Our commitment on climate action

Our position

We accept the evidence-based climate science and support the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change call for immediate, rapid and large-scale reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and protection and restoration of the biosphere.

In understanding the crises and responses, we acknowledge that we are situated on the unceded lands of the First Peoples and are the beneficiaries of their Knowledge and care of this land, water and species for thousands of generations of occupation of this place. First Peoples have not ceded their territories and have often been most egregiously impacted by colonisation, industrialisation, globalisation, farming, mining, and other uses of land, water, and species.

The UTS Business School supports urgent and immediate collaborative action to decarbonise the economy and regenerate Country and planetary health. While certain introduced exploitative and extractive industries have been drivers of exploitation of Country, we believe decarbonised, circular, and regenerative solutions can be designed to enable sustainable development.

We recognise that addressing existential challenges of such great magnitude impacts people’s wellbeing and livelihoods. Any effective solutions require coordinated action by governments, industry associations and business and community leaders.

What needs to be done

We at the UTS Business School believe that all institutions need to take responsibility for their role in generating the climate and planetary health crises.

Doing so requires:

• Closing the gap between knowledge and action by providing evidence-based research, education and advice to policymakers, business, and community leaders
• Respecting the inherent rights of First Peoples and their wisdom, by supporting Indigenous-led, self-determined opportunities that build strong relationships
• Committing to radical solutions through cross-sector cooperation and convening spaces for respectful deliberation between business leaders, economists, scientists, students, and community members
• Catalysing and nudging ‘just systems’ innovation
• Demonstrating how value chains, economic and social systems can be reorganised for decisive, long-lasting structural, behavioural and cultural change
• Generating inclusive and responsible thought leadership that questions the moral understanding of climate change in balance with other sustainable development aspirations

Our role

UTS Business School is committed to setting measurable, targeted goals and implementing action across all aspects of our work to align with the UTS Climate Positive Strategy.

We are committed to acting on this within current business timeframes of three to five years to not miss the opportunity for transformative change during this decade – for generations to come.

our teaching and learning, research and operations

Across our teaching and learning, research and operations, our role is to convene, host dialogue and partner with industry, organisations and policymakers to re-evaluate and innovate our economic knowledge systems.

Recognising First Peoples

Our role in the business school is to recognise that First Peoples have a role as owners and custodians of Country (UNDRIP 2007). We respect the inherent rights of First Peoples’ and their wisdom. Our role is to support Indigenous businesses that have presented mitigation solutions such as renewables, cultural burning, sustainable agriculture, culturally informed AI and many other enterprises.

Our research and education programs

Our research and education programs will support transformative change in economic systems and business models, including the implementation of:

• frameworks for physical and transition climate risk analytics and management
• climate-positive strategies, frameworks and business models
• evidence-based evaluation across a range of interrelated Sustainable Development Goals to foster positive change while highlighting maladaptive solutions,
• nature-based and innovative technological solutions for adaptive challenges,
• learning programs to equip our students to discern and make responsible judgements on how to implement and manage for a socially just transition,
• Indigenous-led, self-determined opportunities to build strong relationships, undertake research, and teaching both Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, including the Indigenous nation-building program.

How we do business

We will explore novel approaches to doing business and consider excluded perspectives:

• For whom do businesses create value for? And over what timeframe?
• Harmonising frameworks for Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) accountability and reporting to ensure consistency and transparency
• How to reconcile the short-term costs and long-term benefits of economic growth and social and environmental impacts
• What are the analytical tools, decision-making frameworks and problem-solving techniques that can re-set the trajectory for a liveable planet?
• What First Nations informed, innovative mechanisms can support care for Country, including the use of sustainable materials and exploration of incentives and regulatory mechanisms to support business’ contribution to sustainable economies and financial systems?
• How can indigenous businesses in renewables, cultural burning, sustainable agriculture, culturally informed AI be replicated?

This statement is supported by the UTS Business School’s commitment to the Principles of Responsible Management Education (PRME) and its collective mission. That is to develop the responsible decision-makers of tomorrow to advance sustainable development whilst ensuring our own organisational practices serve as examples of the values and attitudes we convey to our students.