A Short Guide to Sustainability and Funding Applications
Research and Development has a significant environmental footprint and it directly results in the emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Funders therefore expect applicants to consider sustainability when developing funding proposals and take action to mitigate environmental impacts. This guide highlights key things for applicants to consider and provides information on the University’s efforts in this area.
Questions to consider
Typically, funders expect applicants to address the following:
- What are the environmental impacts of your project and how can these be mitigated?
- What is your environmental sustainability strategy and how does this align with your institution’s plans and policies?
- How will you consider and promote environmental sustainability and appropriately reflect it in your research design and operations?
- What sustainability standards you will adopt?
- How will you monitor and evaluate efforts to reduce environmental impacts?i
In addressing questions like this, applicants should consider:
- How the design of a project can reduce waste without adversely impacting on the validity and reliability of research
- The practical action that can be taken during the project to reduce its environmental footprint
Efficient Study Design
Sensible research design can reduce carbon waste and applicants should make full use of existing evidence and resources to avoid unnecessary data collection. It may be appropriate to carry out systematic reviews of existing evidence before submitting the application. In some cases, the statistical efficiency within a given sample size should be considered, along with whether it is possible to answer several questions through one study. Inefficient or ineffective monitoring practices, particularly those that require extensive travel to study sites should be avoided.
Other Considerations
- Online meetings and minimising travel (particularly flying)
- Sustainable procurement to ensure suppliers are operating to the highest environmental standards
- Environmentally-friendly catering options (e.g. local, seasonal and meat-free)
- For lab-based research, reduce and recycle plastics where possible. Consider using reusable glass and purchasing “flexible kits” to reduce waste of bottles/reagents. Bulk ordering to avoid packaging waste (review guidance from the Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Protocol (LEAF))
- Carbon budgeting / reporting for the project and sustainability training for project staff
Sustainability and the University of Glasgow
In 2023, UofG was ranked 13/700 globally in the QS World Sustainability Rankings.
The University declared a climate emergency in 2019 and has an ambitious Climate Change Strategy committing to carbon neutrality by 2030.
The Centre for Sustainable Solutions helps coordinate the activities across the University. Examples include:
- The Sustainable Laboratories at UofG project to bring the Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Protocol (LEAF) to the University of Glasgow
- A carbon footprint tool for researchers
In January 2024, the University completed the process of fully divesting from fossil fuel companies, realising a sector-leading commitment made in 2014.
Scotland Beyond Net Zero (SBNZ), founded jointly by the Universities of Edinburgh and Glasgow, aims to help the country meet – and go beyond – its ambition of achieving net zero by 2045