The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) has been independently verified as carbon neutral for the academic year 2020/21, for all its measured emissions.
LSE was verified by global certification organisation BSI, against the internationally recognised standard for carbon neutrality, PAS 2060. This status was attained through ongoing work by LSE to reduce its carbon footprint and mitigate its residual emissions by supporting carbon reduction projects.
The university’s direct emissions have reduced by 44% since 2005, despite an increase in campus size and student numbers.
This was helped by a £4.8 million investment since 2015 in a range of energy efficiency measures for campus and residences buildings, including upgrading Building Management Systems, installing LED lights and advanced lighting controls, fitting solar panels, insulating pipes, or replacing boilers and chillers. LSE procures all the electricity it uses from 100% renewable sources such as solar and wind since 2009 and has retrofitted its buildings to optimise energy use.
These combined efforts have made it possible for LSE to take the additional measure of mitigating the emissions it cannot yet avoid, by partnering with Compensate Foundation to support carbon reduction projects abroad.
LSE Director Minouche Shafik said:“Becoming Carbon Neutral is a key milestone for LSE and reflects years of efforts and investment to reduce our carbon emissions.
“We will continue to follow a challenging carbon reduction pathway aligned with climate science, to support the transition to a net-zero carbon world.”
Professor Nicholas Stern, Chair of LSE’s Grantham Institute on Climate Change and the Environment said: “We hope LSE becoming Carbon Neutral is an inspiration for others to reduce their carbon footprint. Higher education institutions have a duty to show leadership and advocate for decisive action in tackling climate change, the challenge of our times.”
Niklas Kaskeala, Compensate Chief Impact Officer said: “Compensate carefully selects the highest quality carbon mitigation projects, using our stringent evaluation criteria created with our independent scientific panel. We are pleased to be a partner in supporting LSE mitigate its carbon emissions with integrity.”
Martin Townsend, Global Head of Sustainability at BSI, said: “In becoming the first organisation in the UK to be verified by BSI against its latest scheme LSE has successfully substantiated its carbon neutrality claims. This is an important and significant milestone. Reducing impacts on climate change is the most significant challenge we are facing today and LSE’s decision to verify its environmental claims positions the organisation as a true trailblazer.”
