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Students and staff at Â鶹ƵµÀ Leicester (DMU) have kick-started two weeks of sustainability-led events to drive positive change throughout the region.

As world leaders assemble in Baku, Azerbaijan for the world’s biggest climate change conference, Vice-Chancellor Professor Katie Normington officially launched COP29 at DMU by highlighting the sustainable efforts of staff and students at the university through teaching, research and action, before announcing two new initiatives. 

During her opening speech, she said: “As world leaders gather in Baku to address the planet's most pressing issues, it’s crucial that Â鶹ƵµÀ also takes action.

“Over the next two weeks, our staff, students, and wider community will engage in diverse events—from riverbank clean-ups to climate debates, and the DMU Climate Awards celebrating the work of our staff and students.

“Sustainability is at the core of our university and our strategy. We’ve made great progress as a university so far, but we must continue striving to do better.”

Professor Normington proceeded to introduce the "29 Ideas for COP29" initiative, which invites staff and students to submit sustainable campus improvement ideas, with the potential for implementation by DMU’s sustainability team.

The second half of the event saw the university officially launch its SDG Hub Fellows programme, aimed at creating a network of 100 academics, PhD students, and DMU staff dedicated to advancing the United Nations (UN’s) Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) across the university.

A series of presentations from the new SDG Fellows illustrated the range of impactful research projects already underway, ranging from supporting vulnerable refugees to addressing unsustainable fashion practices.

 SDG Fellow and PhD student, Holly Swift shared her excitement for being part of the programme and aligning her research with the SDGs, stating: “Quite a lot of my research involves international legal development and international politics, which is partly driven by the UN, it seemed fitting to include that within my research directly and include the SDGs alongside it.

“Bigger discussions, on how research links to common goals is important so we are all working in the same direction. Being part of the SDG Fellows brings all our research together, we can see each other's work and what we are working towards, having that community feel is great.”

She added: “It’s exciting that DMU is hosting COP29 events alongside the main summit in Baku. It makes these global discussions accessible to everyone, expanding the conversation beyond just one place or conference."

Mark Charlton, Associate Professor of Sustainable Development & Associate Director of DMU United Nations Academic Impact SDG Hub added: “The initiatives launched today aim to engage our staff and students in climate change activities and discussions to enable us to create a better campus, focus on new research, and to stimulate ideas for teaching.

“Launched on the same day as the talks in Baku where we have three members of academic staff in attendance, we are acutely aware of the significance of the talks going on overseas and we want to make sure our university is also taking climate change seriously.”

The two-week series of events at DMU will culminate in the DMU Climate Awards, celebrating the university’s continued progress in sustainability and recognising individuals who have made significant contributions to climate action.

As DMU strengthens its commitment to a sustainable future, the launch of the SDG Hub Fellows programme marks a significant milestone in its ongoing efforts to lead by example in addressing the world’s most pressing environmental challenges, as the only higher education institution in Britain to be a global hub for one of the UN SDGs – SDG 16 to promote peace, justice and strong institutions.

More information on COP29 events at DMU can be found: here.