Aberystwyth is UK Sustainable University of the Year

Aberystwyth

Aberystwyth University has been named University of the Year for Sustainabilityand climbed up the rankings in The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026.

The University gained the prestigious sustainability award for its new innovations on campus and academic performance in related subjects and other surveys.

The latest accolade for the west Wales coastal University comes after it rose into the UK top 30 in the People & Planet sustainability rankings for higher education. 

As part of its ambition to achieve a Net Zero estate by 2030, Aberystwyth has invested over £10 million in energy saving and renewable energy projects.

It has reduced its emissions by 43% in the last four years and recently developed a 2.5 megawatt solar array, which supplies nearly 25% of the annual electricity needs of its biggest campus and reduces carbon emissions by more than 500 tonnes a year. 

In the overall Times and Sunday Times rankings, Aberystwyth rose 6 places, reaching 42 out of the 133 universities surveyed.

In July, Aberystwyth was rated top university in Wales for student satisfaction in the National Student Survey, a position it has retained for the past ten years.

Vice-Chancellor of Aberystwyth University, Professor Jon Timmis, said:

“This is a wonderful achievement and reflects our commitment to reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and cutting our greenhouse gas emissions. Our significant investments in solar energy along with energy savings measures are all milestones towards our aim of decarbonising the University.  We are very grateful to all those partners who have been involved in these important developments. 

“We are an ambitious institution: our world-leading research and teaching in fields such as climate change inspires people to change lives for the better, grows knowledge, builds communities and strengthens Wales and the wider world. We are committed to tackling the challenges of climate change in as many ways as possible: not only through our research and teaching but also through our strategic institutional aims. Despite this progress, we are under no illusions that there is much that remains to be done as we tackle some of the underlying challenges society faces and we work to decarbonise our economy for the good of the planet.” 

Reacting to the Aberystwyth University’s improvement in the overall position in The Times and The Sunday Times, Professor Jon Timmis added:

“It’s heartening to see an overall rise in our rankings which highlights once again our excellent record on student experience and teaching quality here. We are an inclusive, bilingual and cosmopolitan place for learning and research, located in one of the most inspiring locations in the UK. Aberystwyth is recognised as a friendly, safe and affordable town, where students from across the world are welcomed and invited to make Aberystwyth their home.”  

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