Sustainability

Sustainability at Kingston University

How we’re putting sustainability first

Sustainability is important to us, and our approach covers everything we do at Kingston University – from education and teaching to research and operations.

Here’s how you learn more and take action with us:

Read our sustainability plan (PDF) to discover how we put the environment first every day.
Check out our Town House Strategy to find out more about how sustainability feeds into our overall mission.
Connect with other staff and students in our awareness-raising Sustainability Week.
Discover how our future-focused research is leading the way for sustainability.

Read on to find out how we’re managing our university’s impacts, and learn more about the opportunities for championing sustainability while you study.

Two female and one male student standing on the riverside path in Kingston surrounded by green bushes, trees and grass. In the background is the River Thames and boats.

In this section

Creating positive impact

We do everything we can to boost our positive environmental impact. We’ve signed up to the United Nations Accord, and we make sure all our sustainability practices tie in with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Here’s how:

Committed to conserving and enhancing biodiversity
Striving to reduce our emissions
Finding greener food options
Optimising our resources and avoiding waste
Making new developments sustainable
Committed to sustainable procurement
Facilitating sustainable travel
Reducing our water consumption

A female student sitting on the patio next to the Hogsmill River at Knights Park campus.

Our environmental management system (EMS)

Our EMS helps us manage resources efficiently, comply with legislation and keep improving our performance. It’s how we:

Identify potential impacts, risks and opportunities
Set objectives for continual improvement
Maintain awareness of our environmental legal obligations
Develop clear, accountable internal management processes
Put governance in place to consider sustainability at all levels
Undertake regular audits and inspections of our campus sites
Identify potential areas of concern and support staff to take action
Collect data and reports to help monitor and measure our progress

The Green Impact Scheme

Green Impact is our University-wide network encouraging staff to take action for sustainability.

Want to learn more about environmental issues, make positive change and meet like-minded people? Email sustainability@kingston.ac.uk to find out more.

Keeping it Fairtrade

Kingston University was the third university in London to achieve 'Fairtrade University' status. Since 2006, we have sold Fairtrade products and supported the annual Fairtrade Fortnight.

In 2024, Kingston University was awarded a two-star-accredited Fairtrade University status.

Find out more about our Fairtrade status

We’re Green Impact-accredited

We’re Green Impact Students’ Unions (GISU) accredited, which means we’re driving sustainability through collaboration, campaigning and more across campus.

Email ukssustainability@kingston.ac.uk to find out more about our Green Impact campaigns.

The Sustainability Student Working Group

Want to make a change through sustainability and ethics? Our Sustainability Student Working Group is all about improving learning opportunities and operations in the university environment.

From being part of strategic working groups to organising events, there are plenty of ways to get involved. Email ukssustainability@kingston.ac.uk to find out more.