The Research Office has published a practical guide to help academics and research enabling staff to integrate environmental sustainability into their research and innovation practice. This new reflective resource outlines what to consider at each stage of planning for different types of research activities and provides direct support for developing strong, sustainability‑aligned research grant applications. The reflective resource responds to wider developments in the UK R&I sector to advance environmental sustainability of research such as the Concordat for the Environmental Sustainability of Research and Innovation Practice.
By signing the Concordat in October 2024, the University of Cambridge recognises the need to embed sustainability into the way research and innovation is conducted. Additionally, major UK research funders — including Wellcome and Cancer Research UK — have moved from guidance to formal compliance, requiring institutions to demonstrate sustainable research practices as a condition of funding. This shift signals that environmental sustainability is now an even more central component of research governance.