Sustainability has come a long way, from the days of climate scepticism to an intrinsic part of everyday life, work, and study. It is continuing to be increasingly important as summer temperatures reach over 35 degrees and wildfires have dominated the news in summer 2026. The 17 United Nations strategic developmental goals were developed in May 2015 and are foundational to a great deal of academic, industrial, and cultural approaches and work towards sustainability.
Sustainability is important for you, as it is for all of us, personally, professionally and culturally. It has become embedded in everyday life, work and study in attitudes and ways of thinking and behaving.
Sustainability at university
Sustainability can be found at every level of university life and Bath University is in 56th place in the latest QS World Sustainability Ranking. Students will be the decision-makers of the future and what you learn now could impact generations to come.
Academic skills and sustainability
The skills you use every day on your course can be useful and promote sustainability.
- Critical thinking – helps you question practices, information, and claims. It also helps you make connections between information and ideas from different sources
- Research skills – enable you to find and assess evidence, and verify sources of information on energy, climate, and sustainability
- Data analysis – equips you with the ability to understand and interpret data such as on carbon footprints or details of energy uses and energy saving
- Intersectional and system thinking – means you can understand complex problems and the way different systems are interconnected, e.g., environmental and economic systems
- Communication skills – with good communication skills, you can get the sustainability message out to a range of people in different contexts, such as children, work colleagues, or lecturers.
Ways of studying that can promote sustainability
Group projects contribute to developing the ability to work collaboratively with other individuals, groups, and potentially organisations. Working collaboratively is an important way of contributing to sustainability.
Interdisciplinary work builds connections and draws on and combines different areas of expertise to problem solve and complete projects. Sustainability projects bridge disciplines and subject areas to arrive at holistic solutions.
Vertically Integrated Projects (VIPs) are research-based projects which work towards the UN sustainable development goals. VIPs work to solve real-world problems in interdisciplinary teams.
Community partnerships. Some group work involves working with local charities to solve real problems.
Workshops and training e.g. Climate Fresk sessions that encourage reflection on personal behaviour and career.
Sustainability and employability
Sustainability is a feature of many graduate opportunities in all sectors. Sustainability skills are transferrable from university to workplace and your future employer may require you to be sustainability-literate. Experience gained at university can connect directly with employment, e.g., projects on your course can give you valuable experience in tackling climate change or addressing public health challenges.
Carbon literacy certifications are recognised outside the University. Look out for the next carbon literacy course in the next academic year.
The Bath Award is open to all students and aims to develop your professional skills by getting you involved in extracurricular activities. To achieve the Bath Award, you will work on developing four key employability capabilities and in 2026-27, one of these is sustainability.
Real-world impact
Your personal choices can have a real impact. Small habits and behaviours accumulate and can really make a difference. For example, one person’s choices to consume more ethically and sustainably this week may not make a great deal of difference, but if that one person continues in this choice for several years and their friends are influenced to make similar ethical and sustainable choices, the effect of that one person’s choice this week grows and continues like the proverbial ripples in a lake.
Some examples of small personal choices like this are:
- Turning off lights
- Using stairs instead of a lift if you can
- Using digital copies where possible
- Reducing waste
- Cooking from scratch sometimes
- Sustainable travel choices e.g. using a bike instead of a car
- Being aware of the energy use in accommodation
- Shopping ethically and locally
Call for action
Sustainability does not require grand actions or hours and hours of your time. It starts with the choices you make as a student, the skills you develop during your degree, and the actions you take every day. This week, choose one sustainability-related action: find out more about the Bath Award, attend a sustainability event, find out about a VIP, complete a carbon literacy workshop, or make one change to your daily routine that reduces waste or energy use.
Your small actions today can build the knowledge, habits, and experience that help create a more sustainable future for us all and strengthen your employability. What will you do next?
Respond
