How Indian universities are rethinking sustainability
Sustainability has steadily shifted from a peripheral concern to a central question confronting Indian universities. What was once discussed largely in policy documents, environmental science classrooms, or ceremonial speeches is now influencing how campuses are designed, how academic programs are structured, and how institutions understand their public role. This transition is neither accidental nor purely aspirational. It is unfolding in response to mounting environmental pressures, resource constraints, and growing societal expectations that universities must lead by example.
Indian universities occupy a distinctive position in this debate. They are large consumers of energy and water, custodians of extensive land resources, and educators of millions of young citizens each year. Their decisions therefore carry consequences far beyond campus boundaries. Sustainability, in this context, is not simply an environmental issue but an institutional responsibility tied to national development and intergenerational equity.
At the most visible level, sustainability has entered university life through changes in campus operations. Renewable energy installations—particularly solar power—have become increasingly common, driven by rising electricity costs and policy incentives. Rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge, and wastewater recycling systems are now widely promoted, especially in regions facing acute water stress. Waste management practices, including segregation at source, composting of organic waste, and restrictions on single-use plastics, are also gaining ground.
These measures are often framed as environmental interventions, but they also reflect pragmatic financial logic. For resource-constrained institutions, sustainability can translate into cost containment and operational resilience. What sets universities apart from other large organisations, however, is the educational value embedded in these choices. When sustainability is visible in everyday campus life, students encounter it not as an abstract concept but as a lived reality.
The influence of sustainability is also increasingly evident in teaching and learning. Environmental awareness courses are now common at the undergraduate level, and sustainability-related themes have begun to permeate disciplines as diverse as management, engineering, public policy, and the social sciences. Issues such as climate risk, sustainable finance, public health, and urban resilience are no longer confined to specialised programmes.
Yet this integration remains uneven. In many institutions, sustainability appears as an additional subject rather than a foundational way of thinking. Courses may introduce environmental concerns without fundamentally reorienting how students are trained to analyse problems, evaluate trade-offs, or consider long-term consequences. The deeper challenge lies in embedding systems thinking, interdisciplinarity, and ethical reflection across curricula—an ambition that is still far from being uniformly realised.
Research is arguably where Indian universities make their most substantive contribution to sustainability. Academic inquiry informs public debates on renewable energy transitions, climate adaptation, water security, sustainable agriculture, and urban development. Universities provide a rare space where long-term challenges can be examined beyond short-term market pressures or electoral cycles. This intellectual independence is critical in addressing problems whose impacts unfold over decades rather than years.
Equally important is the role of Indian scholarship in contextualising global sustainability ideas. Many dominant sustainability frameworks originate in high-income contexts with different resource endowments and institutional capacities. Indian research brings to the fore questions of scale, affordability, inclusion, and governance—ensuring that sustainability is not reduced to imported templates but grounded in local realities.
Despite these advances, progress has been constrained by structural and institutional challenges. Financial limitations remain the most immediate obstacle. Public universities, in particular, operate under tight budgetary conditions that prioritise access, enrolment expansion, and staffing over infrastructure renewal. Sustainable buildings and systems often require upfront investment, even when they promise long-term savings. In such contexts, sustainability initiatives can struggle to compete with more immediate demands.
Governance arrangements pose another challenge. Responsibility for sustainability is frequently dispersed across multiple administrative units, resulting in fragmented decision-making and weak accountability. Without clear leadership ownership, sustainability efforts risk becoming symbolic—highly visible but shallow in impact. Much depends on individual champions, making initiatives vulnerable to leadership turnover or shifting priorities.
There is also a quieter but more profound issue of incentives. Academic success in India continues to be measured largely through research output, rankings, and graduate placements. While sustainability is widely endorsed in principle, it rarely carries equivalent weight in institutional evaluation or career progression. This misalignment slows the pace of change and discourages deeper integration.
Even so, certain practices emerging across Indian campuses point to what is possible. Some universities are using their campuses as living laboratories, where energy systems, water infrastructure, and biodiversity zones are integrated into teaching and research. Others have developed strong links with surrounding communities, addressing local challenges such as water access, waste management, or livelihood security while creating opportunities for student learning. Student-led sustainability initiatives have also gained momentum, influencing everyday decisions on mobility, consumption, and waste.
Beyond campus boundaries, universities play a subtler but no less important role in shaping sustainability policy. Academic expertise informs national discussions on climate action, development planning, and environmental regulation. Faculty members contribute to advisory bodies, technical committees, and public consultations, translating research into policy-relevant insights. At the international level, Indian universities bring perspectives that highlight the tension between environmental responsibility and developmental imperatives—an issue central to global sustainability debates.
The future trajectory of sustainability in Indian universities will depend on whether it evolves from a collection of projects into a guiding institutional principle. Many academic leaders argue that sustainability must be embedded in governance frameworks, funding decisions, curriculum design, and leadership evaluation if it is to have lasting impact. This requires moving beyond episodic initiatives toward systemic change.
At the same time, there is a risk that sustainability becomes primarily a branding exercise. Highly visible green projects can create an impression of progress without addressing deeper organisational practices or pedagogical priorities. The challenge for universities is to ensure that sustainability is not only seen but also lived—shaping decisions, behaviours, and institutional culture.
Indian universities are not yet fully sustainable institutions. But they are evolving, often quietly and incrementally. In a country where the environmental choices made today will shape social and economic outcomes for generations, the direction universities take matters profoundly. By rethinking how they operate, teach, and engage with society, Indian universities have the potential to influence not only their students, but the broader trajectory of sustainable development itself.
Sanjay Fuloria is Professor and Director Center for Distance and Online Education (CDOE), ICFAI Foundation for Higher Education (IFHE), a Deemed to be University, Hyderabad
Views expressed are the author’s own and don’t necessarily reflect those of Down To Earth