. These should be sent to staff, students, parents and other stakeholders.
Conduct regular audits on waste, energy, and water usage to identify areas for improvement and publish the report for staff and students.
Write and distribute a handbooks with hints, help and guidance about implementing green patterns of behaviour inside and outside the school and institution.
Office Sustainability Practices
Increase energy efficiency by:
Conducting regular energy audits to identify areas for improvement.
Installing motion sensor lights and LED bulbs to reduce energy consumption.
Set computers and devices to energy-saving modes and establish a policy to turn off equipment after work hours.
Manage waste by:
Providing clearly labelled recycling bins for paper, plastics, metals, and electronics.
Transitioning to digital correspondence to minimize paper use, including e-billing, e-forms, and digital meeting notes.
Encourage double-sided printing and limit access to printing by setting quotas or creating PIN-secured print stations in staffrooms and offices.
Source sustainable supplies and behaviour by:
Sourcing office supplies that are made from recycled or sustainable materials.
Creating a system to redistribute unused office supplies such as binders, folders, and pens.
Opting for furniture made from recycled or sustainable materials.
Repurposing old furniture to minimize waste and costs.
Incorporating greenery in office design, like indoor plants or living walls, to improve air quality and promote well-being.
Providing water stations to encourage staff to use refillable bottles instead of single-use plastic ones.
Eco-Competitions and Challenges
Organize friendly team or department competitions to reduce office waste or energy usage, rewarding the most successful team, e.g. “Department Energy Savings Challenge” or a “Paperless Office Week.”
Form mini groups of staff volunteers to oversee and promote sustainability initiatives in individual offices or departments.
Encourage staff to participate in community sustainability projects, such as local environmental organizations for clean-ups, tree planting or workshops, and offer incentives like volunteer hours.
Encourage employees to make and share individual sustainability pledges, such as reducing single-use plastics or biking to work.
Organize low-impact office events using reusable decorations, catering with minimal waste, and offsetting the carbon footprint of the event.
Acknowledge and reward staff or teams who consistently implement sustainable practices with incentives such as gift cards to eco-friendly stores or additional paid time off.
By integrating these practices into their daily operations and workplace culture, educational institutions can significantly contribute to sustainability while inspiring their teams to adopt eco-friendly behaviors.
A Student-led Green Team is a group of students dedicated to driving sustainability initiatives within their school or community. It empowers students to take an active role in promoting environmental awareness, implementing eco-friendly practices, and advocating for climate action. These teams cultivate leadership, collaboration, and a sense of responsibility among students, making them pivotal in fostering a culture of sustainability.
The overall purpose of the SGT is to:
Develop environmental stewardship:
Encourage students to adopt and promote sustainable practices.
Encourage hands-on learning:
Provide opportunities to learn about environmental science, resource management, and sustainability through practical projects.
Community impact:
Extend sustainability efforts beyond the school, engaging with the local community to drive larger-scale environmental improvements.Advocate for Sustainability:
Youth Empowerment for young learners:
Build leadership skills by allowing students to spearhead initiatives and make decisions about sustainability strategies.
Chairperson: Preferably this should be a school representative. Depending on the age of the students, the Chairperson will be responsible for overseeing meetings, setting deadlines, and ensuring the team adheres to school policies and stays on track with goals.
Secretary: This may be a school representative, again depending on the age and competence of the students. Their role is to take notes during meetings, organizes schedules, and tracks progress.
Eco-Champions: These are students of any age, from young learners to adults, who lead specific initiatives
Empowerment: Inspires students to believe they can make a difference and take ownership of environmental challenges.
Teamwork and Collaboration: Emphasizes collaboration and teamwork in students, allowing all members to contribute ideas and take part in projects.
Environmental awareness: Developing a mission statement that reflects the group’s sustainability goals and aspirations (e.g., "To make our school a zero-waste campus by 2030") helps students to focus on and normalise sustainability.
Goals and Objectives: Focussing on specific, actionable goals, such as reducing the school’s energy use, improving recycling rates, or starting a school garden, practices working towards an objective.
