The Open University promotes principles of sustainability, environmental and social justice in their broadest sense. We define sustainability as meeting our needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. The UN Sustainable Development Goals express sustainability in the context of social, environmental, economic, global and future wellbeing.

We acknowledge the impact of greenhouse gas emissions from our own operations, including the goods and services we procure, our travel, our estate and our finance policies. We are committed to achieving ‘net zero’ greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, through a programme of investment and measures to reduce and mitigate the adverse environmental impact of our activities.

We will continue to embrace policy and practice across the four nations, including the Climate Change Act 2008, the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015, the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 and Ireland’s example of deliberative democracy with the Citizens’ Assembly.

Towards Fossil Free banking
The OU is one of several universities to have collaborated on a new effort to create a market for cash products that do not contribute to the financing of fossil fuel expansion. This is an important part of the OU’s sustainability commitments.
The group of universities are especially keen to avoid financing companies that are constructing new coal and gas-fired power plants in OECD countries. New fossil fuel infrastructure can lock in decades of fossil fuel demand and subsequent greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that are the main cause of climate change. 
In February, Cambridge University and a consortium of Universities issued a request for proposals (RFP) to find banks and fund managers that are not expanding their financing of fossil fuel extraction or utilisation. The RFP is available on the Cambridge University website here. 

In March 2024, The Open University was formally added as a signatory to the RFP. The RFP closed in early April and the team in Cambridge are in the process of assessing all the responses. 

The Open University recognises the urgency of the climate emergency and are dedicated to being a consistent part of the solution, rather than a part of the problem. As such, we have committed to achieving zero net greenhouse gas emissions from our energy use by 2030 and from all other indirect emissions no later than 2050, through a programme of investment and measures to reduce and mitigate the adverse environmental impact of our activities. 

Fossil Fuel Divestment
At the end of 2021, The Open University Council agreed to divest its fossil fuel exposure from its investment portfolio and the final fund with fossil fuel exposure was sold at the end of 2023. Our commitment to environmental and social sustainability will continue to run through our education, research, enterprise, curriculum and public engagement work.

Our Commitment to Sustainability

Our commitment to Sustainability is enshrined in The Open University’s strategy ‘Learn and Live’.

By 2030 we shall be confident that:

• Our creation and sharing of knowledge and skills enriches and transforms society, enabling our students to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals which are visible in our curriculum, our research and our enterprise activities.
• Our student-centred pedagogy enables responsible behaviours and disruptive innovations.
• Our teaching model is low environmental impact and we transparently report on this.
• Our course content and resources, across all disciplines, challenge unsustainability and exemplify sustainability through theories, application, stories and practice - ensuring 21st century transformative competencies.
• Our students turn to us for multi-disciplinary lifelong learning, upskilling and reskilling for decarbonisation, decolonisation and the just transition to a sustainable society.
• Our research is recognised for its policy influence and impact which enables implementation of sustainability in all areas of society.
• Our stakeholders see us as a trusted source of informed debate and holistic understanding through a range of contemporary media and partnerships.
• Our staff proactively engage to embed sustainability in all roles, meeting or exceeding legislative requirements across our business operations in the four nations.

We commit to:

• Focus sustainability activity on the role of OU as educator: the creation and sharing of knowledge to respond to the green skills gap and support the just transition to a renewable energy economy, whilst ensuring legal compliance for OU as business: direct carbon emissions, travel and supply chains across the four nations, responsible finance and a climate resilient campus and services.
• Adopt a ‘levelling up’ approach to benefit from good practice in the four nations including: in Scotland the Climate Change Adaptation legislation, in Wales the Wel-lbeing of Future Generations Act and the Civic Mission framework and in Northern Ireland the application of deliberative democracy as well as the UK’s collegiate network the Environmental Association of Universities and Colleges (EAUC)

Sustainability policies and statements

We shall transparently report on our commitments, plans and progress, updating this page with our latest reports. Policies and statements are reviewed on a cyclical basis every two or three years and delivered through plans held by relevant departments and units of the university. We strive to continuously improve and learn from good practice and therefore welcome staff and student feedback on all our policies and plans (published in July). If you would like to submit comments or feedback, please email sustainability@open.ac.uk by 14 September 2023 and we’ll endeavour to incorporate your responses where appropriate before re-publishing in October. We don’t have capacity to respond to everyone individually and may not be able to act on your suggestions immediately, however we shall consider all actions and schedule for the future where possible. Feedback received after this date will be cached for our next review of policies. By clicking on the links below you’ll find more details and information about each of our plans, policies, statements, and performance. You can find a glossary of the terminology used here.

External sustainability reporting
 

Annual Accounts (pages 44/45 sustainability overview)

Modern Slavery Statement 2024

Modern Slavery Statement 2024 (OU Result)