University Launches New Programmes In Sustainable Business

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Lancashire Business School at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) has become the first Business School in the UK to launch programmes in Sustainable Business at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. The full and part-time courses will start in September 2008 - and the University is currently accepting applications for entry.

With a strong focus on the future of business, the programmes will examine areas of corporate social responsibility, the environmental impact of business and the force of climate change as well as social, cultural or technological strategies to deal with these issues.

The Course Director, Geoff Thwaites, explained: "There is an increasing awareness of the need for developments and operations in business to be sustainable. Many of the world’s major companies, governments and public sector organisations are already addressing the ‘sustainability agenda’ and are seeking a new generation of professionals who can help them achieve the balance between economic, environmental and social goals."

The programmes tie in with UCLan’s commitment to be a model international University for sustainability. Earlier this year, UCLan was one of only twelve organisations from across England and Scotland to achieve the “Carbon Trust Standard”, a new certificate launched as the only way for organisations to prove they are tackling climate change and have made genuine reductions in their carbon emissions. Projects so far have included the installation of energy efficient lighting and 600 solar panels across the University, thought to be the largest project of its type among universities in the UK.

UCLan's green credentials have also been recognised in People and Planet’s Green League for 2008. The table, which measures the environmental management and performance amongst universities across the UK, places UCLan in fifth place out of 121 institutions overall - a rise in 45 places since last year.

Geoff Thwaites continued: "We recognise that sustainability is one of the key issues for large organisations today, be it commercial businesses or universities such as our own. Our new courses seek to equip students with a broad range of skills and knowledge relevant to organisations in the 21st Century."