Leiden University 17th in global sustainability ranking
Leiden University has taken 17th place in the UI Green Metric, a global sustainability ranking for universities. Over 1,400 universities from all around the world took part in the ranking.
The UI Green Metric is the initiative of the University of Indonesia (UI). Each year it assesses how universities around the world deal with matters such as energy, climate, waste recycling, transport and water. It also looks at the extent to which sustainability is included in their research and teaching, and how much budget goes toward this.
Dutch universities
This year, 1,477 universities took part in the ranking, 300 more than last year. Leiden University is in 17th place, three places lower than last year, making it the third most sustainable university in the Netherlands. The University of Groningen is the second most sustainable university in the Netherlands at third place in this year’s list. Wageningen University & Research is number one in the ranking and for the eighth time running the most sustainable university in the world.
The top five for 2025 is:
- Wageningen University & Research
- Nottingham Trent University
- University of Groningen
- University College Cork
- Universidade de Sao Paulo USP
Sustainable on (almost) all fronts
Leiden University was awarded 9,100 out of a possible 10,000 points, meaning its overall score has dropped by 100 points since last year. This is because the criteria for the UI Green Metric have been tightened. Leiden scored best in the Waste, Transportation and Water categories, receiving full marks for these. It scored lowest in the category of Settings & Infrastructure. Our urban setting makes it difficult for us to improve here: the options for more greenery are limited, particularly on Campus The Hague and in the centre of Leiden. We will double down on our efforts here in the next few years, increasing, for example, our focus on campus biodiversity.
The full ranking, by category, can be found on the UI Green Metric website.