Our sustainable curriculum, research and careers

Developing students with embedded knowledge and sustainability values is a core commitment of our University Strategic Plan, where we commit to embedding Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) into all of our degree courses. We also seek to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) through our research activities. 

The Curriculum for Social Justice

To achieve this, we have developed our own university-wide framework - The Curriculum for Social Justice, which embeds sustainability values and themes throughout. 

This Sustainable Curriculum framework is based upon an ethical imperative to do our best for all our students and will be instrumental in closing the awarding gap, improving the educational experiences that we deliver, creating the best possible outcomes for all our students, and producing socially responsible and sustainable citizens of the future. 

This framework is being led by Fiona Shelton, Dean of the Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT). Each strand has been developed by key representatives of our academic community, staff, students, Office for Institutional Equity and professional services. The Director of Sustainability, Katie Clegg, co-leads the Education for Sustainable Development strand. Key members of this group also sit on the Framework programme board, which reviews its progress and reports to the University Executive via Academic and Student Experience Boards. Progress of the Curriculum for Social Justice is also a University KPI and reported annually to the University Executive via CELT. 

The programme provides a framework, guidance, training, resources and support to our wider academic community to enable them to embed education for sustainability development. It also supports academic staff in incorporating a number of interconnected themes, such as race equity and wellbeing, into their programmes. Since 2023, numerous workshops and sessions have been undertaken with staff to introduce the Curriculum for Social Justice Framework, such as the annual CELT Learning and Teaching Conference and localised staff briefings, to provide space for creative dialogue, collaboration and participation in education for sustainable development. 

Throughout the Spring semester of 2024, we delivered five cross-institutional training days and provided resources designed to support academic programme leads to embed the Curriculum for Social Justice (and ESD) into their programmes. These occurred on 20th March 2024, 28th March 2024, 12th April 2024, 16th April 2024 and 23rd May 2024 and were attended by all programme leads across the University.

In 2025, five further embedding and best practice training workshops have been held for programme leaders throughout the Spring semester. Two of these sessions were specifically attended by the Director of Sustainability to deliver a talk on ESD. As part of the guidance pack for the academics on ESD, we encourage the use of Living Lab opportunities.  

This is an ongoing annual programme of support, training and guidance to ensure that programmes continue to drive improvement and innovation. Requirements to address the Curriculum for Social Justice (and ESD) are embedded into programme QA and approval processes to ensure continual improvement.  

Level 4 Professional Challenge

Progressing the UN SDGs via real-world learning and a Living Lab approach

Our commitment to employability and sustainability, as well as our commitment to the City Region, come together at the end of the academic year through the Sustainability-based Level 4 Professional Challenge. Students are placed in multi-disciplinary groups, and they must work together and as individuals to approach and respond to a real-world sustainability challenge.

Through this, the university is keen to ensure that all students are aware of the sustainability agenda and feel empowered to contribute as socially responsible citizens.

The themes of the activities are focused around:

  • Developing key employability skills in communication, teamwork, and problem-solving
  • The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs)
  • Learning more about some of the challenges and opportunities within the Leeds City Region

2025 will be the fourth year that the Professional Challenge has run, and over the last three years, over 1,500 students have taken part. Real-world living lab challenges are set by external and regional businesses and organisations. These are “wicked” real sustainability problems that give students the opportunity to explore sustainability issues and come up with solutions for these businesses.

In May 2025, Leeds Trinity University hosted one of the challenges to give students the opportunity to develop an idea or initiative, up to a value of £1000, to engage the University community in sustainability and improve behaviours. Ideas ranged from mental health initiatives, community gardens, sustainable fashion and recycling initiatives. These ideas will directly feed into sustainability action planning and budgeting for the university and develop ideas for student co-creation and Living lab approaches in the coming years.

Challenge setter Katie Clegg presenting the challenge.
Student presenting the Professional Practice Challenge.
Professional Challenge - Most Innovative Award Winners.
Professional Challenge - Most Innovative Award Winners.

Sustainable Development Research activities

In April 2025, Leeds Trinity University became a signatory to the Concordat for the Environmental Sustainability of Research and Innovation Practice and is working towards implementing the principles of this to enable environmentally sustainable research behaviours.

View our Letter of Commitment to the priorities of the Concordat for the Environmental Sustainability of Research and Innovation.

We have also created an Interdisciplinary Environmental Sustainability Research Group for academic staff to collaborate on research opportunities and share best practice in environmental sustainability research. For more information and to join the group, contact Laura De Pretto - L.dePretto@leedstrinity.ac.uk.

Examples of our work to advance Sustainable Development can be found through searching our Research Portal and through our Sustainability news articles.

Sustainable Careers

LTU Careers+Placements aims to work with a wide range of organisations that can actively support the development of our students and provide opportunities. Careers+Placements is committed to promoting sustainability and social responsibility, and therefore:  

  • Actively supports advancing the UN Sustainability Development Goals throughout its career’s curriculum
  • Encourages partnerships with organisations that demonstrate ethical integrity
  • Supports environmentally responsible practices
  • Seeks to contribute positive value to society through collaboration

Please see our Careers+Placements Ethical Careers Approach for further details.  

For more information on the support available, please contact our Careers and Placements team careers@leedstrinity.ac.uk / placements@leedstrinity.ac.uk.

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