People and governance
Delivering sustainability requires clear leadership, shared responsibility and transparent decision making.
This section explains who is involved, how sustainability is governed at Leeds, and how staff and students help shape priorities and progress across the University.
Governance
Overall responsibility for Sustainability remains with the Vice-Chancellor, who along with the University Executive Group, reports to University Council.
Institutional sustainability is embedded within the University strategy, Universal Values, Global Change, and is sponsored through the University Executive Group via the Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Hai Sui Yu, in addition to a number of other senior leaders and academics.
The Head of Sustainability, Thom Cooper, leads the Sustainability Service in delivering against University sustainability objectives, and reports through the Director of Campus Innovation and Development, Ann Allen, to the Chief Operating Officer, Rachel Brealey. The Sustainability Service works collaboratively across the University to implement sustainability initiatives and to embed and enable environmental and social responsibility across all that we do.
The Sustainability Steering Group (SSG) provides leadership, coordination, and guidance to embed environmental and social sustainability across the University's activities, including teaching, research and operations. It is sponsored by the Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, chaired by the Head of Sustainability and reports to University Executive Group via the Strategic Planning and Performance Committee. The Climate Plan is also sponsored by the Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, who chairs the Climate Principles Programme Board.
Students and staff have an integral role in developing and delivering against our sustainability objectives. University Council, Sustainability Steering Group and the Climate Principles Programme Board include student and staff representation in their membership, alongside other decision making bodies such as the Net Zero Delivery Working Group. The Sustainability Service maintain strong working relationships with student and staff representatives including the Leeds University Union executive, and also provide a range of opportunities for staff and students to be directly involved in the delivery of sustainability initiatives, including through our student and staff sustainability architect programmes.
People
Alongside our dedicated Sustainability Service team, we also work with a wide network of people from across the University to implement sustainability initiatives. This includes a huge network of Blueprint teams, who are each working on sustainability actions plans for their departments. Our Staff Sustainability Architects have sustainability objectives embedded into their roles and work in their schools and services to drive and implement sustainability locally. Our Student Sustainability Architects are paid part time and work across the University, leading on sustainability projects and supporting to increase student engagement with sustainability.