Community Influence: Encourages teachers, parents, or staff to act as mentors or advisors.
By fostering Student-led Green Teams, schools can create powerful agents of change while embedding sustainability into their culture and everyday practices. Student-led initiatives might include:
Creating posters, leaflets, newsletters or social media campaigns about:
Information such as tips and facts to inform peers about sustainability.
Promote alternatives to single-use plastics, such as reusable water bottles and containers.
Encourage peers and staff to adopt energy-saving habits, such as turning off lights and unplugging devices.
Celebrate the Green Team’s achievements with awards, certificates, or articles in school newsletters.
Organising and running projects featuring sustainability at their core:
Set up or improve recycling bins in the school and educate peers on proper recycling.
Conduct energy audits to identify areas where energy is wasted and suggest improvements.
Establish or maintain a school garden to grow vegetables, herbs, or native plants.
Create pollinator-friendly spaces with wildflowers and habitats for bees and butterflies.
Older or adult students could be encouraged to investigate sponsorships or grants for larger initiatives, such as installing solar panels or starting a composting program.
Hosting events to promote eco-friendly behaviour and sustainability:
Host themed days focused on sustainability, such as “Waste-Free Wednesday” or “Thrift-It Thursday.”
Screen environmental documentaries to educate peers and spark discussions amongst students.
Create petitions or awareness campaigns about pressing environmental issues, such as reducing single-use plastics or protecting local ecosystems.
Hold assemblies or classroom presentations to inspire action among the student body.
Encouraging Zero-Waste Events and Activities:
Start “Zero-Waste Wednesdays,” encouraging students and staff to bring lunches in reusable containers with no single-use plastic.
For school events, eliminate single-use decorations and opt for reusable, biodegradable, or recyclable items. Hold a “Green Event Challenge” where students and staff brainstorm how to make events more sustainable.
Library Book Bags: Create a “Borrow and Return” bag system made from old fabrics for students to use when checking out library books, reducing plastic use.
Hold drives for batteries, electronics, and other recyclable items that don’t go into regular recycling.
Schools can use a variety of resources to educate and inform their office teams about sustainability. These resources can include tools, training platforms, organizations, and materials that provide insights and actionable steps for implementing eco-friendly practices. There are also a number of digital resources and guides which can ease and inspire the teams and committees created to promote and implement sustainable practice at the school or institution. By leveraging these resources, schools can ensure their office teams are well-informed, motivated, and equipped to implement meaningful sustainability initiatives.
Online Courses and Webinars
TED talks feature a large number of free-to-watch short educational talks about environmental stewardship, climate change, future-proofing. The site also features lesson plans
Coursera and FutureLearn offer courses for mixture of free and paid courses which cover various topics related to sustainability.
Eco-Schools Webinars and lesson plans offer lesson plans and resources for integrating sustainability practices in schools and offices.
Sustainability Tools and guides:
Carbon Footprint helps offices measure and reduce their carbon emissions.
The Green Seal Guide is a world-wide certification to help consumers choose eco-friendly office products.
The Nature Conservancy website can be used by students to work out their home carbon footprint.
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) offers a framework for developing policies and practices that align with global sustainability goals
EPA Green Offices Toolkit is a U.S. website with guides and resources specifically for offices to minimize waste, conserve energy, and promote sustainability.
WWF’s Sustainable Practices Program:** Offers resources for businesses and schools.
Green Schools Alliance:** Provides sustainability frameworks and best practices for educational institutions.
Eco-Schools Program:** Offers a step-by-step program for sustainability efforts in schools, which can include office practices.
Collaborative Opportunities
Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) can be visited for inspiration and ideas
Sustainable Schools Network to shared resources and best practices
Green Schools Alliance is a peer-to-peer non-profit with a mission to connect and empower schools to lead the transformation to a sustainable, equitable and climate resilient future.
Other online useful resources
Canva is a website with a large selection of free building blocks to create custom posters to highlight school-specific green goals.