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A tool to calculate the cost of reaching net zero for higher education providers and further eduction colleges has been delivered by Energise on behalf of AUDE, BUFDG and EAUC.
A report, The Cost of Net Zero, has been produced to support the calculator.
Membership associations AUDE (the Association of Higher Education Directors of Estates), BUFDG (the British Universities Finance Directors Group) and the EAUC (the Alliance for Sustainability Leadership in Education) have also made examples of the calculator in use from both a higher education and a further education setting available to answer the question: What is achieving a net zero carbon state going to cost?”
There was no consistently used and understood means of the likely overall cost of achieving a net zero carbon state for each institution. With no overall estimate of cost, universities and colleges have found it difficult to incorporate long-term sustainability planning into their usual financial and strategic planning mechanisms, never mind actually deliver the host of projects dependent on clear decision-making and sufficient funding.
The new Cost of Net Zero Calculator aims to give a standard means of answering this crucial question, and in doing so unlock investment funding for the many actions that are needed. This is urgent if the sector is to play its part in the national and international effort to halt climate change.
The report highlights the overall estimated cost of achieving net zero for the entire sector, which is £43.8bn (made up of £37.1bn for Higher Education and £6.7bn for Further Education) and how this is broken down:
- £29.1bn is within the supply chain, £8.8bn within the built environment and £6.1bn within the category of travel/transport
While this tool is a starting point, and will be improved in ongoing iterations, it will provide clear information that organisations need to adopt a long-term investment approach and arrange sustainable and reliable funding. Working with stakeholders including the Department for Education and devolved governments to unlock investment from the widest possible range of sources is one of the desired outcomes of this project.
For members of AUDE, BUFDG and the EAUC, the report makes clear the relative cost level and estimated carbon reduction achievable within each of the three categories of supply chain, built environment and travel/transport, together with specifics on what will need to be done, or how to influence our supply chain partners in delivering change.
Jane White, AUDE Executive Director, said:
University estates directors not only have a means to calculate the overall likely cost of bringing the estate to net zero carbon, but a checklist of the kinds of activity that will need to be prioritised. Within the built environment category of emissions, this includes energy efficiency projects, fuel switching, decarbonising catering operations, low carbon heating solutions such as district heating, and more.
As society changes we must lead that change, for instance in our support for lower carbon cost transport, electrification and the decarbonisation of the electricity supply. For those who haven’t yet started down this path, this is a good place to start, including for those who don’t want the expense of external consultancy support. For those that already have a map of where they are going and how much it will costs them this will help them sense check along the way. And that all HEIs should be thinking about being in this together and sharing their wins and losses.
Simon Alsbury, Energise, Co-CEO:
Energise is very pleased to deliver this project which is the first of its kind for the sector, with the principal purpose of supporting Universities and Colleges to improve their planning in this area. With input from various stakeholders and an expert advisory group, this project allows the expected cost of Net Zero to be understood through the report and provides a ‘cost of carbon’ calculator tool to support individual institutions to understand the cost of decarbonisation and develop a strategic level financial plan.
The tertiary education sector has a significant role to play in the journey to Net Zero, by reducing its own environmental footprint, helping to develop new climate solutions through research, being a driver of collaboration/innovation across the economy, and acting as an advocate for climate action. Therefore, we hope this project will not only help an incredibly vital sector move closer to Net Zero, but also help to accelerate our national progress towards a Net Zero future by 2050.
