Procurement Innovation and Decarbonisation Drive Lancaster’s Climate Action Success

Lancaster University’s Sustainability Leadership Highlighted in Prestigious Award Finalist List

Lancaster University has once again demonstrated its leadership in sustainability by being shortlisted as a finalist in the 2030 Climate Action category at the 2025 Green Gown Awards. This recognition follows its 2023 win in the Money for Good category for the Wind Turbine Community Benefit Fund, and underscores the institution’s continued commitment to achieving net-zero carbon emissions.

The 2030 Climate Action category celebrates institutions that adopt innovative, university-wide strategies to reach carbon neutrality. According to the award organisers, Lancaster was commended for its holistic approach, which integrates academic research, operational reforms, and collaborative partnerships with both local communities and suppliers. In particular, the university’s procurement strategy, which tracks supplier carbon emissions to generate accurate departmental data, was highlighted as a model of best practice. Moreover, Lancaster’s ambitious target to achieve net-zero energy emissions by 2030 places it ahead of most UK universities in terms of pace and scope.

The winners of the 2025 Green Gown Awards will be announced on 6 November at a ceremony hosted at The Library of Birmingham. However, university officials have already expressed pride in the nomination, noting that Lancaster’s achievements in sustainability serve as a benchmark for the sector. Dr Georgiana Allison, Head of Sustainability at Lancaster University, described the nomination as a significant milestone. She emphasised that the 2030 Climate Action category offered a valuable platform to showcase the university’s progress in decarbonising its campus and in promoting sustainable procurement practices.

She further noted that the collaborative efforts undertaken had deepened institutional understanding of the hidden environmental impacts associated with renewable energy technologies. Lancaster University’s continued recognition affirms its role as a national leader in climate action and sustainable development

Editor’s Note:

Lancaster University’s nomination for the 2030 Climate Action category at the 2025 Green Gown Awards is not just a well-deserved honour; it’s a powerful statement about the role universities can play in addressing one of the most urgent challenges of our time: climate change. This recognition highlights the university’s commitment to real, measurable action. Rather than making promises for the distant future, Lancaster has set an ambitious target, net-zero energy emissions by 2030 and is actively working towards it. What makes this effort stand out is its whole-university approach. By combining academic research, practical reforms, and meaningful partnerships with the local community and supply chain, the university has developed a model that other institutions can learn from.
Lancaster University's commitment to sustainable procurement, a frequently neglected aspect of climate action, is equally crucial. The university demonstrates that even internal operations can significantly contribute to environmental efforts by monitoring supplier emissions and utilising this information for departmental choices.

Skoobuzz asserts that receiving a Green Gown Award is not merely an accolade; it signifies that Lancaster's initiatives are influencing the national discourse on sustainability within education.