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Provost & President

Our Approach

As a university of global consequence, Trinity has a responsibility to restore and protect our environment and to take action against climate change by reducing our greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs).

To this end, we are committed to implementing the nine ‘Sustainability Initiatives’ developed for the Green Campus Programme which align with the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).Our initiatives are rooted in the values of freedom and independence of thought, respect for individual talents, and commitment to innovative research and active global citizenship.

The Green Campus Programme
The Green Campus Programme is in place to engage the entire college community in a long-term commitment to enhance sustainability on campus. The 'Green Flag' is awarded to institutions that satisfy a detailed assessment of progress undertaken by An Taisce. 

Trinity was granted a ‘Green Flag’ by An Taisce in 2013, the first university in a European capital city to obtain this recognition. Trinity's Green Campus status was renewed for a second time in April 2019 in recognition of our improvement under our nine sustainability initiatives:

  • Biodiversity
  • Communication and Student Engagement
  • Energy Consumption and Climate Change
  • Sustainable Procurement 
  • Resource Consumption 
  • Sustainable Transport 
  • Sustainability Education, Research and Entrepreneurship 
  • Waste Management
  • Waste and Wastewater

Organisational Structure
In order to achieve its targets as a Green Campus, Trinity has established an organisational structure that encourages and facilitates the engagement of all students, faculty and staff on sustainability initiatives. 

The Green Campus Committee (GCC) and the Provost's Sustainability Advisory Group cooperate to formulate and implement policy - the former ensures that all decisions represent the college community and the latter drives sustainability at senior management levels. The Students' Union Environmental Officer holds a position on the GCC and is a direct point of contact for students interested in sustainability.

Trinity has established a number of policies and strategies which encourage environmentally preferable behaviours and drive our campus sustainability initiatives:

Trinity publishes a Sustainability Report annually, which describes our progress on achieving the goals we have set.