Drive Sustainability
Drive Sustainability will leverage our research excellence and global reach to help create solutions that boldly address global sustainability challenges. Our global sustainability strategy will lead us as we share the insights from our sector-leading approach and our pioneering research with the wider world so that we can act together to find ways to ensure a sustainable future.
Drive Sustainability will unite us as a community of action and demonstrate our commitment to shaping sustainable futures across our five campuses. It will also shed light on how we can lead by example for other universities and organisations worldwide.
Our goal is to raise over £28 million for facilities that will house and showcase our pioneering research, education initiatives, and solutions to complex sustainability challenges.
Learn more below about how we will shape a better future by driving sustainability.
iNetZ+
iNetZ+ is our Global Research Institute for Achieving Net Zero and Beyond. It exists to tackle the global climate emergency, particularly related to net zero and beyond. We will achieve this by collaborating with local communities, governments and industrial partners to deliver market-ready solutions that will help tackle some of the biggest global sustainability challenges.
World-leading researchers from our campuses in Scotland, Malaysia and Dubai will work with communities and partners to transform Heriot-Watt University’s state-of-the-art campuses into accessible, interactive test beds for innovative ideas and solutions, and provide distinctive pathways to impact.
Together, we will transition beyond net zero.
Learn more about iNetZ+ net zero and beyond
Net Zero Community Hub
The primary mission of the Net Zero Community Hub is to accelerate our transition to a net zero global community through engagement. We plan to have a digital space to help transform collaborations with our global campuses and aim to create a physical hub at the heart of the University’s campus in Edinburgh. The Net Zero Community Hub will drive impactful community action via students, staff, alumni, local groups and neighbourhoods. It will also partner with other relevant organisations to display their sustainability initiatives and milestones.
Heriot-Watt is a research-intensive university renowned for expertise in industrial decarbonisation, sustainable building design and energy transition. We will help accelerate efforts to find solutions to a variety of sustainability challenges.
Together, we will activate global climate advocacy.
Learn more about the Net Zero Community Hub
The Lyell Centre
The Lyell Centre for Earth and Marine Sciences and Technology brings together expertise in Earth and marine sciences with cutting-edge technologies to address global challenges confronting the planet, nature and people. From the deep sub-surface of the Earth to the surface of our oceans and the catchments of rainforests, from polar regions to the tropics, we are committed to finding sustainable solutions to the grand challenges facing human society and our planet.
‘The Lyell Centre stands as a beacon of interdisciplinary excellence, driving forward our understanding of Earth and marine sciences. By fostering collaboration between academia, industry, and government, we are not only unlocking the mysteries of our planet but also addressing global challenges such as climate change and sustainable resource management. The work done here reflects Heriot-Watt's commitment to impactful research that shapes a better future for all.’
- Professor Steve McLaughlin, Vice Principal and Provost
Together, we will create an equitable and sustainable world.
Learn more about The Lyell Centre
It Happens Here
Global Sustainability Strategy
Heriot-Watt has 10 Institutional Commitments that form our global sustainability strategy to reduce our environmental impact, enhance our climate mitigation, and contribute to sector-wide efforts
Award Winning Innovations
Spin-out Kenoteq, inventor of the K-Briq won the 2020 STEM Research Project of the Year Award and in 2022, the International Dezeen Sustainability Award
Reducing Environmental Impact of Medical Waste
By developing sustainable lateral flow tests, using upcycled materials, we are significantly reducing the environmental impact of medical waste
