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In brief
Like in many other sectors, higher education leaders and boards recognize that their key constituents want to be part of purpose-led organizations that are doing the right thing. A deliberate environment, social and governance (ESG) strategy, accompanied by a coherent framework of actions and transparent communications about the impacts of these actions, can go a long way in helping an institution attract and retain students, faculty and staff, while also enhancing relationships with the wider community.
While an ESG strategy requires support at the highest levels of the organization to signal commitment, it also needs to be embraced throughout the organization to actually take hold and deliver results.
Focusing on environment, the first part of ESG, the EY-Parthenon team found that 75% of 176 institutions surveyed in February 2022 indicate that environmental sustainability is important to them, as well as to their stakeholders (Figure 1). The survey included finance, operations and academic administrators at universities across the US.
How EY-Parthenon can help
EY-Parthenon professionals recognize that CEOs and business leaders are tasked with achieving maximum value for their organizations’ stakeholders in this transformative age. We challenge assumptions to design and deliver strategies that help improve profitability and long-term value.
Read moreBut how institutions plan to reach their goals is changing. Institutions initially relied on more easily implemented strategies, such as education of students, faculty and staff to change behavior; upgrading campus infrastructure and building technology to improve energy efficiencies; and on-campus initiatives such as local food sourcing for dining halls or tree-planting. Having addressed a lot of the “low-hanging fruit,” institutions are now increasingly turning to opportunities that decrease reliance on fossil fuels and increase usage of renewable energy sources. These strategies include producing or purchasing renewable energy (to address scope 2 emissions) or leveraging public-private partnerships to deploy a range of new technologies to address scope 1 emissions.
Our report may help education leaders:
Reducing a college or university’s carbon footprint is a big undertaking. But a well-thought-out plan to drive environmental sustainability is one element to a wider ESG strategy, which can make a higher education institution attractive to students, faculty and staff who want to be associated with a purpose-led organization.
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