The World Turned Upside Down
LSE is one of the top universities in the world for sustainability, according to the latest report from QS World University Rankings.
The ‘QS World University Rankings: Sustainability 2026’ placed the School as
sixth in the world overall, fourth in Europe and third in the UK, with a strong performance
across a range of measures, and notable high scores for ‘Environmental
Sustainability’ ,‘Impact of Education’ and ‘Equality’.
On the Equality measure, which assesses the effort and impact of an institution’s equality commitment, LSE is rated as number one in the UK. For Environmental Sustainability, looking at the institution’s strategy and operations, we are ranked as sixth in the world and third in the UK.
Responding to the QS Sustainability rankings, LSE President and Vice Chancellor, Professor Larry Kramer, said,
“This is a welcome recognition of the all the efforts by our staff, students, alumni and wider community to embed sustainability across LSE.
“Tackling the climate and sustainability crises is a central concern for everyone, but particularly for social scientists. At LSE we aim to provide the vital research and ideas the world needs while also leading the way in our institutional practices.
“There is, of course, always more to do and we look forward to building on the fantastic progress we have made.”
The ranking
follows a raft of developments in sustainability for LSE, including the launch of LSE’s Global School of Sustainability (GSoS). The
new Global School brings together world-leading experts to inform policy on the
economic growth, social inclusion and environmental protections crucial to
ensuring a sustainable future.
On campus, LSE’s newest building, the Firoz Lalji Global Hub, will be the School’s first net-zero
building (in construction and operation) that is also PassivHaus (has highly
efficient building design), BREEAM Outstanding (sustainable building
certified), and WELL Platinum certified (based on wellbeing and health).
In terms of education and wider learning, earlier in 2025 the Eden Centre launched the Education for Sustainability Internship Programme, enabling student interns to work with
academic staff to embed sustainability into the curriculum.
