Verity Firth on UNSW “walking the walk and talking the talk” on climate action

Our VP DSIEE says the new Environmental Social Governance Advisory Group will help UNSW align environmental, social and governance outcomes and goals.

The need for urgent climate action was the message heard loud and clear by UNSW participants at the Times Higher Education (THE) Global Sustainable Development Congress in Bangkok this week.   

UNSW has a range of partnerships across the Pacific, undertaking research collaborations and climate-based initiatives. One of these collaborations is a mangrove rehabilitation project in Fiji aiming to restore resilient coastlines. Salote Nasalo, a joint PhD student at UNSW and University of the South Pacific, spoke passionately at the conference about the existential crisis facing her country. 

“In less than 25 years, 248 communities in my homeland will have to be displaced because of sea level rises. Five to seven communities are currently being displaced. While people are coming up with energy security solutions, we are trying to live. The world needs to act now,” she said. 

In our work in the Pacific, UNSW partners need to do collectively that which cannot be done individually.  

UNSW’s move to seventh in the THE Impact Rankings includes second in the world for SDG 13 Climate Action for the second year running and a rise to third for SDG 6 Clean Water and Sanitation. Our continued ranking of 19th in the QS World Rankings, which has been driven by the increased focus of the QS ranking on impact outcomes of universities, is also further evidence of our commitment to a more sustainable and equitable future and progress for all.  

But we need to do more. UNSW must ensure that we generate positive societal impact not just through externally focused research and teaching, but through our University’s internal operations. We must ‘walk the walk and talk the talk’. 

There has also recently been a significant increase in both legislative and societal demands on large organisations, including universities, to disclose their strategy and performance in relation to sustainability issues.  

In March, the University Leadership Team agreed that an Environmental Social Governance (ESG) Advisory Group be established to further focus on and ensure UNSW aligns and reports on our environmental, social and governance outcomes and goals. The Advisory Group aims to review and align investment frameworks, supply chains, policies, procedures and practices to appropriately consider SDG goals and ESG commitments. This would include moving to more proactive and transparent reporting, supporting UNSW’s sustainability leadership ambition in the context of our Societal Impact Framework and the new UNSW strategy.

This project’s outcomes are an important component of both the development of the UNSW strategy and the expectations of the Commonwealth and NSW governments regarding the implementation of mandatory climate-related financial disclosures for FY 2024-25. This will require delivery of the project aims over the next six months. The activities will be coordinated and led from the Division of Societal Impact, Equity & Engagement. We will be looking for engagement from across the University, including students and staff as well as the broader UNSW community, through upcoming consultations and expert working groups.   

We will provide further information on how you can get involved in the coming weeks.