IT sustainability progress

We are already making strong progress on reducing the environmental impact of our technologies and services, aligned with our sustainability plan.

Data centres

Our University’s two data centres are 100% powered by market-based wind and solar electricity, backed by REGO certificates and third-party validation.

Procurement

As our contracts with external suppliers and partners come up for renewal, we are including environmental sustainability questions in our assessments. We recently awarded the contract for the replacement of our network hardware to Softcat, who by demonstrating great commitment and effectiveness, scored highest of all the bidders on social responsibility and sustainability criteria.

Websites

We use BrowserStack to test and assess our web pages. While not a specific carbon-evaluation tool, it makes our web pages more energy efficient by identifying and fixing performance issues that would otherwise cause unnecessary high levels of data transfer, computation, and rendering times.

Digital infrastructure

Our plan sets out an approach to measuring and reducing emissions from digital infrastructure:

  • Create a baseline energy consumption report and develop an action plan to reduce consumption and improve efficiency in 2026.
  • Create a baseline utilisation report and develop an improvement plan in 2026.
  • Incorporate energy efficiency and optimisation of utilisation into design principles that are owned by Enterprise and Business Architecture in 2026.
  • Implement annual monitoring of energy consumption and utilisation and set Key Performance Indicators from 2025/6 onwards.

Guidance on minimising energy consumption

Our engagement programme for colleagues and students, No Time to Waste, has guidance on minimising energy consumption from digital infrastructure, including incentives to undertake a digital clean-up and how to use AI wisely.

Guidance on the use of AI

Our University has extensive guidance for colleagues and students on the use of Artificial Intelligence. The guidance details risks and recommended usage of AI relating to human accountability, intelligence risks, unreliability of output, privacy, legality, and climate impacts. This includes specific guidance on the environmentally responsible use of AI. In addition, the University has a mandatory AI course for all colleagues which includes a section on environmental sustainability.

Minimising e-waste

Our University’s approach to e-waste follows the “5 R's Framework”. We purchase our IT equipment from Converge, an EcoVadis Silver rated supplier, to reduce our upstream supply chain impacts.

  • We aim to maximise the lifespan of our devices by keeping them in use for as long as possible. When they are no longer needed, they enter a sustainable reuse and recycling process.
  • Devices that remain functional may be donated to charitable causes, while others are refurbished and resold.
  • Any remaining equipment is carefully dismantled so that components and materials can be recovered and reused wherever possible.
  • Materials that cannot be recycled are processed through energy recovery, helping to generate electricity and minimise waste sent to landfill.
  • This certified process generates social value and avoids multiple environmental harms.

View an infographic from Converge showing our most recent statistics: