Delivering the University Climate Plan

The world is suffering the consequences of around 1.2°C of man-made warming to date, and the awful consequences of a greater than 1.5°C increase in global temperature is looking more inevitable. In our role as educators and researchers, Geosolutions recognises the need to engage in a detailed and transparent conversation with staff and students across campus about delivery of a just transition to net zero.

The University Principles were agreed in 2019 and the Climate Plan in 2021. These included commitments and investment to achieve net zero emissions, embed sustainability in all our teaching and to reorientate our research and teaching away from activities facing fossil fuels. There was also a commitment to make responsible investments which have been met.

It is clear that unabated fossil fuel use is not compatible with net zero goals. However, the route to net zero is not simple and there are a broad range of views across our staff and students about working with the fossil fuel industry. Many choose not to, others see working with the fossil fuel industry as an important part of the transition. We respect these varied positions and our differing engagements with the industry.

Since the announcement of the climate plan in September 2019, we have initiated new projects that are focussed on research into carbon capture and storage, geothermal energy and the energy transition. All of these projects aim to better understand the environment at the time the rocks were deposited and how that is preserved in the geological record. The companies that fund the research can then use that information to better understand the present-day flow of fluids beneath the surface. This is important to help identify optimal sites for the subsurface storage of carbon dioxide, nuclear waste and hydrogen, and to identify sites that are suitable to extract heat in the form of naturally occurring subsurface geothermal energy.

We have also reviewed our curriculum; this includes removing programmes such as Petroleum Engineering. Nevertheless, we continue to train undergraduate and postgraduate students to be subsurface experts to address known skills gaps in order to accelerate the delivery of low carbon solutions such as geothermal energy and carbon capture and storage. Many will find employment with large energy companies and our hope is that they work with these companies to deliver the transition to a net zero future.

In August 2022 University announced it has committed £2.8 million to a project, led by the Geosolutions to enhance knowledge of low carbon subsurface energy options and further support the reorientation of our research away from the fossil fuel sector. This funding builds on commitments announced in 2019 as part of the climate plan to deliver our own just transition. This group is collaborating with social scientists and the University’s Estates and Sustainability services to explore geothermal energy solutions for the decarbonisation of heating and cooling on campus.

Our researchers and our students do so much to support local, national and international action on climate. But increasingly, we will not only be judged by what we deliver to the world but also by the way we operate internally. We hope we can share and learn together as we continue our net zero journey.

An overview and regular updates on the Climate Plan can be found on the University's dedicated website.